Mary Powell - President & CEO, Green Mountain Power

This is part 2 of a series of character profiles on clean energy innovators. I did this research in 2018 as an intern at the Environmental Defense Fund to support an extraordinary mentor, Dick Munson, in unmasking some of the unsung pioneers fighting climate change. I'll be posting my writing here, but you can find the final product on medium.

Note that since the writing of this piece, Mary Powell has stepped down from her role at Green Mountain Power.

It's 7:30PM as Addison, a struggling actor, steps into the elevator of his Manhattan apartment building with his daughter in tow. Just as the doors begin to close, an immaculately dressed man squeezes through. It's Mr. Hart – the lawyer. The two parties exchange pleasantries during the brief ride. As the doors close and Mr. Hart continues upwards to his loft on the top floor, Addison and his daughter turn towards one another: "Ughh, poor Mr. Hart. What a life that must be – working in business, dressing up every day!"

Addison Powell's daughter today? She runs a multi-billion-dollar energy provider by the name of Green Mountain Power (GMP).

That's not to say Mary Powell didn't have her reservations (she turned down the job 3 times) when she joined GMP in 1998. Back then, the utility resembled many of those that exist today: slate steps extended from stone lobbies, without a single customer in sight. Traditional corporate culture was palpable in the aptly named 'glass palace' – a place that was almost utilitarian.

Utilities have long fought a bitter war against distributed generation – technological innovations that they felt would progressively strip them of their power and profit. But progress is inevitable, and as more consumers eschew the power grid for self-sufficient distributed sources, utilities fear getting caught in a 'death spiral'.

So how can utilities continue to innovate and protect their revenues, despite the need to adapt to industry-disruptions such as distributed energy?

For Mary Powell, the answer to this problem was to address the disconnect between the utility and the customer by creating a culture. Many of the most successful companies have renowned policies to cultivate an identity. Patagonia employees intern at nonprofit environmental organizations. Googlers spend 1/5 of their time on their personal interests. Pixar's animators operate out of little huts. So, when Powell finally took the reins in 2008, she set about affecting a change in culture to transform GMP "from a utility to the un-utility".

I've long called myself the 'accidental executive' because I have actually become everything I didn't want to become when I was young. And I love it! I actually love the work I get to do!

Powell's willingness to switch gears speaks volumes of her character. Quite tall in stature, she speaks in a relatively deep and measured tone, much like a well-rehearsed lecturer. But her unblinking gaze and piercing hazel eyes are indicative of another – more bullish – side. Her casually-chic sense of style belies an otherwise intrepid approach towards leadership. And this has bled over to her personal life too. When Powell was 19, her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and passed away 15 years later. Powell then had the discipline and courage to undergo a double mastectomy as a preventative measure (doctors later found out it she was cancer positive in both breasts).

Her mental fortitude and presence as a leader have not gone unnoticed and unappreciated. Indeed, Powell has had an accolade bestowed upon her every year since 2014, including the highly-coveted "Vermonter of the Year" award in 2015 recognized by The Burlington Free Press.

Powell's journey to becoming a ground-breaking CEO has been a long one, her eventual role at GMP a far cry from the original lifestyle of Addison Powell's daughter. Growing up in Manhattan with a working actor as father, Powell was surrounded by artistry and ultimately attended a specialized high school for the arts. While her first job after college was that of a technical writer, it was a money-market fund that eventually drew her further away from her academic background.

Disenchanted by the world of finance, Powell moved to Vermont with her now-husband, and started a few local businesses (including one which sells reflective dog gear). The opportunity to revitalize and redesign a company drew her to Green Mountain Power.

The strides that GMP has made since 2008 reflect Powell's driving ambition and knack for connecting with local communities in Vermont. The company has since moved out of the 'glass palace' and into the 'colorful Costco', a service center located behind a landfill. The interior resembles that of a start-up, with an open-workspace where employees that otherwise don't interact with customers now share a space with line workers every day. This means that someone as high up as Powell, who resides behind her standing desk, can literally walk across the center to meet customers face-to-face. And she does.

Listening to loyal customers who wanted their local organizations to better service their society, GMP became the first utility in the world to achieve B Corp certification. They also became the first utility to offer customers the option of installing a Tesla Powerwall battery.

One of my biggest fears is being out of touch with what people want and what really matters to people.

Under Powell's guidance, GMP is realizing its vision to deliver reliable, cheap and green energy to Vermont communities. Its customer base has swelled from 88,000 to over 265,000 since 2008. And with $2 billion in assets generating over $640 million in revenue, GMP is demonstrating a disruptive way of conducting business that doesn't require the utility company to fight against technological innovations. Rather, GMP is wholly encouraging its customers to adopt changes such as distributed energy generation.

GMP's phenomenal success can be attributed to a recognition of its unique position in the industry. As a relatively small company, it was versatile and could gain a strong understanding of the needs of their customer base. In addition, it was well-positioned to maintain a foothold in centralized generation, while supporting the proliferation of distributed renewable energy. By playing both sides of the game, while remaining grounded to a 'customer-obsessed' business model, Green Mountain Power is redefining what it means to be a utility company.