Meet The Staff

Alan Ackerman joined Customized Energy Solutions in October 2007 as a Consultant.  Alan provides regulatory coverage of the New York ISO which includes reporting on work group and committee activities.  Alan also provides consulting and business analysis services for clients.  Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Alan worked in the pharmaceutical industry.  Alan earned his BA at Penn State University and his MBA at Binghamton University.

Mike Amiss joined Customized Energy Solutions in July 2006 as a Senior Energy Consultant.  In this role he is responsible for assisting clients with detailed analytical studies and evaluating their energy market activities for improved business decisions.  Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Mike worked for the Midwest ISO as a Midwest Market Initiative team member representing Market Settlements.  Before joining MISO, he was a Portfolio Risk Analyst in the Trading Controls section of ACES Power Marketing, where he was responsible for the valuation of member forward positions.  Prior to 2001, Mike worked at PSI Energy/Cinergy in various field and corporate positions in the areas of energy services sales and marketing, rates and cost of service, load research and forecasting.  While at Cinergy, he managed a variety of project teams including: power systems load research, demand side management impact evaluation, a joint venture’s marketing information system (MkIS) design and development, and Cinergy’s load profiling technical approach for the Ohio Retail Electric Supply Market.  A native ‘Hoosier’, Mike earned a B.S. in Marketing and Management from the Indiana University School of Business and a M.B.A. from Indiana State University along with graduate courses in applied statistics from Purdue University. 

Dharmesh joined Customized Energy Solutions in June 2007 as an Energy Scheduler. With a background in Electrical Engineering, Dharmesh supports the day to day activity in Day ahead and Real time energy markets like submitting day ahead bids and offers, Day ahead and real time Demand response, Emergency Load response, settlements and bill reconcilation. Prior to joining CES, Dharmesh worked as a telecommunication consultant with local governments, municipalities and first responders providing recommendations on their telecom system upgrades. He earned a Bachelor degree in Science , a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering, and is currently pursuing his second Masters from Villanova University, PA.

Markus Brunner joined Customized Energy Solutions in September 2007 as an Energy Scheduler. With a background in Mechanical Engineering, Markus supports the day to day activity in Day-Ahead and Real-Time energy markets like submitting Day-Ahead bids and offers, Day-Ahead and Real-Time Demand Response, Emergency Load Response, settlements and bill reconciliation. Prior to joining CES, Markus worked as a Fixed-Income Trader at the Chicago Board of Trade. He earned a Bachelor degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wales, Swansea (UK) and a Masters degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Cranfield University (UK).

Nancy Chafetz joined Customized Energy Solutions in September 2004.  As the Director of Regulatory Affairs for ISO-NE, she tracks the evolving market rules in New England through participation in various NEPOOL and ISO-NE committees and working groups.  In these forums, she provides reporting, consultation and advocacy services to clients.  She also performs both quantitative and qualitative analysis related to various aspects of the wholesale and retail electric markets.  Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Nancy worked for over ten years in the energy industry as a financial analyst. She constructed financial models to evaluate independent power projects, advised on project and pricing structures, identified and analyzed tax and currency exchange issues, and performed sensitivity analyses and risk assessments. She earned both an MBA and a B.S. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Raj Chintapalli joined Customized Energy Solutions in August 2004 to provide analytical and database support. As an Analyst, Raj is in charge of performing power flow analysis, maintaining proprietary wholesale market databases, and scheduling day ahead & real time energy in the PJM market. Raj also registers ALM and demand side response participants while monitoring the pricing in the PJM market. Additionally, Raj supports our FTR analysis. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Nagpur University. He has more than seven years of experience in software development and is a certified PJM Generation Operator.

Natalie Cotton has served as a Consultant with Customized Energy Solutions since 2000. Natalie has provided a wide range of services to clients including process improvements in data management and data reconciliation services. She was primarily responsible for developing the SQL database that Customized Energy Solutions uses to manage and analyze historical FTR data, and was the principal author of the 2003 FTR Report. Natalie has a B.S. and a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, and will obtain an MBA and J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in May of 2006.  In September 2006, she will begin a doctorate program in Organizational Behavior at the University of Michigan - Ross School of Business.

