Zpryme On The Grid

Digital transformation is underway in utilities across the country, but there are many challenges still to overcome. Transformation is happening slow in some areas, failing to execute in others, and not delivering on ambition in many ways. How can utilities and those who run them change the way they strategize to allow for more successful digital transformation? Salesforce's Frank Palase joins the show to talk about "Digital Readiness" and how changes in corporate culture at utilities along with more holistic strategic design can help grease the wheels on moving towards more digital utilites. This episode was sponsored by Salesforce Music by bensound.com

Texas is still dealing with the fallout from the widespread power and water failure during a cold snap late last month. As most of Zpryme's staff is located in Texas, we were personally and professionally affected by this event in a myriad of ways and now CEO Jason Rodriguez is sitting down to discuss the event and the response from his perspective as a resident, father, boss, and energy professional. Music by bensound.com

In this episode, we sit down with Black and Veatch sustainability experts Denise Nelson, who is the Climate Lead at the environmental services business unit, and Executive Leader for Consulting Strategic Advisory Practice Deepa Poduval to explore how changing business models on both the utility and consulting sides are leading to a more adaptive, responsible, and sustainable grid. We will discuss strategies, partnerships, technologies, and trends to get to the heart of how to ensure and perhaps accelerate this transformation. This episode was sponsored by Black and Veatch Music by bensound.com

Today on the show Joyce and Dylan discuss innovation in the Transmission and Distribution space with Distran's President Brad Fontenot and Director of Business Development John Halle. The discussion includes innovations in substations, where digitally-minded strategies can lack in consideration for physical demands of assets, and where trends are headed. This episode was sponsored by Distran Music by bensound.com

Today on the show Dylan speaks with Ian Berdie, Vice President of Innovation and Development at Quantum Spatial about disaster response. With climate change affecting the frequency, types, and severity of disasters, how are utilities and the analytics that power their operations adjusting their responses to keep outages and outage times to a minimum? This episode is sponsored by NV5 Geospatial powered by Quantum Spatial

Ashkan Kian of IEMS, and Douglas Shannon of SageWerks Energy join Dylan and Joyce to discuss vehicle-to-grid technologies, changing roles of data management, as well as key technologies and strategies for a modernizing utility. Music by bensound.com

Today on the show Joyce and Dylan talk with Robert Miggins and Jason Pittman from Go Smart Solar in San Antonio. Creating opportunities for homeowners to access solar power will become more important as demand and sustainability concerns increase, so Robert and Jason discuss how community solar programs can address equity issues, how technology can help solar evolve, and how utilities and communities can both benefit. This episode was sponsored by NREL and the American Made Solar Prize, find out how you can get involved in upcoming rounds athttps://americanmadechallenges.org/solarprize/round4.html Music by bensound.com

On the Grid is heading to San Antonio (virtually) to discuss CPS Energy’s Flexible Path as a long-term strategy for transformation. We will chat with the highest levels of CPS Energy leadership about the results of their FlexPower Bundle RFI and how CPS Energy will utilize its key findings to create a more equitable, sustainable, and resilient San Antonio moving forward. As of 12/9/20 - CPS Energy’s RFP is now open and can be found here: https://www.cpsenergy.com/flexrfp This episode was sponsored by CPS Energy

New Faces in Familiar Spaces w/ Jennie Yoshimoto Joining an industry can be very touch-and-go. Being an entrepreneur requires a lot of hands-on learning and learning from mistakes. Today podcast newcomer Joyce Deuley talks with recent winner of the American Made Solar Prize and founder of Terra Solar Jennie Yoshimoto about how to find your own way in the energy industry and how you can turn good ideas into award-winning solar innovation. This episode was sponsored by NREL and the American Made Solar Prize, more information at https://americanmadechallenges.org/solarprize/round4.html Music by bensound.com

