Omnidian co-founders Mark Liffmann and Brad Davis share the stage in this final episode of our six-part Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar series. Mark and Brad, CEO and CMO, respectively, define how solar businesses can maximize growth by delivering custom-centric experiences that align with their company cultures even as they scale. A 15-year solar industry veteran, Mark co-founded SunPower's residential and light commercial business and developed a $500 million global enterprise. He previous...
Aug 30, 2022•41 min•Season 10Ep. 514
In the fifth episode of our six-part Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar series, we examine the scalability of service teams from the perspective of two women well respected in the solar industry. Our guests, Angela Burke and Julie King , are experienced leaders who built installation, customer service, and operations and maintenance teams from scratch. One thing we’ve continually heard throughout this series is that as you seek to scale outside your home service territory, one of the true bottl...
Aug 29, 2022•46 min•Season 10Ep. 513
Everett Brewer is CEO of storage company Storz Power and COO of the solar project matching platform WattHub. He’s a serial entrepreneur who caught my attention lately as an example of someone who manages to have a modicum of balance amidst what is truly a chaotic high-growth time in our industry, despite running not one but TWO successful businesses and balancing the demands of a growing family. From running a crew of 3,300 people at age 21 to dominating the door-to-door alarm business, his rema...
Aug 25, 2022•1 hr 13 min•Season 10Ep. 512
Since 2018, Milwaukee-based Sun Badger Solar has evolved into a full-service solar installer offering what customers describe as a "perfect blend of performance, quality, and return on investment." Co-founder and President Trevor Sumner said the company's success results from a partnership with Seattle-based Omnidian , which handles its post-installation services. In this fourth episode of our Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar series, Trevor explains how Sun Badger leveraged its relationship w...
Aug 23, 2022•38 min•Season 10Ep. 511
In this third episode of our Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar series, Kevin Schulte of Greenspark Energy shares his insights about keeping the customer first and building a culture that values the climate of the planet and the workplace equally. You’ll hear from this field-tested veteran how to build trusted partnerships, and how it’s quite often your ability to trust those partnerships that help you scale while keeping your promises. GreenSpark has grown to the largest residential, community...
Aug 22, 2022•45 min•Season 10Ep. 510
Today we explore energy management and the customer-focused opportunities it creates to monitor, control and conserve energy. We'll examine the topic through the lens of CPower Energy Management — better known as CPower , a leading provider of commercial and industrial demand-side energy management programs. CPower is one of the most recognized load management companies servicing clients in the Distributed Energy Resources (DER) market. DER has been defined by many entities (including way back i...
Aug 18, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 10Ep. 509
Distributed Solar Development (DSD) has grown from a stand-alone offshoot of a multinational conglomerate to a powerhouse in its own right. In the second episode of our Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar series, DSD Asset Management Director Chris Larkin explains how DSD serves as a "one-stop shop" for large-scale, custom solar PV and energy storage solutions. DSD provides customized solar PV energy and energy storage solutions — from analysis through design and finance to commercial operation ...
Aug 16, 2022•32 min•Season 10Ep. 508
Dave Kenny, co-founder and chief operating officer of Omnidian , has spent more than 15 years building solar plants and the teams and software to keep them running. In this first episode of our Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar series, Dave discusses the evolution of solar as an asset class through his deep experience in building operations and fleet management for both utility-scale solar portfolios and national residential solar leaders such as SunRun. Dave is passionate about delivering ret...
Aug 15, 2022•48 min•Season 10Ep. 507
This isn't a typical SunCast podcast episode. Today, I'm sharing my interview done by the inimitable Lee Krevat on his podcast, The Climate Champions . I became acquainted with Lee through the pandemic, and have truly come to deeply appreciate his perspective and insight into the energy transition. He’s an entrepreneur, leader, investor and speaker who has had a front-row seat to the way the energy grid is evolving. Lee is a Carnegie-Mellon grad with more than three decades of experience in the ...
Aug 12, 2022•59 min•Season 10Ep. 506
For nearly three decades, Andy Tang has led business development, strategic planning, corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions for some of the most influential players in the energy and telecom sectors. From modernizing the electric grid with smart meters to replacing aging grids with energy storage and microgrids, Andy stands at the bleeding edge of the digital energy frontier. As vice president of energy storage and optimization for Wärtsilä's global Energy Business , he works directly w...