Jacquie DeRosa joined Customized Energy Solutions in November 2007 as the Director of Regulatory Affairs – California. She is working with clients to track and report on a diverse array of policy development issues at the CAISO and to address their business needs as the CAISO transitions to a new market design platform. Jacquie has twenty years of experience in the energy industry. Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, she worked directly for the California ISO in the area of market and product design. She also worked as an Account Manager for the CAISO where she served as the main point of contact between the CAISO and large energy corporations. Jacquie’s experience includes work in the international arena on energy sector restructuring matters for the United States Agency for International Development. She has also worked in project development for an independent power producer, and has worked directly for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Jacquie has a B.A. from Rutgers University and an M.B.A. from George Washington University.

Juan Diaz joined Customized Energy Solutions as an Analyst in April 2005. Juan provides analysis for large end use customers that choose to be their own load serving entities. Juan also supports our regulatory consulting efforts in all of the regions in which we are active. He has worked at a Senior Management level for GE, DaimlerChrysler, and Siemens in the areas of Operations, Strategic Planning and Process Reengineering. His experience includes direct operational responsibility for profits & losses for operations in excess of $100 million. Juan's skill set includes the aircraft engine (Combustion Turbine core) and lighting industries. Juan earned a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Northeastern University and a M.S. in Administration from Boston University. He is also a graduate of GE's management program and is certified in Six Sigma, Demand Flow Technology and is an accredited Lead Quality Systems Auditor.

Stephen Fernands founded Customized Energy Solutions in 1998 and is the current President. Since founding the company, he has been involved in more than 100 consulting projects for clients across North America and abroad.  These projects have included tariff analyses, load profiling, FTR analysis, bill reconciliations and other electric market analyses. Stephen has represented over forty clients in PJM, NYISO, ISO-NE and the Midwest ISO. He created load coalitions in PJM, MISO and NYISO whose active involvement in the stakeholder process has significantly impacted the evolution of the markets. He has served on numerous committees in PJM and currently chairs the Members Committee. In addition, Stephen has provided testimony to FERC regarding capacity market issues, demand response topics, and other issues.  Stephen earned a B.S. in Economics from Pennsylvania State University and an MBA in Finance from Drexel University.

Joseph Fiore started at Customized Energy Solutions in July 1999 and now serves as the Controller. His responsibilities include managing the firm's internal financial activities; including financial reporting, budgeting, invoicing, tracking risk exposure, payables, and maintaining personnel records and client contracts. In addition to his internal financial responsibilities, Joe assists with data verification and analysis for client projects. Outside of his experience in the Energy Industry, Joe has worked in various capacities in Commercial Finance, Securities, Health Insurance, Reinsurance, and Real Estate. Joe earned a B.S. in French & International Business from Pennsylvania State University and an M.S. in Finance from Drexel University.

Richard Gilkey joined Customized Energy Solutions in June 2006 as a Senior Energy Consultant.  He assists customers in managing electric, natural gas, and other energy costs through supply management, cost optimization, and risk management.  Rick is also responsible for administering electric load response programs that provide opportunities for customers to further reduce electric costs.  He has worked with industrial customers to negotiate power and natural gas purchase agreements, perform energy scheduling, and provide consulting services.  Rick earned undergraduate degrees in Chemistry from Dickinson College and Chemical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MBA from Widener University.  He is currently a member of the Association of Energy Engineers and is a Certified Energy Manager, Certified Energy Purchaser, and Certified Demand Side Management Professional.

Aprilyn Halate joined Customized Energy Solutions in November 2007 as a Bookkeeper. Aprilyn assists the Controller with daily banking, invoicing, payables, maintaining personnel records and payroll. Previously, Aprilyn has over ten years of extensive background in the accounting field and has worked for some of countries largest corporations.  She has earned her Associate’s degree from The University of New Mexico.

Adam Jackson joined Customized Energy Solutions in February 2008 as an Energy Scheduler. Adam supports the day to day activity in Day ahead and Real time energy markets like submitting day ahead bids and offers, Day ahead and Real time Demand response, Emergency Load response, settlements, bill reconciliation etc. Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Adam worked as a Business Analyst for a large retailer. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Tennessee Technological University.

