EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
Mike Payne: President, E.M.P.
Mike is E.V.P. of Commercial Operations and Corporate Counsel at Alternative Energy Development Group (AEDG). AEDG provides advisory services to commercial and industrial clients across the U.S. that reduce energy demand, reduce energy supply costs, and enhance sustainability and resiliency. AEDG develops, finances, owns, and operates clean energy projects, and serves as Fund Manager and General Partner for the Alternative Energy Infrastructure Projects Fund I LP.
Before joining AEDG, Mike served 21 years with APPI Energy where he created, developed, and managed consulting services, due diligence of energy suppliers, and corporate legal matters. He assisted with the development of relationships with trade associations.
Mike graduated with honors from Wake Forest University (B.A. ’78), the University of Miami School of Law (J.D. ’81), and the George Washington University National Law Center (LL.M. Taxation ’84). He is a member of the District of Columbia Bar.
Andrew Barth: Vice President, E.M.P.
Andrew Barth is Partner and Co-Founder of CSD Energy Advisors, LLC, a national energy management firm that assists clients with the development and implementation of integrated energy solutions.
Based in Houston, TX, Mr. Barth combines fifteen years of industry experience, customer service, and technology to provide client based solutions. His areas of expertise are in the planning and sourcing of commodity procurement strategies, risk management, and the development of efficiency and sustainability initiatives.
Perry Ruthven: Secretary, E.M.P.
Perry Ruthven is the Managing Director of Priority Power Management (PPM) in Houston, Texas. Drawing from a career that has cut across multiple industries including Energy, Technology, Logistics, Banking, and Insurance, Perry brings a wealth of knowledge and market experience to lead PPM’s Houston Region.
Perry joined PPM from PARenergy Inc., an electricity brokerage and consultancy based in Houston, Texas. As founder and president of PARenergy, Mr. Ruthven built a successful business representing diverse clients in the chemical, healthcare, commercial real estate, food service and logistics industries.
Marilyn Fox: Treasurer, E.M.P.
Marilyn is a professional accountant, specializing in utility rate regulation and other financial and policy issues. She has worked for the finance departments of municipal governments regulating electric, gas and water utilities and negotiating franchise agreements and contracts with business entities.
She has also handled franchise fee and tax compliance issues. She has served as an expert witness in local, state and federal proceedings and presented testimony before the State Legislature of Texas. Marilyn has worked with clients from the public and private sector on a variety of projects ranging from franchise fee reviews and negotiations to applying the Federal Communications Commission’s Rules for pole attachment rate calculations.
David Wiers: At-Large Board Member, E.M.P.
David C. Wiers has over 17 years of experience in creating and delivering innovative solutions in the energy industry. Mr. Wiers has participated in deregulated markets from their inception and has shared his expertise at numerous conferences and forums, advocating retail electricity and representing third-party aggregator, broker, and consultant (ABC) channels.
Wiers founded Satori Energy in 2006, which has now served over 50,000 accounts and has secured more than $140 Million in energy savings for its clients. In late 2011, Mr. Wiers assisted in the due diligence and purchase of Select Energy Partners (SEP).
Mr. Wiers has led the strategic vision of the firm as Satori has continued its pattern of targeted growth through the acquisitions of Public Utility Brokers (September 2014), GOBY LLC’s procurement business (December 2014), Velocity Energy Group (January 2015), EnergyNext, Inc. (April 2015), WTX Power (August 2015), and InSource Power (October 2015).
Paul Ward: At-Large Board Member, E.M.P.
Paul has been involved with TEPA since its inception and continues to share his expertise to further the mission of TEPA. He served as the 2012 President of the organization, working primarily to increase the value of membership to the supplier community in TEPA. Paul also previously served as Chair on the Discipline Committee (now Standards and Compliance) for three years to help enforce a code of conduct in the Texas market through elevating ethical standards of TEPA’s membership.
For 15 years, Paul has worked at Schneider Electric (formerly PoCo Energy Group and then Summit Energy) as a sales associate, client energy manager and director for the company. He currently also serves as the General Manager for the Schneider office in Lancaster, Texas. In this role, he is responsible for managing multiple accounts as well as managing the Lancaster team.
Lauren Bailey: At-Large Board Member
Lauren serves as the Director of Sales at Broker Online Exchange and has been a key player at BOX since its inception. Having held numerous roles in Account Management and Business Development, Lauren possesses exceptional talent in developing growth sales strategies, achieving financial targets, and building relationships.
Chris Gersch: At-Large Board Member
Christopher Gersch currently serves as the Co-Founder and President of Navigate Power. Christopher brings over 20 years of professional leadership experience and a dynamic understanding of energy markets to the clean energy industry. He began his career as a commodity trader at the Chicago Board of Trade and then utilized his expertise to form eleven businesses, including Verde Solutions, Navigate Power, RxSun, and Fresh Coast Solar.