Aug 11, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Season 10Ep. 505
Did you know that clean energy hardware startups can benefit from millions of dollars in testing at world-class labs? Today's expert industry guide, Tenley Dalstrom, will explain everything you need to know. But don’t queue it up and forget… the next deadline is August 19th! As Director of the California Testbed Initiative ( CalTestBed ) at New Energy Nexus , Tenley works with all types of clean energy technologies and helps innovators and entrepreneurs bring clean energy concepts to market. Cal...
Aug 09, 2022•43 min•Season 10Ep. 504
Entrepreneur and community builder, Steph Speirs, aims to unlock the possibility of solar power for the roughly 90 million households that are locked out of the solar market in the US. Some rent their homes, others have less than optimal credit scores, or their roof is too shaded or otherwise unsuited to a solar array. Steph is the co-founder and CEO of Solstice , which wants to turbocharge access to clean energy through community solar and "make the clean energy revolution work for everyone in ...
Aug 04, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Season 10Ep. 503
This solar industry is crossing the chasm, and the consumers at the “table” today, while they look similar, are much different from those consumers before who were predisposed to taking higher risks, trying technology in advance. We're now moving to the early mass market, and they're going to be more risk averse. The way we sold to the early adopters to get our first 3 million solar installations won’t get us the next 3 million And, let’s be honest, solar has a dirty little secret: It's not "set...
Aug 03, 2022•5 min•Season 10Ep. 502
If your mobile phone or laptop has ever become uncomfortably hot, you have first-hand experience with a concept called thermal runaway. It's one of the primary risks related to lithium-ion batteries, and it happens when the lithium-ion cell enters an uncontrollable, self-heating state. Catherine Von Burg, CEO of SimpliPhi Power, recently returned from the National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) conference. A key observation by Catherine and her team is that fire-safety in energy storage syst...
Aug 02, 2022•40 min•Season 10Ep. 501
Showing up is half the battle. “Wow, 500! How did you do it, Nico?” Seems a lot of folks had this question on their mind as the date drew nearer to hit this milestone on the pod. And, when I asked you listeners “what can I do that’s special for Episode 500?”, time and time again I got a common reply, “Have someone interview you, Nico! We want to know what you’ve learned!” The answer to “How I got here” is really boring and simple. One foot in front of the other, following my intuition, and reach...
Jul 28, 2022•1 hr 40 min•Season 10Ep. 500
My collaborator and industry veteran, Mike Casey of Tigercomm, and I convene a quarterly conversation with several leading podcasters to discuss what’s new, trending and impactful for your business. Mike moderates the lively discussion, and I get to join in and enjoy simply participating (we also produce the finished products that wind up here on this podcast feed and that of several of hte guests (oh, and Youtube ). This past week, we convened this phenomenal cast of characters; I’d encourage y...
Jul 26, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Season 9Ep. 499
There’s so much good content (especially right here on SunCast) but I always get asked "what podcasts to you listen to, Nico?" This week, we’d like to introduce you to one podcast I’ve been really enjoying - it’s a new deep-dive podcast for the solar industry called " Factor This ". Host John Engel from Renewable Energy World breaks down the biggest stories in solar with leaders who move the needle. I was really impressed with his four-part, in-depth series on the Auxin Solar tariff petition, fe...
Jul 25, 2022•4 min
If you missed Part 1 of this epic 2-part interview, I recommend you queue that one up first…that’s why they go in order ;-) In Part 1, we learned what a technology entrepreneur, a musician turned engineer and a corporate attorney have in common: They built TradeWind Energy and had not one but TWO successful exits as a team on virtually the same platform. If you haven’t heard of Tradewind, or Savion, well you’re in for a ride. Tune in to hear how these 3 unlikely business partners engineered a 2-...
Jul 21, 2022•56 min•Season 9Ep. 498
What do a technology entrepreneur, a musician turned engineer and a corporate attorney have in common? They built a company in middle America called Tradewind Energy that became one of the largest developers of wind energy projects in the U.S., and had not one but TWO successful exits as a team on virtually the same platform. If you haven’t heard of Tradewind, perhaps you heard of Savion? And, if neither ring a bell, well, you’re in for a real treat bc today we’re going to unpack a story that’s ...
Jul 21, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Season 9Ep. 497
In uncertain economic times, investors look for something — anything — to shore up their portfolios. But in 2022, there aren't many obvious options. Cryptocurrencies have crashed, bonds and equities are down, and globalization has rendered the idea of expanding from domestic to international markets moot. As Tyler Hurlburt , a licensed financial advisor and wealth manager, explained, "It seems there's no safe haven, no place to hide." In today's podcast, Tyler explores some fantastic ways to bri...