Eddie Kolodziej joined Customized Energy Solutions in June 2005 as Director of Regulatory Affairs - Texas. He spent 31 years with Central and South West Corporation (CSW) working on various assignments in Texas, the southwestern U.S., Mexico, and Europe. Eddie has worked in AC and DC transmission design and construction, generation and transmission planning, control center dispatching operations, and power project development. He is the former Executive Director of the DFW Electric Consumer Coalition and he played a leadership role in ERCOT's Committee of Concerned Loads. Both organizations advocated improving ERCOT's nascent electricity market prior to implementation of the change to a nodal market.  Eddie is an electrical engineering graduate of Texas A&M University. He completed the University of Michigan's Public Utility Executive Program.

Ariel Lager joined Customized Energy Solutions in August 2005 and is the Manager of Governmental Affairs. Ariel works on behalf of the company’s clients on regulatory and procedural matters at the state and federal level, with a focus on renewable energy and carbon management.  She also provides services to new ventures and existing companies entering new markets.  In addition, she handles in-house legal matters.  Her previous experience involved end-user consumption and expenditure analysis for a New Jersey-based utility consulting group. Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Ariel worked in the Litigation Bureau of the Office of the Chief Counsel of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Ariel earned a B.A. from Rutgers University and a J.D. from The Pennsylvania State University – Dickinson School of Law with a concentration in Environmental and Natural Resource Law.  She is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia.

Rick Mancini has been with Customized Energy Solutions since June 2003 as Director of Regulatory Affairs for the NYISO. In that position he has taken leadership roles as Chairman of the NYISO Price Responsive Load Working Group, coordinator of the NYISO End Use Customers’ Sector ad hoc Group and Executive Director for the Price Responsive Load Coalition. Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Rick worked for New York State Electric & Gas (NYSEG) for 35 years and was greatly involved in the proceedings leading to the formation of the NYISO. Rick is experienced in power plant operations and ISO/RTO market design. Areas of expertise include project management, energy business analysis, load forecasting, pricing analysis, information system development, performance management and fuel procurement. Rick earned a Bachelors Degree in Technology and an MBA from Binghamton University. He is a Professional Engineer in the State of New York.

Jim McCormick joined Customized Energy Solutions in June 2005 as Director of Market Development. In this role he is responsible for the sales and marketing of our services. Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Jim worked for Strategic Energy as Manager, Market Development – Mid-Atlantic Region.  Prior to this, Jim was with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission where he assisted in the design, development, and implementation of electric industry restructuring. Prior to 1995, Jim worked for PECO Energy in electric generation operations, maintenance, new facilities construction and organizational design. Jim earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Villanova University.

Chris McLean joined Customized Energy Solutions in March 2008 as an Analyst. In this capacity, he provides expert services to clients managing operations in organized congestion, energy and transmission markets. Chris is practiced at leveraging data and analytics using best of class tools to optimize the risk management of energy transactions. He operates out of Customized Energy Solution’s offices in Folsom, California. Before teaming up with Customized Energy Solutions, Chris held market analyst positions with the CAISO Market Monitoring unit and the State of California Electricity Oversight Board. Prior to working directly with California markets, he contributed to Henwood Energy’s North American consulting practice as a staff consultant. Chris worked in all phases of analysis of regional power markets including economic modeling simulations, fundamental economic analysis and statistical analysis to solve problems ranging from forecasting wholesale market prices to incorporating risk assessments into asset valuations. Chris completed the Mathematics and Actuarial Science program at Oregon State University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree.

Bhala Mehendale joined Customized Energy Solutions in February 2004 as an Analyst. In this role he is primarily responsible for providing risk management services to clients. In particular, Bhala assists clients in maximizing the value of their Auction Revenue Rights (ARRs) and reducing basis risk with the use of Financial Transmission Rights (FTRs). Additionally, Bhala represents clients in the Credit and Market Settlement working groups building off of over five years of credit and financing experience in the electricity sector. He has worked with municipals and cooperatives in the west and with national trading companies. He has worked on both the engineering and financial analysis sides of the electric industry. Bhala has an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Masters Degree in Management from the University of Mumbai as well as an MBA in Finance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business.

