Do Your Operators Have the Situational Awareness They Need to Succeed?

Situational awareness is a tactical concept that we see employed across all industries. Simply stated, it is the awareness of one’s basic surroundings. When applied to the corporate setting, the concept includes awareness of the competitive environment, trends in the industry, knowledge of strengths & weaknesses, business metrics, and other aspects relating to operations and governance.

There are three key components to achieving situational awareness.

1. Perception of the elements in the environment. To be aware of environmental elements means there is a knowledge of weather conditions, SCADA telemetry, market prices, unit status, technology health, and employee well-being.
2. Comprehension of the situation. Knowing the elements in the environment is helpful, but truly understanding their importance and how the elements interact is vital. At this stage, an energy company has a firm grasp on the relationship between their decisions and grid/market operations.
3. Projection of future status. Once the current environment is known and understood, the company can begin to develop projections on how the future will unfold, as well as learn how to adapt to various environmental factors. At this stage, the company is making choices that solidify its readiness and position within the market.

Not all situational awareness cases are the same. For example, data points are better than no data points; historical trends are better than data points; and real-time trends are better than historical trends. It is far less beneficial for an operator to be informed of a mistake weeks after it occurred – a lag typically attributed to backlogged data analysis. It is much more beneficial for an operator to have visibility of a real-time trend and the ability to make on-course corrections.

So how do you cultivate an organization that is situationally aware and able to make well-informed financial decisions? Having a robust, centralized tool to track metrics, observe market movements, and analyze data inputs is where you begin.

Power Settlements developed the SettleCore^TM – Visual Analytics Module to provide a visual dashboard for Generators, Load Serving Entities, and Balancing Authorities to instantly analyze ISO/RTO and internal data including Schedules, Real-Time Dispatch, Meter, Pricing, Position Management, and Profits and Losses in a single graphical interface. It’s the leading platform to view and analyze ISO data with internal data and is used across the entire organization, from the generation dispatchers through executive management. The Visual Analytics Module is able to show what is occurring real-time in the markets, fostering situational awareness for your organization and providing management the resources they need to continue making well-informed decisions.

Contact us today to discuss how the Visual Analytics Module can help your company prosper.