Brightmere faces a choice about how far and how quickly to extend technology in customer operations as an independent review of work concludes its fieldwork. Staff sources expect the issue to return to senior discussion in October. The company has not announced a decision date or published a staffing proposal.
The possibilities described by sources are broad: more digital handling of contacts, additional time to resolve problems in the existing service, and greater reliance on Brightmere's own technical capability. These accounts do not establish that directors have received particular papers or agreed a preferred route. The supplier would not confirm the descriptions.
Some employees believe the review could lead to substantially fewer adviser roles. Energy Retail Insider has not verified a number. An employee familiar with customer-service work said conversations about headcount were running ahead of information about which tasks would remain and what support customers would need when a digital answer was insufficient.
Brightmere's public technology announcement last year said the tools were intended to help staff and that efficiencies would come through natural changes in the team. Since then, Nell has entered webchat and the app, and the company has apologised for incorrect payment-plan messages. It honoured the advice given to affected customers.
A spokesperson said no decisions had been taken about the next phase of customer operations. Brightmere said it would consider evidence from the People and Work Review and discuss changes through the appropriate channels. It declined to identify an option, a reduction figure or the date of a Board meeting.
ECSU regional officer Maxine Doyle said the union wanted meaningful discussion before a direction was fixed. 'Members can describe what the tools help them do and where they create difficulty,' she said. 'That experience needs to be heard while there is still something to discuss.' She did not give a verified number of roles at risk.
The financial backdrop is public. Brightmere reported EBITDA of £49 million for FY2025/26, down from £61 million, while serving around 1.2 million homes. Its results statement referred to efficiency and reliable service. The company has not released costings for the alternatives being discussed by staff or a forecast for any particular option.
For now, customers continue using the existing channels and advisers continue working with the current tools. Staff sources say they expect more information in the autumn. One described the unanswered question as how Brightmere would judge success: 'We hear about answering more questions digitally. We also want to know what happens to the questions that come back.'