Thought it might be helpful to share some training horror stories so we can all learn from each other's mistakes. I'll start: gave a new hire access to client billing data before properly training them on confidentiality. Kid posted screenshots on social media asking his friends for help with "this weird Nashville Electric bill." Client was NOT happy. Had to do serious damage control and the trainee didn't last long after that.
Worst training mistakes you've made with junior auditors?
Oh wow Ed, that's rough. Mine was assuming a junior auditor understood decimal places. Sent him to calculate savings on an APS industrial account and he came back claiming we'd found $240,000 in annual overcharges. Turned out he moved the decimal point - actual savings was $2,400. I had to call the client back and explain my "calculation error." So embarrassing.
Sarah, ouch! I made a similar math mistake early in my career. My worst training error was not emphasizing the importance of double-checking tariff effective dates. Trainee used an outdated Georgia Power rate schedule and we told a client they were being overcharged $8,000 per year. Utility showed us the tariff revision that eliminated that rate class two years earlier. Lesson learned: always verify current tariffs.
These are painful but necessary learning experiences. I once let a trainee handle their first client call without sitting in. LG&E had billed demand charges during a scheduled outage and the savings were legit, but the trainee got aggressive with the utility rep and basically accused them of fraud. Burned that relationship and had to smooth things over for months.
Jack, that's why I never let new auditors talk to utilities alone until they've observed at least 10 calls. Duke Energy reps are generally helpful but you have to know how to approach them professionally. My mistake was opposite - micromanaged a really sharp trainee and killed their confidence. Sometimes you have to let them make small mistakes to learn.
Derek, finding that balance is so hard. I gave a trainee too much autonomy and they submitted a report claiming Alabama Power was using the wrong power factor penalty. Turned out they didn't understand the difference between measured and billed power factor. Client questioned our competence and we had to provide free additional analysis to rebuild trust.
Power factor is definitely a tricky concept for new folks. My embarrassing moment: trainee was working on an Oncor account and I didn't catch that they were applying residential rate analysis to a commercial customer. The whole report was based on the wrong rate schedule. Had to redo three weeks of work and explain to a very patient client why our first analysis was completely wrong.
Marcus, that's exactly why I created standardized worksheets with built-in checks. MLGW has pretty straightforward commercial rates, but I still make trainees verify the rate class before starting any analysis. Better to seem overly cautious than miss something fundamental. Though I once had a trainee spend two days analyzing bills that were already correct - forgot to teach them to calculate what the bills SHOULD be first.
Amir, good point about worksheets. I assumed a smart trainee would figure out Eversource's time-of-use billing on their own. They spent a week calculating "errors" that were actually correct peak/off-peak charges. Should have explained the rate structure first instead of just handing them the tariff. Sometimes we forget how complex this stuff really is when you're starting out.
These stories are making me feel better about my own mistakes. I let a trainee loose on FPL accounts without explaining seasonal rate variations. They found "huge savings" by comparing summer bills to winter rate schedules. Took me an hour to explain why that didn't work, and the trainee felt terrible. Now I always start with rate schedule basics before touching any bills.
Manny, seasonal rates trip up everyone at first. APS has some really complex seasonal and time-of-use combinations. What I learned is to never assume prior knowledge - even people with engineering backgrounds don't necessarily understand utility rate structures. Better to over-explain than under-explain, especially in the beginning.
Sarah, absolutely right about not assuming knowledge. Engineers especially can be overconfident because they understand the technical side but miss the billing nuances. Nashville Electric has some weird legacy rate provisions that even experienced auditors miss sometimes. The key lesson from all these stories seems to be: check everything, verify everything, and never let pride prevent you from asking questions.
Ed, well said. These mistakes are painful but they make us all better auditors and trainers. I keep a "lessons learned" file now that I review with every new hire. Better they learn from our embarrassing moments than create their own. Georgia Power billing has enough legitimate complexity without adding unforced errors on top.
This has been a really valuable thread. Delmarva Power billing isn't the most complex out there, but I've still made plenty of training mistakes over the years. The common theme seems to be communication - either too much, too little, or the wrong kind. I'm definitely going to be more systematic about my training approach going forward.