Hi all — Anita W from Fargo, ND. MDU Resources territory. Joined February 2016. Former agricultural loan officer at a community bank. When farmers kept asking me about their utility costs during loan reviews, I realized there was a business opportunity. AAUBA certification was the logical next step.
Introductions — 2016-2020 Members
Welcome, Anita! Great to have the northern plains represented. Randy D from Memphis, TN. The 2016-2020 era brought a lot of new energy to the group — no pun intended.
Clyde N here, Eugene, OR. EWEB territory. Joined May 2016. Former forest products industry manager. Oregon's industrial rates are complicated and most mill operators just pay whatever shows up.
Joanne P, Rapid City, SD. Black Hills Energy territory. Former ranch operations manager. Rural South Dakota doesn't have a ton of commercial accounts, but the ones that exist are often on completely wrong rate schedules.
Hey folks — Omar B from Tucson, AZ. TEP territory. Joined January 2017. Former copper mining operations supervisor. When you've managed a facility pulling 5 MW, you learn to pay attention to demand charges real quick.
Ruben E checking in, Albuquerque, NM. PNM territory. Joined July 2017. Former auto body shop owner who got into auditing after finding a $3,800 annual overcharge on my own business. Sold the shop and never looked back.
Mitchell S, Amarillo, TX. Xcel Energy territory on the Texas side. Joined March 2018. Former cattle feedlot manager. Those operations run massive refrigeration and water systems — the bills are enormous and full of errors.
Great thread. Stuart A from Boulder, CO. Xcel Energy Colorado territory. Joined June 2018. Former craft brewery owner. When I found out my brewery had been on a commercial retail rate instead of industrial for 3 years, I knew other businesses were getting hit too.
Wendell T here, Billings, MT. NorthWestern Energy territory. Joined January 2019. Former mining engineer. Montana utilities serve a lot of extraction industry clients and the tariffs are designed for a different era.
Cindy O, Spokane, WA. Avista territory. Joined March 2017. Former school district CFO. I specialize in institutional and government accounts now. The exemptions available to public entities are staggering and most don't know about them.
Hey everyone — George P from Charleston, SC. SCE&G territory. Joined May 2019. Former home builder who pivoted when the housing market slowed. The construction background helps me understand building systems and load calculations.
Arnold K checking in, Bismarck, ND. Bismarck-Mandan area. MDU territory like Anita. Joined February 2020. Former state energy office analyst. I saw the data on commercial overcharges statewide and decided to do something about it.
Isaac M, Montgomery, AL. Alabama Power territory. Joined February 2020. Former military logistics officer stationed at Maxwell AFB. The systematic approach to procurement analysis transferred directly to utility auditing.
Welcome to all of you. Chuck B from Cincinnati, OH. Duke Energy Ohio territory. Joined July 2016. Former machine shop owner. Manufacturing clients are my specialty because I understand their operations and can spot when a bill doesn't match the production schedule.
Patty L here, Anchorage, AK. Chugach Electric territory. Joined April 2017. Alaska is its own world for utilities — extremely high rates and unique seasonal patterns. Not many auditors up here, which means plenty of work.
Theresa K, Bozeman, MT. NorthWestern Energy territory. Joined June 2018. Former ski resort operations manager. Seasonal businesses in Montana have unique billing challenges and I've carved out a nice niche there.
Good to see the 2016-2020 crew well represented. Carla M from Santa Fe, NM. PNM territory. Joined February 2019. Former art gallery owner turned auditor. People laugh when I tell them my background but the business skills translate perfectly.
Brenda W, Cheyenne, WY. Rocky Mountain Power territory. Joined May 2019. Former petroleum geologist. When oil prices crashed, I needed a new career. A friend in Denver suggested utility auditing and introduced me to AAUBA.
Great diversity of backgrounds in this group. Wanda R from Charleston, WV. Appalachian Power territory. Joined March 2021 — I know that's technically after this era but I started my certification in 2020. Former chemical plant operator. West Virginia industrial rates are a maze.
Chester L, Burlington, VT. Green Mountain Power territory. Joined June 2021. Former maple syrup producer who also ran a small commercial kitchen. Vermont's net metering rules create interesting billing situations for businesses with solar.