Episode 1: The Journey from Garage to Nasdaq: A Discussion with Brad Mattson

Hello #cleantechers! Listeners of Scaling Clean know our show is designed to bring you management and leadership wisdom from experienced company leaders in the clean technology industry. Today, we are bringing you perspective from Jing Tian, who co-founded her own company early in her career and also led the U.S. presence for three different international cleantech firms. And Jing Tian is also Dr. Tian, who earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from Drexel University and served as a postdoctoral fellow in the Chemistry Department at Princeton University. 

Hello #cleantechers. On today’s Scaling Clean, a discussion with Silvia Ortin Rios. She has worked in the power sector her entire career. Silvia started as a contract trading analyst for TXU Energy in the late 1990s. Over a quarter century later, she is the CEO of RWE Renewables Onshore Wind and PV division. Silvia is the first woman to hold the position.

Our goal on Scaling Clean is to aggregate insights from CEOs, investors and advisors on building and running winning teams at clean economy companies. I am really excited to share this interview with our listeners because Silvia has experience as a key part of #cleantech teams in four countries on both sides of the Atlantic. She is a rich source of culturally-portable management lessons invaluable on the global stage.

Timestamps:
1:08 — As a female professional, the importance of having exposure to strong female role models who can show that women’s business voices deserve to be heard.  

8:45 — Working in cleantech is “almost a lifestyle,” differing from other sectors because employees are passionate. That passion makes running a cleantech company easier, because employees see they’re working towards something bigger than themselves.

12:59 — Diverse teams have a more comprehensive understanding of the challenges facing their company. 

20:15 — Hiring is difficult because decisions often must be made with a limited amount of interaction with a job candidate. Trust your instincts and have another interviewer in the room for additional perspective.  

23:39 — Firing is the hardest part of the job. Be prepared and thoughtful, and have specific examples of what triggered the dismissal. 

24:46 — Being a CEO can be a lonely position. Learn to enjoy the role. It makes making tough decisions easier. Surround yourself with people you trust, but who also challenge you and make you better.

Find out more about Tigercomm’s work at the center of the cleantech industry at www.tigercomm.us.

Hello, #cleantechers. Ever heard the joke about the engineer who walked into a podcast interview and turned out to be a fountain of wisdom and soundbites? Well, our guest today is just that… except he’s no joke.   

Hey #cleantechers, this week we’re back with part two of our conversation with Soluna Computing CEO John Belizaire. John’s current company is building modular green data centers that run on renewable energy. And though he just turned 50, John has already sold two companies.

Hey #cleantechers, ever hear about someone and feel at least a little bit awed by what they have accomplished in their lives? Well, we’ve got one of those folks featured in this episode of Scaling Clean.

#Cleantechers, pay attention to this episode, because it’s a good one. As our readers know, we designed the #ScalingClean podcast to bring you management and leadership wisdom from experienced company leaders. We’ve got a heavily experienced growth company CEO for you in this episode who is lighting up the traditionally workhorse energy efficiency sector.  

We designed this show to bring you wisdom from experienced company leaders, and this episode won’t disappoint.  

Episode 7: Graham Richard Advises on Driving the Shift to a Clean Future

We describe this show as a podcast for clean economy CEOs, investors and the people who advise them. As both an investor and an advisor, Graham has a foot in two of those categories. But he’s also one of the few people in cleantech who have served in elected office. Mayor Graham Richard served the city of Ft. Wayne, Indiana from 2000-2007 before taking the reins at Advanced Energy Economy to advocate for pro-sustainability policies.

We describe our podcast as “Scaling Clean, the podcast for clean economy CEOs, investors and the people who advise them.” Ken Locklin is the first we’ve had on the show from the last category. And there’s a reason for that: Ken is the cleantech oracle you probably haven’t heard of because he has the enviable combination of foresight and humility.