The intention of this series is to give you, as a reader, a sense of where and how culture is thriving in the solar industry, and how you might begin to strengthen company culture in your own company or place of business. I conducted this interview with Ry Heller, Field Manager at True South Solar which currently employs 18 solar team members with 2 solar install teams.

Tamara: What does a thriving culture mean to you?

Ry: I think about it along the lines of my community here in Ashland. Our company is a little thriving culture within that. We have like-minded visions, shared goals, and our job is environmental activism. Our little thriving culture is more than just a job where you show up and make money. It’s a little community within the bigger community of people who want to make a difference, and enjoy showing up to work everyday to make that difference. We’re not just coworkers, but we’re all getting to know each other better, doing things outside of work sometimes, providing a very friendly community of support for one another...

Tags Thriving Culture, Thriving Solar

This article is part of an ongoing series of interviews for my exclusive column on Thriving Culture. The intention of this series is to give you, as a reader, a sense of where and how culture is thriving in the solar industry, and how you might begin to strengthen company culture in your own company or place of business. I conducted this interview with Anthoney Robinson, PV Installer and Energy Consultant at Elemental Energy, which currently employs 15 solar team members with 2 solar install teams.

Tamara: How would you describe your path to becoming an installer at Elemental Energy?

Anthoney: I was in the Marine Corps right after high school. I didn't particularly enjoy that too much, but I did learn that I like manual labor. I can't sit behind a desk – it’s something that I just can't wrap my head around...

Tags Thriving Culture, Thriving Solar

This article is part of an ongoing series of interviews for my exclusive column on Thriving Culture. The intention of this series is to give you, as a reader, a sense of where and how culture is thriving in the solar industry, and how you might begin to strengthen company culture in your own company or place of business. I conducted this interview with Kelli Wolford, Office Manager at Synchro Solar, which currently employs 10 solar team members with 2 solar install teams.

Tags Thriving Culture, Thriving Solar

This article is part of an ongoing series of interviews for my exclusive column on Thriving Culture. The intention of this series is to give you, as a reader, a sense of where and how culture is thriving in the solar industry, and how you might begin to strengthen company culture in your own company or place of business. I conducted this interview with Katie Martin, Project Manager at Imagine Energy, which currently employs ~15 solar team members with 2 solar install teams. As you’ll likely glean from this interview, Katie, and the leadership at Imagine, clearly have a deep understanding of the deep importance of company culture matters and the direct impact that it has on performance.

Tags Thriving Culture, Thriving Solar

This article is part of an ongoing series of interviews for my exclusive column on Thriving Culture. The intention of this series is to give you, as a reader, a sense of where and how culture is thriving in the solar industry, and how you might begin to strengthen company culture in your own company or place of business. I conducted this interview with Michael O’Brien, Director of Sales at A&R Solar, which currently employs 40-50 team members with 7 teams of installers. I chose Michael because he has the ability to provide valuable perspective on thriving culture through the eyes of someone on the team.

Tags Thriving Culture

By Tamara Staton, Owner Thriving Solar- A regular column to give a sense of where and how culture is thriving in the solar industry, and how you might begin to strengthen company culture in your own company or place of business. I conducted this interview with Rick Campfield, CEO of SunModo with over 20 team members. I chose Rick because, as company CEO, I knew that he would play a strong role in driving the company culture at SunModo, and could offer valuable perspective on his process.

Tamara: How would you describe your path to becoming the CEO of SunModo?

Rick: The majority of my path has been spent on the demand side of the meter...

Tags Thriving Culture

This is the first of a series of interviews in my exclusive column series on Thriving Culture. The intention of this series is to give you, as a solar professional, a sense of where and how culture is thriving in the solar industry, and how you might choose to strengthen company culture in your own company or place of business. I conducted this interview with Jordan Weisman, owner and founder of Sunbridge Solar, which, at the time of the interview, has eight staff, with one team of installers. I chose Jordan because he is a company founder, and through my work with him and his team, it is clear that Jordan holds a strong commitment to creating and maintaining a thriving culture at Sunbridge.

Tags Thriving Culture

Many of us have heard the buzz about ‘corporate culture’ and the importance of focusing on team communication and employee well-being. The 'HR-stuff', as someone said to me at the Oregon Solar Energy Conference in May. In corporate environments, this is clearly the norm, and it’s a rare company that doesn’t have this on their radar, with a budget to match. But in solar, it’s a different conversation, particularly for small and medium-sized owner-operated outfits.

Tags Thriving Culture, Thriving Solar