Helen – Clearer energy management for hundreds of thousands of users

A more accessible and more understandable energy service

Helen is the market leader in electricity retail, taking care of its customers by offering an easier and more effortless everyday life throughout Finland. In addition, the company is responsible for the production and distribution of district heating and cooling in Helsinki. Qvik helps Helen deliver an excellent customer experience in its digital services.

User needs drive development

Tracking electricity consumption has become part of everyday life for more and more of Helen’s customers, and expectations for digital services are growing right along with it. Helen wanted to meet this by investing systematically in accessibility and ease of use.

Helen’s digital service ecosystem covers electricity, heating, and cooling services. At the core of the development work with Qvik were two goals: to systematically improve the clarity and accessibility of digital services, and to make complex energy data genuinely understandable.

"We were looking for a design partner who would bring fresh perspectives, design solutions that are both functional and visually impressive, and work smoothly both independently and as part of a larger development team. We found the partner we were looking for in Qvik, especially thanks to their energetic way of working and strong collaboration skills."

Petteri Suontama, UX Lead, Helen

Comprehensive development across the entire service ecosystem

The work has focused on continuous UX, UI, and accessibility development across all of Helen’s digital services:

Oma Helen and the Oma Helen mobile app
Yritys Helen (Helen for Business)
Oma Sähköverkko (My Electricity Network)

For example, the consumption pages were redesigned with usability and accessibility in mind, the experience around quarter-hourly electricity pricing was improved, the EV charging calculator was rebuilt to be clearer, and the tracking and reporting for the Optimilämpö (Optimal Heating) process was redeveloped to better match user needs.

A significant part of the work focused on reinventing how energy data is visualized. Instead of raw figures, users were given easy-to-grasp, everyday examples — such as illustrating electricity pricing through the use of household appliances. The work was done in close collaboration with Helen’s development teams, balancing user needs against technical feasibility.

Accessibility improvements were developed together with Avaava, a consulting and design agency specializing in accessibility. The goal of the collaboration was to ensure the service works smoothly and equitably for as broad a group of users as possible.

The collaboration has helped make information about energy consumption, pricing, and other energy services easier to understand, and has improved the digital customer experience overall.