--- title: Your system shouldn't be a straitjacket description: Investing in new energy software isn't easy. But if you're paying (a lot!) for something that is ultimately constraining your business, something is wrong. image: https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/20210617-Straitjacket-systems.jpg --- aw of [![flux](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/flux_2023/images/logos/flux.svg) ![flux\_dark](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/flux_2023/images/logos/flux_dark.svg)](https://www.fluxfederation.com) Platform ##### [![20230822 Flux Nav - Billing -1](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/General%20Images/20230822%20Flux%20Nav%20-%20Billing%20-1.svg) Billing Configurable, flexible energy billing for today, and tomorrow.](https://www.fluxfederation.com/products-billing) ##### [![20230822 Flux Nav - Billing use cases-1](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/General%20Images/20230822%20Flux%20Nav%20-%20Billing%20use%20cases-1.svg) Billing use cases Solar and battery, electric vehicles, time of use, PPA, VPP and more.](https://www.fluxfederation.com/billing-use-cases) ##### [![20230822 Flux Nav - Market Operations -1](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/General%20Images/20230822%20Flux%20Nav%20-%20Market%20Operations%20-1.svg) Market Operations Complete the picture for end-to-end energy retail solution.](https://www.fluxfederation.com/market-operations) ![20230822 Flux Nav - Market Operations use cases-1](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/General%20Images/20230822%20Flux%20Nav%20-%20Market%20Operations%20use%20cases-1.svg) ##### Market Operations use cases Customer communications, single customer view and more. ##### [![20240314-Flux-Preparing-for-success-Nav-Crop](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/General%20Images/20240314-Flux-Preparing-for-success-Nav-Crop.jpg?width=1386&name=20240314-Flux-Preparing-for-success-Nav-Crop.jpg) Featured resource Preparing for Success: Four key billing transformation learnings. A must-read for energy companies on the precipice of change. Download now](https://www.fluxfederation.com/preparing-for-success) Insights ##### [![20210608 Flux Icon HOME AUTOMATION CONNECTION BULB\_1 WHITE](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Icons/20210608%20Flux%20Icon%20HOME%20AUTOMATION%20CONNECTION%20BULB_1%20WHITE.png?width=1386&name=20210608%20Flux%20Icon%20HOME%20AUTOMATION%20CONNECTION%20BULB_1%20WHITE.png) Insights The latest updates on everything energy. From growing business value to digital transformation and industry insights. Read more](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog) ![20210608 Flux Icon MOBILE ELECTRICITY PURCHASE\_1 WHITE](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Icons/20210608%20Flux%20Icon%20MOBILE%20ELECTRICITY%20PURCHASE_1%20WHITE.png?width=1386&name=20210608%20Flux%20Icon%20MOBILE%20ELECTRICITY%20PURCHASE_1%20WHITE.png) ##### Resources A knowledge hub that shares our insight for energy businesses undertaking the changes needed to evolve the sector. Explore the hub ##### [![20240411-Nav-Featured-Resource---iPad-user-preparing-for-success](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/General%20Images/20240411-Nav-Featured-Resource---iPad-user-preparing-for-success.jpg?width=1386&name=20240411-Nav-Featured-Resource---iPad-user-preparing-for-success.jpg) Featured resource Preparing for Success: Four key billing transformation learnings. A must-read for energy companies on the precipice of change. Download now](https://www.fluxfederation.com/preparing-for-success) [Why Flux?](https://www.fluxfederation.com/flux-offering) Company ##### [About Find out more about the people behind our leading edge platform, our Executive team and Board of Directors. About](https://www.fluxfederation.com/about) ##### [Careers Find out what it's like to work for a remote-first company designing and building innovative retail software for leaders of the energy transition. Careers](https://www.fluxfederation.com/careers) ##### [![20240212-the-benefits-of-modern-tech-1](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20240212-the-benefits-of-modern-tech-1.jpg?width=1386&name=20240212-the-benefits-of-modern-tech-1.jpg) Featured post The time is now: Why the energy sector must adopt modern billing tech Read more](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/the-time-is-now-why-the-energy-sector-must-adopt-modern-billing-tech) Talk to an expert Talk to an expert # Your system shouldn't be a straitjacket [Jessica Venning-Bryan](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/author/jessica-venning-bryan)  |  21 June 2021 ![Software behind a lock and key](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hubfs/20210617-Straitjacket-systems.jpg) ![blue