Erik Paulson joined Customized Energy Solutions in May 2005 as the Director of Regulatory Affairs for PJM.  In this role, he represents the interests of the PJM Public Power Coalition (PPC) and provides regulatory reporting services.  The PPC is composed of 17 members which are primarily municipal and cooperative electric utilities.  In addition, Erik has worked on a number of consulting projects for clients in PJM.  Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions Erik worked at PJM Interconnection for 5 years.  In his most recent role at PJM, Erik functioned as the Manager of the Market Development Department and prior to that as the Manager of Real Time Market Operations. Erik earned a B.S. in Systems Engineering from the US Naval Academy and then completed the Navy's Nuclear Power Training Program. He also served as the Reactor Propulsion Officer aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier.

Jennifer Reed joined Customized Energy Solutions in April 2007 as an Energy Scheduler. Jennifer supports the day to day activity in Day ahead and Real time energy markets like submitting day ahead bids and offers, Day ahead and Real time Demand response, Emergency Load response,  settlements, bill reconcilation etc. Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Jennifer worked for over 5 years as an Analyst for PJM Interconnection.   She earned a Bachelor of Science in Communications from Clarion University . 

Caryn Rexrode joined Customized Energy Solutions as Senior Consultant in August, 2007. In this capacity, she tracks the evolving market rules primarily in ERCOT and in other ISOs as needed. Through her participation in various committees and working groups, she provides reporting, consultation and advocacy services to clients. Caryn has over 12 years of experience in the energy industry with the last 10 of those involving interfacing roles with the organized power markets (including ERCOT, PJM, ISO-NE, MISO, CAISO, and NYISO). Her previous assignments have included natural gas trading and marketing, various operations roles in power marketing and trading companies, asset management, and regulatory policy and market design in the ISO/RTO space. Caryn has worked for BP Energy, RWE Trading Americas, Tractebel Energy Marketing (Suez), and NorAm Energy (Reliant) before joining CES. Caryn earned a BS degree from University of Texas and an MS degree from Boston University.

David Sapper joined Customized Energy Solutions in January 2007 as the Director of Regulatory Affairs - MISO.  In this role David provides reporting services pertaining to the ongoing development of the policies and rules of the Midwest ISO markets and represents the interests of the MISO LSE Coalition, a group of 16 largely transmission dependent municipal, cooperative and similar electric utilities in the MISO region.  Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, David was the policy advisor to Commissioner Robert Garvin and advised other commissioners at the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, focusing on RTO and other wholesale electric industry restructuring developments.  He also chaired and served on various working groups of the Organization of MISO States.  Prior to that, David was an economist and the policy advisor to Commissioner H. Lynn Greer, Jr. at the Tennessee Regulatory Authority.  While in Tennessee, he also served on the Governor's Task Force on Electric Industry Restructuring.  David earned a B.A. in Economics from Trinity University (TX) and a Ph.D. in Economics from Vanderbilt University. 

Bill Schofield joined Customized Energy Solutions in January of 2002 and is currently Vice President of Regulatory Affairs. Bill is responsible for coordinating Customized Energy Solutions' advocacy and market reporting services in each of the RTO/ISO regions in which Customized Energy Solutions is active (PJM, MISO, NYISO, ISO-NE, ERCOT and CAISO). Prior to taking on this role, Bill served as Customized Energy Solutions’ Director of Regulatory Affairs for PJM where he represented the interests of the Public Power Coalition (PPC) and provided reporting services to other clients. For a period of time, Bill filled a similar role in the Midwest ISO (MISO) and represented the MISO LSE Coalition, which he continues to help directly support.  Bill is based out of Customized Energy Solutions' growing Midwest office located in Carmel, IN, not far from the main offices of the MISO.  Bill earned a B.A. from Moody Bible Institute in Biblical Studies and an M.A. from Trinity International University in Counseling Psychology.

