Why I work in water: Tania Adams

Data analyst Tania Adams is playing a key role within a “small but effective” team that has been achieving water savings the equivalent of 760 Olympic-sized swimming pools every year.

After initially joining Hunter Water’s digital ranks to provide administration, financial and project management support, Tania later stepped up to take on a new challenge.

“In 2018, as the drought took hold, an opening came along to work with the Drought Response team to improve customer insights,” she says.

“This was a fantastic opportunity to get a better understanding of how Hunter Water operates, as well as a new challenge to get involved in navigating our way through unchartered territory.

“I was looking after the data analytics to improve our understanding of customer behaviours and ensure our activities were targeted and timely, while also managing exemption applications and breaches, monitoring a Find and Fix Leaks initiative, and reporting ongoing changes to existing processes as we progressed through the different stages of water restrictions.

“We worked closely with Lower Hunter councils and large and major non-residential customers, building relationships as we identified opportunities to implement water saving initiatives across our region.

“My ability to obtain water usage profiles provided excellent insight to our customers so they could make smart decisions based on their consumption history.”

Over the past four years, Hunter Water has achieved water savings of 1.9 gigalitres per annum through repairing leaks and implementing Water Efficiency Management Plan (WEMP) initiatives.

An innovative new tool is also being developed as part of the organisation’s ongoing support of water conservation efforts across the region.

The Customer Insight and Relationship Tool will integrate data from billing, data loggers, sensors, climate, storage and the network, and provide a real-time dashboard, automated reporting, and alerts.

“I am excited to play a key role in supporting the trial of this tool to help capture interactions and insights for major, large and critical customers,” Tania says.

“It will also support our Voice of Customer initiative and help us to understand how we can improve our service to these important customer segments.”

Tania adds the tool, which has been purpose-built to meet requirements, will prove beneficial to Hunter Water’s Revenue Group, Customer Services.

“Providing councils insight into their highest usage sites, as well as irrigation patterns, has contributed to the development of the Best Practice Guidelines for Irrigation, which is currently in its final stages.

“I look forward to continuing to work with our non-residential customers, such as the Department of Education, NSW Health and the Catholic Diocese of Maitland, to identify possible future opportunities for both business and Hunter Water into the future.”

Visit our How to Save Water page for more information about how you can save water.