gradient waves](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/flux_2023/images/bgs/blog-bg.png?width=1386&name=blog-bg.png) We talk to a lot of energy businesses. We’re constantly seeking to understand the constraints they’re facing so we can think about smart, technology-enabled solutions. Time and again we hear the frustrations of people who feel straightjacketed by the software they are paying for. Immediately, alarm bells ring. If an organisation is paying a substantial sum of money for a product to enable their business, but that product is constraining them, something is fundamentally wrong. Yesterday’s systems tend to suffocate buyers in three ways.  First, they are not designed for easy change. Energy retail operations are complex, no doubt. In systems of old the breadth of functionality needed to operate a retailer is deeply intertwined and highly configured to that clients specific desires. So when the client wants to introduce a new product, or change their communication flows, or has a regulatory change to comply with, it’s complex. And in software development, complex means expensive! We have heard of companies spending their entire growth budget for a year on modifying their operating system for compliance after a regulatory change. And recently an executive described their vendor’s monopoly of their system and cost of change as “borderline criminal.” The frustration is real, and rightly so. The second issue is that they’re hard to connect to. Interest in the energy transition is at an all time high, and that interest is bringing a number of smart new products and services to market. But retailers can’t easily adopt, or even pilot, these new tools because of protectionist systems that don’t play nicely with others. Not only is this bad for the retailers and the innovators, but it’s bad for total sector modernisation, and ultimately bad for consumers. And finally, they’re not built around a modern data infrastructure. With the growth of smart meter technology and increasingly digitised tooling, our industry is collecting huge amounts of information, alongside data from adjacent industries like weather forecasting, e-mobility and smart home technology. Modern data infrastructure must accommodate, indeed simplify, data from a highly dynamic energy ecosystem. And most critically, it must do this with the greatest respect for and adherence to ethical and regulatory standards for privacy and security. Whilst integrating new software that is flexible, extensible, and easy to adopt is an important step in the future of energy, technology is just one piece of a digital transformation. There are also other important factors to consider such as strategy, vision, and culture. In our recent white paper, [Energy Shifts](https://www.fluxfederation.com/energy-shifts), Flux’s Product Implementation Director Aidan Stigley shares his insights on what to consider before, during, and post-transformation. [![20230313-Flux-Digital-Transformation-Promo-Block](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20230313-Flux-Digital-Transformation-Promo-Block.jpg?width=1400&height=534&name=20230313-Flux-Digital-Transformation-Promo-Block.jpg)](https://www.fluxfederation.com/energy-shifts)   ### Continue learning how we can help you ##### [![20240516-streamline-debt-manangement](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20240516-streamline-debt-manangement.jpg?width=1386&name=20240516-streamline-debt-manangement.jpg) Growing business value Streamline debt management and drive profitability Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/streamline-debt-management-and-drive-profitability) ##### [![20240319-4-challenes-for-seller-1](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20240319-4-challenes-for-seller-1.jpg?width=1386&name=20240319-4-challenes-for-seller-1.jpg) Growing business value 4 big challenges for energy sellers, according to the tech experts Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/4-big-challenges-for-energy-sellers-according-to-the-tech-experts) ##### [![20220211-VPP-blue-noise](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20220211-VPP-blue-noise.jpg?width=1386&name=20220211-VPP-blue-noise.jpg) Growing business value Turning virtual into reality: Operationalising Virtual Power Plants Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/turning-virtual-into-reality-virtual-power-plants-for-energy-business) ##### [![20221208-Cost-out-value-in](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20221208-Cost-out-value-in.jpg?width=1386&name=20221208-Cost-out-value-in.jpg) Digital transformation Can you have it all? Driving value in and cost out in a digital