As we approach this year’s Labor Day weekend, there’s a truism that bears repeating: our single most valuable asset at Inovateus Solar is our time. And time is given to us from our people, which are our most important resource. What makes this company and the rest of the solar and energy storage industries so exciting and rewarding to be a part of isn’t just the cool technology we get to deploy or this massive undertaking of changing the energy business, it’s the caliber and passion of the 260,000-plus solar workers making it all happen.
When I say workers, I mean everyone from the C suite to the designers and estimators working their spreadsheets to the residential sales people going door to door on your street. The roots of Labor Day may have come out of the union movement in the late 19th century, but I believe that today we should use the holiday to celebrate everyone who lends a hand in this transformational effort.
You’ve probably seen the reports that show that clean energy economy jobs are among the fastest-growing employment segments in the U.S. and other parts of the world. For example, no job category is growing faster than wind turbine technician, while solar accounted for nearly one of every 50 new jobs created in the U.S. in 2016. That’s impressive.
What’s also impressive—and fascinating—is the diversity of skill sets extant throughout the solar workforce.
You have straight-up scientists and engineers innovating in the labs, and manufacturing experts making sure our modules, inverters and balance of systems components meet exacting specifications.
There are software geeks coming up with ever-more impressive ways to smooth out the customer acquisition process, quickly design a rooftop system or utility-scale power plant, and analyze and utilize the data to squeeze every last kilowatt-hour of generation out of the arrays.
Then there are those people steeped in the ways of the financial and real estate development worlds, who are helping to build solar as a legitimate asset class, who make and close the deals, and dial in and broaden the economic value of solar.
You have the electricians, mechanical installers and other construction folks who build, commission, and maintain the millions of solar power systems, large and small, that are already built or taking shape.
And don’t forget the back-office folks making sure the checks are cashed and the bills are paid, the logistics masters eyeballing the ebb and flow of shipments and deliveries, and the marketing teams not only promoting their companies’ or clients’ products and services but spreading the clean energy message.
So when you’re firing up your Labor Day barbecue and enjoying the last days of summer with family and friends, take a moment to salute yourselves, the workers, the beating heart of the solar industry.
By TJ Kanczuzewski, president and CEO, Inovateus Solar
