Client Synopsis
SA Power NetworksOrganisation Overview
SA Power Networks (formerly ETSA Utilities) operates the electricity distribution network for South Australia, comprising of thousands of kilometres of power lines and hundreds of substations. The primary regulated services it provides to the South Australian community include:
- Delivering electricity from a high voltage network to homes and businesses;
- Installing, maintaining and reading meters;
- Providing an emergency response in the event of blackouts;
- Repairing street lighting.
Apart from the regulated aspect of the business, SA Power Utilities also provides electrical infrastructure project management and construction and maintenance services for other businesses and the state government.
Fragile to Agile Engagement
At the time of the engagement, SA Power Networks (SAPN) had just completed the development of a 2026 strategic vision for its business, referred to as its Future Operating Model (FOM). Fragile to Agile was engaged to develop an Integrated Technology and Systems Plan (ITSP) to act as the technology response to the FOM which included the design of a target state solution architecture to ensure a technology platform to enable and support its objectives.
In more detail, the purpose of the ITSP was to:
- Ensure that SA Power Networks’ technology and systems are able to meet the demands of the changing business landscape;
- Provide key stakeholders with an understanding of the future technology direction at SA Power Networks;
- Identify key emerging technology trends that SAPN should consider and initiate opportunities to implement some of the foundations required for the future;
- Ensure that no technology dead ends are travelled by projects being planned over the coming decade, but if there needs to be any to meet tactical imperatives, that they are conducted with clear justification;
- Deliver a set of design principles and directives that could be applied to technology solutions that, once enforced, would ensure support for the business strategy;
- Establish the necessary governance bodies and processes to enforce, or grant exceptions where applicable to, the technology design principles and standards.
The ITSP was developed in consultation with SAPN executives and subject matter experts from all areas of the business. Leveraging an F2A developed Business Capability Model, the ITSP considered business needs across all aspects of the organisation and a target state for technology and systems was developed. The plan also looked holistically at the current state of technology and systems and their ability to support the proposed target state. A roadmap of projects to affect a transformation to the target state was then identified and endorsed by the SA Power Networks’ executive and is currently underway.
In addition, F2A established all three arms of governance for the transformation program being, “the legislation” i.e. technology principles that needed to be adopted; “the courts” i.e. an architecture board and associated processes and the “police force” i.e. enhancements to change processes to incorporate appropriate checkpoints for adherence to the principles. This included establishing data and information management governance in addition to general architecture governance.
Finally, Fragile to Agile developed a full logical data model for SAPN, aligned and mapped to the Business Capability Model for SAPN, to drive its’ information management program and support its BI, analytics and SOA programs. We also then developed a partial canonical data model (language for the ESB) covering the customer management subject area of the logical data model.