About

TQS Research of Atlanta, Georgia specializes in business-to-business research among the largest energy users in the USA and Canada.  We have been an affiliate member of ELCON since 1996, and are very proud of our accomplishments.  It is our goal to assist electric utilities with their strategic marketing by exceeding the needs and expectations of their largest customers.  However, we are equally proud of the consulting services that we have provided to the utility industry that has resulted in numerous improvements to this important market segment.  I hope you will take a few minutes and review some of our accomplishments:
     In 1994 we began our annual opinion survey of the 7500 largest manufacturing facilities in the United States.  Over 6500 individual plant sites participate each year in this annual study.
     We recently completed the fieldwork for our sixteenth annual TQS Benchmark of sixty plus electric utilities.  The results are based on the perception of the plant management of the largest manufacturing facilities, hospitals, and universities in the USA.
     Approximately fifty utilities have purchased their results over the past fourteen years.  Some of the largest utilities in the nation have been clients of TQS including American Electric Power, Allegheny Energy, Southern Company; Dominion Power, Pacific Gas & Electric; Southern California Edison, Portland General Electric, PacifiCorp, Duke Power, Cinergy (Duke Energy-Midwest), Entergy, Florida Power & Light, Progress Energy, Consumers Power, Detroit Edison, Virginia Power, TVA, South Carolina E & G, MidAmerican Energy, Reliant Energy, Xcel Energy, Pennsylvania Power & Light, Baltimore Gas & Electric, Conectiv, Etc.  Out of the Top 10 utilities in the nation, eight are existing clients of TQS.  In addition, the Most Improved in 2001 and 2002 are both clients of TQS.
     Immediately after the merger of several companies that formed MidAmerican Energy, we provided consulting service to their implementation team.  This included a joint planning program between the five largest customers of MidAmerican Energy and their new management.  Twenty recommendations for improving service to their largest customers were approved by their president.  In 2002 MidAmerican finished number 2 in the USA and only four tenths of a percentage point behind Duke Power.  In 2008 they moved up to number one.
     In addition to the work with large Key Account, TQS has provided additional Customer Satisfaction and Value research for the smaller business accounts (100-999 kW).  Research for these smaller businesses has been provided to the Southern Company, Duke Power, SCE&G, MidAmerican Energy, AEP, Consumers Energy,  Allegheny Power, Minnesota Power, PG&E, and PacifiCorp.
     TQS recently completed a Best Practices project, by identifying the tactics and strategies of the electric utilities that finished in our Top Ten.  The project concentrates on Account Management and Customer Service to large key accounts (over 1 mw).  The objective of the research was to determine what the Top 10 utilities in our National Benchmark of Utilities, were doing to be held in such high esteem by their largest customers.  Face to face interviews were completed with Duke Power, MidAmerican Energy, South Carolina E&G, Southern Company, Florida P&L, PacifiCorp, and Wisconsin PS.  In addition, these utilities participated in a two-day workshop in Atlanta that further explored the account management programs.  The project, know as the “Best of the Best” helped other utilities identify areas that need improvement and to learn from the processes and programs that are known to work.
     We have used the results of the Key Account Benchmark, The Corporate Energy Managers Study and the Best Practices Project to conduct strategic planning, idea generation or implementation workshops for some of our existing clients.  
Utility & Accomplishment
PacifiCorp     Moved from 23rd in 2002 to 6th in 2003, to 3rd in 2004 and to 1st in 2005 and 2006.  93% of their customers were very satisfied in 2006.
MidAmerican Energy     Improved from 15th in 1999 to 1st in the Nation and 1st in the Midwest in 2008.  92% of their customers were very satisfied in 2008.
Southern Company     Experienced continuous improvement during the past 5 years moving to 3rd in the Nation and 1st in the Southeast region.  88% of their Key Accounts are very satisfied.  If reporting on an operating company level, all 4 would be in our Top 10.
Cinergy     Improved from 25th in 2003 to 6th in 2007
TQS provides a Win-Win approach to the events shaping the electric utility industry.  We assist the electric utilities with improving their marketing programs, creating customer loyalty, providing unregulated services, and marketing in the states with customer choice.  The above clearly shows that we go way beyond just providing POWERful information, by actually assisting each of our customers to improve their performance