Mike Henchen is a Manager with RMI’s electricity practice. He focuses on utility business models and innovation, and manages RMI’s ongoing work supporting a resilient, affordable, clean electricity system in Puerto Rico. Mike has contributed to RMI’s Reimagining the Utility work, an assessment of lessons learned in utility pilot and demonstration programs at the distribution edge, and an upcoming paper on electrification of building heating. He has also worked with leading utilities to build and expand innovative business models supporting the transition to an affordable, reliable, low-carbon energy system. Mike is interested in developing solutions for a clean energy future that benefit both customers and utilities and mitigate the impact of climate change.
BACKGROUND
Before joining RMI, Mike was an engagement manager for McKinsey and Company in San Francisco. He worked primarily in the electric utility sector, helping utilities implement operational efficiency programs. Before this, Mike served as an engineer officer in the U.S. Army, deploying to Afghanistan with the 101st Airborne Division in 2008–2009, performing counterinsurgency and base defense missions as a platoon leader and company executive officer.
EDUCATION
MBA, Stanford Graduate School of Business
B.Sc., Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University
LOCATION
Boulder, CO
TWITTER HANDLE
@MichaelHenchen
WHY DO YOU LOVE WORKING AT RMI?
“I am inspired to work toward solutions that build a sustainable energy future while also supporting a dynamic energy system that helps customers, businesses, and communities meet their goals.”
Authored Works
Outlet Blog Post
Collaborating for Puerto Rico’s Energy Transformation
More than a year after Hurricane Maria passed by, Puerto Rico’s energy system does not fully meet the needs of the 3.4 million American citizens who live on the island. It is also not sufficient to sustain local commerce, which is worth $105 billion of GDP annually, and which includes…
Outlet Blog Post
Finding Value in the Energy Future: How Utilities Can Collaborate with Low- and Moderate-Income Customers to Do More
Download RMI’s new report, Finding Value in the Energy Future: How Utilities Can Collaborate with Low- and Moderate-Income Customers to Do More. Low- and moderate-income (LMI) customers have historically had troubled relationships with the utility companies that provide them with power. LMI customers and communities pay much higher proportions…
insight
The Economics of Electrifying Buildings
Seventy million American homes and businesses burn natural gas, oil, or propane on-site to heat their space and water, generating 560 million tons of carbon dioxide each year—one-tenth of total US emissions. But now, we have the opportunity to meet nearly all our buildings’ energy needs with electricity from an…
Outlet Blog Post
Report Release: Electrifying Buildings for Decarbonization
Download RMI’s new report, The Economics of Electrifying Buildings Seventy million American homes and businesses burn natural gas, oil, or propane on-site to heat their space and water, generating 560 million tons of carbon dioxide each year—one-tenth of total US emissions. But now, we have the opportunity to meet…
Outlet Blog Post
Customer-Centric Energy Transformation
Download RMI’s new report, Customer-Centric Energy Transformation: A Case Study of the Opportunity with Green Mountain Power The U.S. electricity industry needs new business models to complete the transformation to an affordable, reliable, low-carbon energy system. New models that transition away from traditional cost-of-service regulation can empower customers to…
insight
Customer-Centric Energy Transformation
Green Mountain Power (GMP) in Vermont has announced a new company vision as Vermont’s Energy Transformation Company and pursued a path of customer innovation to advance the transition to a low-carbon, affordable, reliable future energy system. In so doing, GMP aims to expand from its traditional vertically integrated, investor-owned business…
insight
Reimagining the Utility
Electric utilities must modernize to serve new economic and policy objectives, including managing an increasingly distributed and decarbonized power system. A fundamental question for this future system is: What is the appropriate scope for utility functions (and associated earnings opportunities) versus those that should be provided by a competitive marketplace?…
Outlet Blog Post
Making Customer Battery Storage Work for a Cleaner, Less Expensive Grid
Battery energy storage is often hailed as a “holy grail” to unlock a renewable energy future. And battery costs are falling, bringing that vision closer to reality. In fact, it is now cost-effective for many commercial customers to invest in batteries to reduce their energy bills. But therein lies the…
Outlet Blog Post
Pathways for Innovation
Download RMI’s New Report, Pathways for Innovation: The Role of Pilots and Demonstrations in Reinventing the Utility Business Model The rapid growth of distributed energy resources (DERs) and large-scale renewable energy is driving utilities to test and develop a variety of new technologies, business models, and customer-facing programs. DERs…