Introduction
When rapid growth meets operational complexity, even the most innovative companies face challenges. For Octopus Energy, a global leader in renewable energy and technology, mobile devices are not just tools—they are a critical lifeline for the thousands of engineers and technicians who deliver services in customers’ homes every day.
As the company scaled, managing a fleet of 4,000+ Android devices became a serious bottleneck. The TechOpsIT team was spending entire days onboarding new hires, while the lack of a mobile device management (MDM) solution left sensitive data exposed whenever employees left the company.
To continue supporting its mission of building a greener, smarter energy future, Octopus Energy needed a secure, automated, and user-friendly way to manage its devices at scale. That’s where Applivery came in.
About Octopus Energy
Octopus Energy is a global energy tech pioneer on a mission to build the affordable, green energy system of the future. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in London, the company has grown rapidly with operations across the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States.
With a team of over 9,000 employees, a key part of Octopus Energy’s success is its dedicated field force—the engineers and technicians who bring its mission to life in customers’ homes by delivering services such as smart meter installations.
These teams rely entirely on mobile devices to manage jobs, communicate, and provide world-class customer service. For a company built on technology, mobile devices are not just tools—they are a critical link to customers, making reliability and security paramount to the company’s operations and growth.
Initial challenge
Before Applivery, the TechOps team at Octopus Energy grappled with significant daily and strategic challenges stemming from their unmanaged Android fleet. This created a cascade of problems:
- A critical security gap: the team could not remotely lock or erase devices when an employee left the company, leaving sensitive company data vulnerable.
- Lack of visibility: it was impossible to track the health, status, or user assignment for their nearly 4,000 Android devices.
- Operational inefficiency: the onboarding process was a highly inefficient and manual ordeal, described as painful, that could take nearly an entire day to set up a small group of new hires.
While Octopus Energy considered using their existing multi-platform solution, it clashed with their core principle. They believed a generic MDM would offer only a limited, “minimum that every platform supports” experience, forcing them to sacrifice the deep, native control they required. This left them searching for a true Android specialist rather than accepting a compromise.
The solution
Octopus Energy deliberately sought an Android-first solution and chose Applivery for its deep focus on the native Android Management API and responsive, partnership-driven approach.
Key success factors included:
- Automation as a prerequisite
- Seamless user experience:
- Smooth, guided implementation
Alex Jones
TechOps Architect at Octopus Energy
Key results from the implementation
The implementation of Applivery delivered an immediate and transformative impact, turning device management from a reactive burden into a proactive, strategic capability.
to further optimize their field management.
- A complete transformation: Device management shifted from manual and reactive to secure, automated, and strategic, freeing TechOps resources for higher-value work.
- Full visibility: The TechOps team now knows exactly what devices are active and who is using them, eliminating the previous blind spot.
- Security reinforced: Remote lock and erase capabilities ensure sensitive data is fully protected during employee offboarding.
- Onboarding time drastically reduced: What once took a full day is now described as “so much better, so much quicker, so much smoother,” significantly improving the experience for both TechOps staff and new hires.
- Lower TechOps workload: Automation of app permissions and authentication setup has led to a clear reduction in support requests from the field.
- Scalable vision: Beyond completing the Android rollout, Octopus Energy is considering expanding Applivery to manage Mac, iOS, and Windows devices, consolidating everything into one unified platform.