Harveyetta Stone joined Customized Energy Solutions in February 2006 as Senior Administrative Assistant. Previously, Harveyetta served as an Administrative Assistant on an Executive level for a major global Standards organization. She has over five years of experience as an administrative assistant and over fifteen years of general corporate business experience.

Netra Thakur joined Customized Energy Solutions in June 2006 and currently working as analyst. Netra participates in market analysis projects for various clients active in the deregulated electricity markets. She also provides software support in automating daily activities related to market analysis and data collection. She is responsible for maintaining proprietary wholesale market databases for the company. She has over 6 years of experience in Software Application Development and Quality Assurance and Testing. She is Six-Sigma Green Belt certified in IT project quality assurance. She has worked on IT projects for GE Aircraft Engines (GEAE), GE Consumer Products (GECP) and GE Plastics through Patni Computer Systems, India. Netra earned a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Mumbai University, India.

Ed Toppi joined Customized Energy Solutions in July 2006 as a Senior Energy Consultant.  His primary area of focus is providing consulting services to Load Serving Entities in the areas of market analysis, risk management, hedging strategy, and other operational areas.  Additionally, Ed assists with quantitative analysis and retail energy marketing expertise on a variety of client projects.  Ed has over 10 years experience in the electricity industry—mostly in deregulated markets.  Most recently, Ed was a Vice President with Constellation NewEnergy, where he ran the company’s Mid-Atlantic regional business and oversaw Customer Acquisition Operations and Load Forecasting.  Prior to that, Ed held positions with Exelon Energy and Public Service Enterprise Group.  Before entering the private sector, he served as a Submarine Officer in the U.S. Navy.  Ed holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the United States Naval Academy and a Masters of Business Administration from Drexel University.

Jed Trott joined Customized Energy Solutions in July 2007 as an Analyst. He supports FTR services in MISO including annual ARR allocations and monthly and annual FTR auctions.  Jed also assists with consulting projects and the Load Serving Entity(LSE) services of billing and scheduling in different RTOs.  Before he joined Customized Jed worked as a Financial Advisor.  He earned a BA in International Relations from The University of Pennsylvania where he minored in Economics.

Rahul Walawalkar joined Customized Energy Solutions in March of 2004. He was principal investigator for a major research project evaluating the economics of emerging electricity storage technologies in the NYISO market. Rahul is involved in development of analytical models related to demand response and energy market analysis. He has over 7 years experience in energy and IT consulting including new product development. Rahul is an expert in energy efficiency and demand side management applications and has written numerous academic papers on the subject.  He is a certified energy manager (CEM) and certified demand side management (CDSM) professional. Rahul has earned a Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering from Walchand College of Engineering, India. He also received Masters in Energy Management from New York Institute of Technology and Masters in Engineering and Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University. He is currently a doctoral candidate in the Department of Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University.

Jeff Whitehead joined Customized Energy Solutions in August 2006 as a Consultant.  Jeff provides regulatory coverage of the California ISO which includes reporting on work group and committee activities.  Jeff also provides consulting and business analysis services for clients.  Prior to joining Customized Energy Solutions, Jeff worked for PJM Interconnection for 4 years in the System Operations Division, the Western Region Office and the Reliability Services Division.  Jeff earned a BA in Information Systems from Susquehanna University and is currently working on his MBA at Penn State University.

Kent Withrow joined Customized Energy Solutions in November 2007 as an Analyst, primarily serving clients in the Midwest ISO region.  Previously, he was the Technical Lead for Market Settlements applications at the Midwest ISO.  He had served in that role since 2004, through the launch of the MISO energy market in 2005, until joining Customized Energy.  Kent develops software tools and provides analytical support on IT and business issues for shadow settlements and related services.  He is a NERC-certified Reliability Coordinator.  Before MISO, Kent worked as a developer and consultant on utility billing software (SPL WorldGroup), energy source analytical software (Landmark Graphics) and transmission forecasting software (LCG Consulting).  He started his career in the energy industry in 1993, as a load forecaster and renewable energy GIS analyst at the Wisconsin Energy Bureau.  Kent earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley, and an M.S. from the Energy Analysis and Policy program at the University of Wisconsin - Madison.