Chuck Hyder – Director, Resource Mgmt –  Atlanta

Chuck has successfully recruited talent for clients in the energy
industry  for  over  15  years.  Prior to joining Skipping Stone he
founded Peopleware (1995) and led searches for professionals in
the Smart Grid, Demand Response, Energy Efficiency,  Advanced
Metering  Infrastructure, and Energy Trading & Risk Management
industries.

Chuck has held senior marketing roles with Schlumberger's Energy Management
Group in the U.S. and the United Kingdom, where  he  helped  define  and  launch
some of the industry's first smart meters.

He received his degree in Electrical Engineering from the Georgia Institute
of Technology.

 

Ross Malme  – Partner –  Atlanta

Ross is a globally recognized leader in the development
of  demand  response and smart grid products, services
and  strategies.  With  over  25 years energy experience,
Ross has held executive roles with Schneider Electric's
Demand  Response  Resource  Center,  Enron  Energy
Services, Schlumberger and Chevron.

Ross  founded  and  was  CEO  of  RETX, a demand response software
company since acquired by Schneider Electric. Ross also launched the
International  Energy  Agency  (IEA) Demand Side Management Program
with more than 10 countries participating.

As former Chairman of the Peak Load Management Alliance (PLMA),
Ross has been instrumental in building the demand response trade
association in North America. He also invented the first successful
RF wireless automatic meter reading system in North America with
over  60  million  units  deployed  and  was  awarded  the  "Most
Innovative Product of 1986" by the National Communications Forum.

Ross is a Partner and a member of the Skipping Stone Board of Directors.

 

How Skipping Stone Got Its Name

Version 1. The name Skipping Stone was chosen for two reasons, one because it is easy to remember and two because it represents our basic consulting premise; work on projects that make an impact, help clients create ripples of lasting change, then move on to the next project.

Version 2. As he struggled to come up with a good name for his consulting company, our founder, Peter Weigand, used his poker buddies as a focus group. They would meet at Peter's lake house every other Friday night to review prospective names and, perhaps, play some cards and shoot some pool. One evening, as the group "labored" into the wee hours of the morning, they took a break and walked down to the lake where they became engaged in a heated moonlight stone skipping contest. The rest, as they say, is history.

Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to learn about our company. As you explore the Web site and try to "figure us out," perhaps a bit of background and perspective might help.

It all started when, as an energy executive, I became frustrated with spending boatloads of money for consultants who didn't really know our business. Being entrepreneurial by nature, I was determined that there must be a better way, so Skipping Stone was launched in 1996. The business model was simple… put only experienced energy professionals on consulting assignments. We still follow that model today.

Along the way some of our larger competitors tried to teach me a few lessons about the consulting business. Problem was, I didn't like their model of putting whoever was on the beach on the next assignment regardless of fit, or their goal of taking up permanent residence at client sites. Seemed to me those types of business practices are only good for the consultant, not the client.

As a result, our model is based on augmenting the core leadership and project management staff with our large virtual bench, which has hundreds of independent energy professionals from a wide variety of disciplines ready on short notice. This way we make sure the skill fit is on target and we don't incur, and thus charge clients for, beach time. We also adopted the premise that every assignment has a beginning and an end with measurable goals to guide the work. That way we can be held accountable and have to earn repeat business. I have been told by our larger brethren that this model is all wrong. So be it.

If these are the traits you are looking for in the people you choose to work with you and your company, then by all means, let's talk. If you're an experienced energy professional looking for interesting work with a group of industry veterans, please visit our Career Center.

Sincerely,
Peter Weigand
Chairman & CEO

To provide clients with the right skill set required for an assignment,
we have a staff of over 30 energy professionals. We also utilize our
proprietary virtual bench with hundreds of independent energy
professionals that can be tapped on short notice.

Each client engagement is managed by one of our leaders
(see list above). Every one of our consultants, whether staff
or independent, has been screened and trained and has a
proven track record.

 

Susan Perkins  – VP, Project Management Office –  Los Angeles

Ms. Perkins has served in an energy financial advisory capacity for
numerous public power and gas entities including MEAG and MGAG
in Georgia, Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW), California Department of
Water  Resources  and  the  City  of  Austin, Texas. She has assisted
municipal  energy  clients  in  raising  over  $11 Billion in structured
debt financings.

Susan  has  over 10 years experience with Deloitte, JP Morgan and
Merrill  Lynch  with  specialties  in  finance  strategies  and  structured  transactions,
utilizing  her  strengths  in  financial  statement,  cash  flow,  and credit analysis and
benchmarking.

Ms. Perkins  has  an  Economics  Degree  from UCLA and received her MBA with a
concentration in Finance from Columbia Business School.

 

Phil Minick  – Senior Consultant –  Los Angeles

Mr. Minick  has  14  years experience managing multiple energy related
call centers, including inside sales, direct marketing, customer service,
quality  assurance,  collections  and back office operations. For the past
12  years,  Phil  was Director of National Sales Operations for Commerce
Energy, a national retail marketer of electric and natural gas.

Phil has also worked on consulting engagements in renewable energy,
deregulated  energy  markets,  energy  conservation,  smart  meter  technology,  demand
response and CRM solutions.

 

Tracy Morgan  – Principal –  Los Angeles

Ms. Morgan  has 18 years of experience in  the deregulated electric and
gas  back  office,  risk  management,  operations  and  related software
marketplaces. She specializes in applying business processes, market
rules, and management strategies to create efficient operations that are
supported by relevant technologies. She has assisted numerous energy
clients in achieving success in these areas.

Tracy  also  has  ISO/RTO  markets and settlements, energy accounting
and  reconciliation,  software selection and implementation experience
and is an ISO 9001 Certified Auditor.