Today we bid a fond farewell to podcast cohost Erin Hardick as she moves on to the next chapter of her life, but not before she can let us know about what role she sees for herself and the media she's done. We also talk with Omaya Ahmad from APS about Arizona's decarbonization plans, how to leverage community resources to promote sustainability, and how the industry needs to operate in the era of climate change. Music by bensound.com

Today's guest is Harvard Foward founder Danielle Strasburger who talks about her work using grassroots organization to push Harvard towards decarbonization. We discuss the role colleges can play in the fight against climate change as well has how to get young people involved in the issues they care about most. Music by bensound.com

Zachary Holman, co-founder of Sunflex Solar, one of the winners of Round 2 of NREL's American Made Solar Prize, is here to talk about the aluminum foil-infused secret to their winning solar panel innovation as well as how innovation finds the solar market. For more information on the competition as well as how to register for round 4, go to https://americanmadechallenges.org/solarprize/ Music by bensound.com

ETS20 has concluded and while it was certainly...different doing it online during a pandemic, it came together thanks to the hard work of a lot of talented people who we interviewed for this show! Erin Hardick emceed the event and opens the discussion by talking about what the content was like and how discussion was fostered. Also Sarah Fregeau, Zpryme's Program and Events Manager also drops in to talk about how it worked behind the scenes, Centerpoint's Michael Conklin talks about how the experience differed from a speaker standpoint, and our CEO Jason Rodriguez talks about what decisions had to be made when moving ETS to this space. If you want to see how the virtual event sausage is made, this is the episode for you! Music by bensound.com

COVID-19 has changed the way workplaces operate. How are workers protected? How is efficiency maintained? What does the 'new normal' look like for the industry? Chris Moyer discusses these topics and more with David Price, CTO of Black and Veatch, and Ed White, Chairman and CEO of Field-To-Base. This episode was sponsored by Black and Veatch Music by bensound.com

Katharine Beisner, Senior Sales Engineering Program Manager at FTC Solar, is here to talk about what the solar industry of the future is going to look like. We follow two paths in this discussion, the first being about the increased market for solar trackers and what it says about solar tech investment strategies. We also discuss diversity in the solar industry and how it is trying to catch up in that regard. Music by bensound.com

We've been podcasting for a hundred episodes! Can you believe it? Erin and Dylan reflect on their milestone and Zpryme cofounders Jason Rodriguez and Mark Ishac join to discuss how media and Zpryme have changed in 2020. We also conclude with a 'greatest hits' reel of cool moments in On the Grid history. Thank you always for listening! Music by bensound.com

How has the utility industry changed over the course of this year? Countless operations and internal processes have changed as a result of transformative business models, introduction of new technologies, and of course Covid-19. So how has all of this change affected resource management? Black and Veach's Senior Managing Directo Mark Von Weihe sat down with Chris Moyer to talk about how models are changing and how resource management has changed as a result as well as what additional steps need to be taken. This episode was sponsored by Black and Veach.

(Please note that this podcast was recorded on March 4, 2020) We have a guest host today! Back in March, Accenture’s Innovation Leader, Erin Grossi, and Utilities Strategy Leader, Greg Bolino, sat down with Brett Carter, Xcel Energy’s Chief Customer and Innovation Officer to talk about the changes that he sees on the horizon for utilities and their overall business models.

Today we're talking about how COVID-19 has affected the mental wellness and interpersonal communities in online workplaces. Emma Garcia is Zpryme's Director of People and Culture and she is here to share what she's been working on to keep Zpryme healthy and motivated during difficult times. Music by bensound.com

We've got a hot solar questionnaire that we want experts in the solar industry to answer! We have NREL's National Center for Photovoltaics Lead Wyatt Metzger, Demand IQ Founder and CEO Austin Rosenbaum, and 17TeraWatts CEO Scott Nguyen here to tell us what the next step in solar looks like for them, what key obstacles are, and what needs to change about the solar mindset. This episode is sponsored by NREL. Check out the next round of the American Made Solar Prize at https://americanmadechallenges.org/solarprize/round4 Music by bensound.com