From Mentimeter to pilot system: how the SOPTIM Geschäftskundenportal (Business Customer Portal) came to be
From a jointly developed set of requirements to a finished product, now in pilot operation with the very customers who helped shape it.
In November 2025, we spent our annual SOPTIM User Conference gathering wishes and requirements for a Business Customer Portal. From a catalogue of twelve specialist topics, our customers prioritized – via live voting in a deep dive workshop – what was needed most urgently. The three highest rated topics, including the viewing and ordering of tranches as well as displaying costs and prices, were then developed further in small groups. The results were the foundation for the SOPTIM Geschäftskundenportal, which is now running in pilot operation with the exact customers who helped create it.
A need the market had not yet addressed
The demand for such a solution was high for a reason. Business customers are increasingly expecting their energy suppliers to offer digital ways to view and manage their contracts, and are now regularly making this a prerequisite in tender processes. At the same time, the shortage of skilled workers makes it harder for energy suppliers to continue handling price enquiries by phone. On top of this, more and more business customers are turning to tranche contracts to spread risk — contracts that have until now involved significantly more administrative effort than fixed-price contracts. What stood out in our research and customer conversations: comparable portals currently exist in the market only as in-house developments by individual energy suppliers.
From the requirement straight into implementation
Instead of using these insights to write an internal requirements specification, we went straight into details: who should be allowed to manage users in the portal, how secure does access need to be, how should a price limit work that automatically notifies the customer? These exact points – a user management system controlled by the customers themselves, two-factor authentication, and automatic notifications for price alerts – are all present in the SOPTIM Geschäftskundenportal today.
What changes in practice for energy suppliers
The difference is best illustrated in everyday use. Previously, aa customer would call to find out the current price, then call again to fix a tranche. With SOPTIM Geschäftskundenportal they access the price in the portal and, if needed, complete the trache order directly – without ever picking up the phone. For energy suppliers this means fewer enquiries that need to be handled manually and more capacity for the core business.
Why the journey matters as much as the product
The Geschäftskundenportal is a result. The real reason why we’re sharing this story is how we got there. Directly identifying the customers‘ needs, moving straight into implementation without unnecessary detours and trialling the solution where it is actually needed. This is not an exception, but the standard we uphold at SOPTIM and intend to expand in further projects. The SOPTIM Geschäftskundenportal will continue to grow with your requirements. Which developments will come next will be agreed together with the users.
If you face similar challenges in your day-to-day work as an energy supplier, it is worth taking a look at the outcome of this process.
Find out more about the SOPTIM Geschäftskundenportal and its full scope of features here.