Jul 19, 2022•32 min•Season 9Ep. 496
Founded in a Wisconsin barn more than 60 years ago, Generac is a global leader in designing and manufacturing residential, commercial and industrial power generation equipment. Generac practically created the market for home standby generators and still commands an impressive market share in that category. Now it's fueling its transition to the renewable energy reality through an acquisition spree in clean energy products and services. Take Neurio, a Vancouver, British Columbia-based energy data...
Jul 14, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Season 9Ep. 495
Today’s Tactical Tuesday is a compilation of my favorite moments from the recent George Hershman 2-part interview. If you missed that one, then you’ll for sure want to queue up this more snack-able episode (but I’ll bet it will leave you ready to commit to the longer version!) It was packed with great stories and advice, but it was also a long interview, and maybe you're short on time. So think of this as the SparkNotes or CliffsNotes version of those two back-to-back podcasts. George is a solar...
Jul 12, 2022•32 min•Season 9Ep. 494
Solar Energy International (SEI) holds a special place in the hearts and minds of many #SolarWarriors who tune in regularly to SunCast. And SEI is equally important to me because it's partnered with SunCast for the entirety of our existence in support of nearly all our in-person and virtual events through the years. So I'm especially delighted to welcome SEI Executive Director Elizabeth Sanderson and learn how, in her first year, she’s growing into the leader role of expanding this beloved organ...
Jul 07, 2022•1 hr 20 min•Season 9Ep. 493
You need a way to define winning solar projects fast, while eliminating all doubt that you've selected the most optimum configuration. And it’s frustrating to commit to a design strategy knowing that if you had the time or data, you could find something better. Furthermore, in the current procurement process, constrained by module availability, trade concerns and interconnection timelines, the need to modify project configuration is an increasing concern to keep these projects on-time. Today’s T...
Jul 05, 2022•29 min•Season 9Ep. 492
Yoann Hispa has four science and math degrees, speaks four languages and cultivates a singular obsession with knowledge acquisition. I think you’ll have a lot in common with Yoann; you’re both insatiable infinite learners, that much we know. ;-) Yoann is the CEO and co-founder of LandGate , a company that aims to revolutionize the ways US environmental resources for everything from solar and wind to oil and gas are bought and sold. In his words, “We call ourselves the Zillow for land resources.”...
Jun 30, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Season 9Ep. 491
What does it look like to build a career of purpose that also engages your natural talents for educating and relationship building? This week’s Tactical Tuesday will show you! In today’s episode, we feature Miguel Gil Mast of Schneider Electric. Are there other technologies you’ve scouted on the frontlines of the Clean Energy Revolution that you think we should be covering here on SunCast? Hit us up - team@suncast.me with your feedback & recommendations. Check out OpenSolar OS 3.0 at: https:...
Jun 28, 2022•46 min•Season 9Ep. 490
If you’ve been following along the touchstones that make up the community solar market… “In this final episode of our 5-part series, we still have one more segment of this quilt of knowledge left to weave - the money - how does it work? You heard David Sandbank in Episode 1 refer to the Value Stack. The ways in which the market participants are incentivized to participate is an important element of any complete understanding of an industry sufficient that you could actually begin to participate ...
Jun 24, 2022•45 min•Season 9Ep. 489
So far, we’ve taken a look at how Policy works at both the State & Federal Level. And we’ve also heard from a solar developer about the nuance and important differences for community solar from the other verticals. In Episode 4 of this series, we’ll hear from Kate Henningsen, Co-founder and COO at Arcadia Power. Prior to joining Arcadia Power as its sixth employee, Kate spent several years as a litigator at an international law firm, providing counsel to businesses on a wide variety of high-...
Jun 23, 2022•35 min•Season 9Ep. 488
The US Department of Energy considers community solar “an indispensable source in our future energy mix.” In Episode 3 of our Community Solar Series, we’ll hear from Nicole Steele, Senior advisor for Energy Justice & workforce at the Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office. Nicole runs the National Community Solar Partnership, which as you heard in Episode 1 has set an ambitious goal of achieving $1B in energy savings across 5M households by the year 2025 . This would represe...
Jun 22, 2022•46 min•Season 9Ep. 487
In today’s Episode 2 of the Community Solar Series, our solar expert is David Kane, a seasoned developer at EDP Renewables. Dave gives us the view from the developer’s perspective: What exactly is entailed in his role as project developer? How does the organization rely on he and his team for progress? How does a developer think about policy as an enabler or driver for how to structure his/her time & team? What does the ecosystem of stakeholders look like? What are the kinds of people that o...
Jun 21, 2022•22 min•Season 9Ep. 486
