Hamilton, ON — The City of Hamilton announced it has successfully gone live with the SpryPoint platform for water services billing. This marks a major milestone in Hamilton’s commitment to delivering high-value, affordable services while strengthening accountability, modernizing operations, and enhancing customer experience for more than 500,000 residents.
Serving approximately 180,000 water, wastewater, and stormwater utility accounts, Hamilton’s system operates within one of Canada’s most unique and environmentally significant regions, encompassing Lake Ontario and its surrounding waterways. The City’s modernization reflects both its scale and its deep commitment to environmental stewardship and conservation.
A Turning Point and an Opportunity to Lead
The journey began when Alectra Utilities announced it would no longer provide billing services to the City. Faced with the need to bring these critical operations in-house, Hamilton saw more than a transition; the team saw an opportunity.
“This was not optional. We had to act,” said Clayton Pereira. “But it also gave us the opportunity to rethink how we serve our customers. Billing accuracy, transparency, and trust are foundational, and we needed a modern system that reflects that commitment.”
After a comprehensive evaluation, the City selected SpryPoint to deliver a modern, cloud-based Customer Information System (SpryCIS) and customer engagement platform (SpryEngage). Beginning in August 2024, the search and vendor evaluation process led to a successful go-live on April 13, 2026, without disruption to customers.
This utility transformation is a key initiative within the City’s “Build a Better Plan” strategic framework. It focuses on improving transparency, continuously modernizing services, and creating better, more responsive interactions between residents and the City.
Putting People at the Center of Modernization
At the heart of Hamilton’s transformation is a clear focus: people first.
Residents now benefit from 24/7, real-time access to their utility information, including billing, consumption, and account management. Digital customer billing provides greater transparency and control, while supporting the City’s environmental goals by reducing paper usage.
For City staff, the new platform delivers intuitive, integrated tools that streamline workflows, eliminate manual processes, and provide a single source of truth across customer service, finance, and operations.
“Success came down to collaboration,” Pereira added. “This was not just a technology project; it was a modernization effort to better serve our customers and empower our staff. Finance, IT, operations, and customer service all worked together to ensure we delivered something that truly improves how we serve our community.”
The transition remained committed to Hamilton’s being resident-focused. The City has prioritized a seamless transition to the new platform, ensuring a smooth rollout and a continued focus on delivering a simple, reliable, and positive experience.
Building a Foundation for Accountability and Insight
With its new platform in place, Hamilton is advancing its goal of becoming a data-driven, accountable organization. The integrated system enables real-time visibility and analytics to continuously improve its services, including:
- Customer payment trends and areas of need and optimization
- Billing accuracy and reconciliation cycles
- Customer service performance and response times
- Financial reporting and compliance for regulatory and the City Council
This level of insight allows City leaders to make faster, more informed decisions while ensuring alignment with regulatory requirements and budget targets set by the City Council.
Insights for Utilities Undergoing Modernization
Hamilton’s journey offers valuable insights for utilities undertaking similar transitions:
- Focus on people and cross-functional collaboration: Success requires alignment across finance, IT, operations, and customer service.
- Plan for procurement and onboarding timelines: Selecting and implementing enterprise systems takes time and discipline.
- Prioritize data conversion and accuracy: Getting data right from the start is essential to maintaining trust and operational integrity.
- Prepare customers for change: Re-enrolment in services like auto-pay requires careful planning to ensure privacy, compliance, and a smooth transition.
- Validate every detail of billing processes: Accuracy is non-negotiable. It is the foundation of credibility and customer confidence.
Modern Technology, Measurable Impact
The SpryPoint platform integrates seamlessly with Hamilton’s broader ecosystem, including Neptune work order systems, Itron metering infrastructure, Moneris and RBC payment processing, Data Direct, and GIS systems. These seamless integrations enable a connected, meter-to-cash operation.
Newly established capabilities include:
- Automated business processes that improve efficiency and reduce manual effort
- Enhanced employee experience through intuitive tools and workflows
- Advanced data management, reporting, and analytics
- Accurate billing across all customer classes and services
- Faster access to customer data for service representatives
A City Positioned for the Future
With this milestone, the City of Hamilton has established a modern foundation for delivering reliable, transparent, and customer-centric utility services, while reinforcing its commitment to environmental responsibility and fiscal accountability.
“This is about building trust with our community, empowering our employees, and ensuring we can meet the needs of Hamilton, today and into the future,” said Pereira.
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About the City of Hamilton
The City of Hamilton, Ontario, serves a diverse population of more than 500,000 residents and is home to one of Canada’s most significant natural assets—Lake Ontario and its surrounding watershed. The City is committed to delivering high-value public services, protecting the environment, and continuously improving how it serves its community.
About SpryPoint Founded in 2011, SpryPoint builds and delivers integrated, cloud-native software solutions to empower utilities to serve customers better, operate more efficiently, and provide new levels of business visibility and data-driven decision-making. Today, more than 100 utilities across the Americas rely on SpryPoint to modernize billing, customer engagement, and field operations. In 2025, SpryPoint was recognized as a Deloitte Technology Fast 50™ company in Canada and a Deloitte Technology Fast 500™ company in North America. For more information, visit www.sprypoint.com or contact info@sprypoint.com.