Ms. Morgan's energy industry experience has included Director of Energy Accounting
for  Commerce  Energy  Group, Project Manager/Senior Consultant for Nexant, Senior
Analyst  for  Sempra  Energy  and  Director  of Energy Services and Regulatory Affairs
for Utilisource.

 

Nancy Young  – Senior Consultant –  Houston

Ms. Young  has  over 20 years experience in commercial business
administration  management  and operations, including a decade in
the energy industry. She has demonstrated effective client interface
skills, strong  organizational abilities, dynamic computer skills, and
exceptional communications skills in each project in which she has
participated.


Nancy's utilities experience includes Detroit Edison and Portland General Electric.
In addition, she has worked with suppliers such as Commerce Energy Group and
Liberty Power Corp in the areas of back office process analysis and Sarbanes-
Oxley and regulatory compliance.

Her experience includes the California and Oregon electricity markets, as well as gas
and power on the East Coast and in the Midwest. Additionally, Nancy has led complex
branding and marketing projects for multiple clients including, most recently, World
Energy Solutions.

 

Rebecca Schlanert –  Senior Consultant – Los Angeles

Ms. Schlanert is a 10+ year veteran of the deregulated gas and electric
regulatory  environment.  She  specializes in  market  assessment and
market  rules and how they apply to marketing and operational aspects
for market participants.

Rebecca  has  managed  full  regulatory  efforts  for  an  independent  energy  marketer,
researching and participating in regulatory proceedings and developing and managing
compliance processes. In addition, she was responsible for new product development
and all market licensing.

Ms. Schlanert is experienced in the development of economic and market models for
the evaluation of various go-to-market options and for use in regulatory proceedings.

 

Paul Maffa  – Senior Consultant –  Boston

Mr. Maffa has 25 years of natural gas expertise, including sales,
purchases,  transportation  optimization,  capacity  management
and pipeline/storage analysis on both a short and long term basis.

Paul's experience encompasses leading natural gas companies, such as Citizens
Gas Supply, US Generating, BP Energy Co. and Integrys Energy Services, Inc.

 

Steve Hinton – Principal & VP, Capacity Center Ops – Boston

In addition to overseeing the daily operations of Capacity Center,
Mr. Hinton is a Skipping Stone Principal specializing in analysis
simulation  and  optimization of energy transport and generation
systems. Steve  is  a Mechanical and Structures Engineer with
a  wealth  of  experience  in  natural  gas  pipeline  acquisition
evaluations, capacity release market assessment and pipeline
transaction data management.

Mr. Hinton is a Registered Professional Engineer, with first-hand knowledge of the
design, construction, and operation of utility plants and infrastructure.

 

Edward Ferris – Senior Consultant – Philadelphia

Mr. Ferris  specializes  in  organizational strategy and global human
resources and is skilled at building high performance organizations.
Previously  he  held  executive  Human  Resources positions at Del
Global  Technologies  Corp.,  ABB,  General Signal Corporation  and British Telecom
with responsibilities spanning some 44 countries on six continents.

Through his career, Edward has led high-return organizational change initiatives, guided
businesses  through  merger,  acquisition  and  culture shift and established  innovative
and enduring human resources practices that shaped competitive advantage and drove
business improvement. Edward graduated from Manchester University in England, and
holds two postgraduate diplomas in human resource management.

A frequent speaker and writer on global business and organizational strategy, his work
has  been  featured  in a number of textbooks, journals and magazines. Mr. Ferris also
teaches  Globality,  Global  Human Resources and Organizational Strategy at The New
School University's Milano Graduate School in New York City.

 

Sue Brodeur – Senior Consultant – Boston

Ms. Brodeur  is a  Senior Consultant with extensive engagement
experience in business process design, systems implementation
project  management, database  management and administration,
quality  assurance  and  program  development,  electronic
communications, and ANSI X12 EDI implementation.

Sue's latest projects have included Sarbanes Oxley IT compliance initiatives,
outlining key control gaps, management  reporting, and compliance solutions.

 

Laura Curran –  Principal – Los Angeles

Ms. Curran brings 20 years of experience in strategy and operations
with services and technology organizations, including Ingram Micro,
Microsoft, The Nature Conservancy,  and Lexis/Nexis, working with
major software firms, the City of Los Angeles, and WalMart.

Laura is an Adjunct Faculty member at UC Irvine teaching Supply Chain Sustainability.
She  has  developed  sustainability  strategies  and  programs  including  distribution
optimization for retail and web channels, and methods for the reduction of energy use,
transportation miles, emissions, and packaging. She is a LEED Green Associate and
member of US Green Building Council (USGBC).

She received her MBA, Operations, University of Virginia, Darden School of Business.

 

Greg Lander – President – Boston

Mr. Lander launched Citizens Energy with Joe Kennedy, which  grew
to  become  one  of  the  largest  energy  retail  marketers  in  the  U.S.
Greg also founded a successful technology company and was one of
the first to build a data center in the energy industry.

Currently, Greg  is  President  of Skipping Stone, President of Capacity Center, an energy
technology and data center operation, and a founding member of GISB, an energy market
standards board.

 

Peter Weigand – Chairman & CEO – Los Angeles

Mr. Weigand has been a successful entrepreneur in the deregulated
energy markets for over­ 25 years. Peter has been CEO of Commerce
Energy Group, a gas and electric retail marketer that he successfully
took public and grew into the largest  public  retail energy marketing
company in the U.S. He was also COO of ACN Europe, a consumer telecommunications
company with operations in 15 EU countries.

Peter founded Skipping Stone, a professional  services and technology company focused
on renewable energy, clean energy technology, and energy marketing clientele. Peter was
honored as an Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in 2002 and his companies have
been named several times in various "fastest growing" lists, including the Inc. 500.