As a philanthropist and an active member of his community, he is an executive board member for the Charles Tillman Cornerstone Foundation, a member of the Catholic Covenant Energies Advisory Board, and Director at Large for The Energy Professionals Association (TEPA).
Mr. Gersch is an adjunct professor at the University of Chicago, designing and teaching quantitative trading strategies and algorithmic system modeling. He often appears as an expert guest speaker for CNBC, Bloomberg, CNN, and Fox Business News. Mr. Gersch graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Aerospace from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and is a licensed multi-engine commercial pilot.
David Roylance: At-Large Board Member, E.M.P.
David has more than 30 years in the energy industry with a proven track record of delivering innovative solutions for competitive electricity and natural gas consumers across the North American and European restructured markets.
Most recently, David co-founded Prism Energy Solutions, an energy consultancy for commercial natural gas and electricity consumers. Prior to forming his own company, David was Senior Vice President for Reliant Energy, where since 2001 he led the commercial and industrial sales and marketing division before joining SaveOnEnergy in 2009.
Prior to joining Reliant in 1998, David rose through positions of increasing responsibility at Conoco Philips’ domestic and international units, ultimately served as a Director of Natural Gas Trading and Marketing.
Jennifer Underwood: At-Large Board Member
Jennifer Underwood is the Chief Operating Officer of APPI Energy and is responsible for the day-to-day leadership and management of APPI Energy’s mission, vision, and values. She develops and implements growth processes to cultivate company culture and future visions while overseeing leadership development.
Underwood directly impacts change at APPI Energy by analyzing and interpreting data and metrics to create goals for performance and growth. She implements and oversees company policy and is responsible for the measurement and effectiveness of all processes, internal and external. Additionally. she manages the profitability, cash flow, and financial oversight of the company.
Steve Campbell: At-Large Board Member, E.M.P.
As President of Energy Solutions at Mantis Innovation, Steve Campbell is responsible for the overall growth strategy for this business division. Campbell previously held the role of President at Patriot Energy Group before the company transitioned the brand to Mantis Innovation.
Prior to that role, as Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Patriot Energy Group, Campbell was responsible for the company’s finance and operations functions, with primary responsibility for the company’s finance and accounting, financial planning, treasury, back-office operations and facilities management. Campbell has over thirty years of experience as a finance executive in public and private software companies ranging from Raytheon, IBM Software Division, Genuity, Enterasys Networks, Juniper and Progress Software.
Greg Bechert: At-Large Board Member, E.M.P.
Greg Bechert, Managing Partner at Scioto Energy, is an industry veteran who has devoted his career to supporting deregulation and ensuring competitiveness in the Ohio energy markets.
His background in the industry began in 1995, marketing natural gas and electricity to the Midwest and Northeastern United States with Enron Capital and Trade Resources. In 2002, he joined Constellation NewEnergy, where he directed power sales efforts for the Great Lakes region, including Ohio, Michigan and Illinois.
With a broad background and significant expertise in wholesale markets, he founded Scioto Energy in 2008 and – together with Susanne Buckley – uniquely positioned the company as a trusted resource for natural gas and electric supply. He later became a founding member of Energy Professionals of Ohio and eventually served as its chairman, overseeing the group’s initiatives to ensure competitive market practices and policies while bringing a unified voice to the broker community.
Over the last decade, Greg has helped lead Scioto Energy to the forefront of Ohio brokerage firms, building long-lasting client relationships with innovative product offerings, proprietary tools, first-class service, and extensive market knowledge.
Jared Patterson: Past President, E.M.P.
Texas State Representative Jared Patterson is a focused, proactive leader. For more than a decade, he has dedicated himself to serving his neighbors in public office and to his professional career in the retail electricity and natural gas industry. Over a decade ago, Jared joined the team at Rapid Power Management. He now serves on the company’s Strategic Leadership Team and drives millions of dollars of sales revenue for the company. With a passion for serving others, Jared Patterson has had the opportunity to serve in various leadership roles.
From 2009 to 2013, he served concurrently on the Sachse, Texas City Council and Economic Development Board of Directors. In 2012, his peers elected him to serve as Mayor Pro Tem. In 2018, Jared was elected to serve as State Representative in Texas House District 106.
THE ENERGY PROFESSIONALS ASSOCIATION
TEPA is a not-for-profit organization of professionals dedicated to advancing competitive energy markets across the country. A membership-based association, TEPA provides professional development, advocacy, certification program, and access to a network of respected industry leaders.
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