transformation Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/driving-value-in-and-cost-out-in-a-digital-transformation) ##### [![20240410-billing-software-for-australia](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20240410-billing-software-for-australia.jpg?width=1386&name=20240410-billing-software-for-australia.jpg) Growing business value How modern billing tech can help energy sellers with the energy crisis Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/how-modern-billing-tech-can-help-energy-sellers-with-the-energy-crisis) ##### [![20240411-Energy-Transition-Blueprint-Refresh](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20240411-Energy-Transition-Blueprint-Refresh.jpg?width=1386&name=20240411-Energy-Transition-Blueprint-Refresh.jpg) Growing business value Invest to stay in the game: Flexible tech is a blueprint for success Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/invest-to-stay-in-the-game-a-blueprint-for-the-energy-transition) ##### [![20231116-customer-retention](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20231116-customer-retention.jpg?width=1386&name=20231116-customer-retention.jpg) Growing business value How modern billing software supports customer retention Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/how-modern-billing-software-supports-customer-retention) ##### [![20240212-the-benefits-of-modern-tech-1](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20240212-the-benefits-of-modern-tech-1.jpg?width=1386&name=20240212-the-benefits-of-modern-tech-1.jpg) Digital transformation The time is now: Why the energy sector must adopt modern billing tech Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/the-time-is-now-why-the-energy-sector-must-adopt-modern-billing-tech) ##### [![20231214-End-energy-user](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20231214-End-energy-user.jpg?width=1386&name=20231214-End-energy-user.jpg) Growing business value Why we mustn’t forget the customer as we power the energy transition Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/why-we-mustnt-forget-the-customer-as-we-power-the-energy-transition) ##### [![20231213-Nic-in-Europe---Collaboration](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20231213-Nic-in-Europe---Collaboration.jpg?width=1386&name=20231213-Nic-in-Europe---Collaboration.jpg) Industry Insights Collaboration: the critical success factor of the energy transition Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/collaboration-the-critical-success-factor-of-the-energy-transition) ##### [![20231009-modern-billing-tech](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20231009-modern-billing-tech.jpg?width=1386&name=20231009-modern-billing-tech.jpg) Digital transformation Why modern billing tech is essential in the new energy economy Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/why-modern-billing-tech-is-essential-in-the-new-energy-economy) ##### [![20230922-Dreamforce-insights](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20230922-Dreamforce-insights.jpg?width=1386&name=20230922-Dreamforce-insights.jpg) Industry Insights Dreamforce 23: Insights into the energy revolution and our roles in it Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/dreamforce-23-insights-into-the-energy-revolution-and-our-roles-in-it) ##### [![20230913-Flux-Dreamforce-product-launch-1000x525](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20230913-Flux-Dreamforce-product-launch-1000x525.jpg?width=1386&name=20230913-Flux-Dreamforce-product-launch-1000x525.jpg) Digital transformation Flux launches world-first product for scaling decarbonisation solutions Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/flux-launches-world-first-product-for-scaling-decarbonisation-solutions) ##### [![Decarbonisation, decentralisation and digitalisation of the energy sector](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20230907-Flux---The-3-Ds.jpg?width=1386&name=20230907-Flux---The-3-Ds.jpg) Digital transformation Is the energy sector ready for the 3 Ds? Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/is-the-energy-sector-ready-for-the-3-d-s) ##### [![20230822-Customisation-over-configuration-noise](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Flux%202.0/Blog/20230822-Customisation-over-configuration-noise.jpg?width=1386&name=20230822-Customisation-over-configuration-noise.jpg) Growing business value Configurability vs customisation: 4 tips for your next tech purchase Read the story](https://www.fluxfederation.com/blog/configurability-vs-customisation-4-things-to-consider-for-your-next-tech-purchase) ![purple gradient waves](https://www.fluxfederation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/flux_2023/images/bgs/form-bg.png?width=1386&name=form-bg.png) ## Be the first to know! 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