2018 Winner | Green Mountain Power
Photo: VBM Publisher John Boutin, with GMP's Mary Powell, Robert Dostis, Kristin Carlson, Kristin Kelly, Josh Castonguay, Mari McClure, Brian Otley and Vermont Chamber President Betsy Bishop. Photo by J Baldwin Photography.
Vermont Business Magazine and the Vermont Chamber on May 22 announced Green Mountain Power as the winner of the prestigious and highly anticipated Deane C Davis Outstanding Business of the Year Award. The announcement came during the Deane C Davis Hall of Fame induction ceremony held at the UVM Grossman School of Business, located at Kalkin Hall.
“It’s such a huge honor to be among all of you to receive this award,” GMP CEO Mary Powell said upon receiving the granite plaque. “A huge congratulations to the other finalists.” GMP itself has been a finalist twice before. “This is our year,” she said.
Photo: Green Mountain Power CEO Mary Powell accepts the Deane C Davis award Wednesday evening at UVM. Photo by J Baldwin Photography.
“It’s all about Vermont,” Powell said. “It’s all about, for us, team Vermont, and everybody here is an amazing example of what we can all do when we want to do good for the Vermonters that we serve. And that’s what drives us every single day.”
This annual award honors a Vermont business that shows an outstanding history of sustained growth while displaying an acute awareness of what makes Vermont unique. The award, named for the former governor of Vermont, was created 29 years ago by Vermont Business Magazine and the Vermont Chamber to recognize and honor the state’s best companies.
Green Mountain Power is the energy provider to over 75 percent of Vermont. Not only is it the first energy utility to have been designated as a B Corp, GMP takes its commitment to social and environmental performance seriously.
Led by CEO Mary Powell, GMP recently committed to fully carbon-free power by 2025 and fully renewable power by 2030, beating the Vermont state goal by 20 years. GMP was a finalist for the award in 2011.
In 2016 GMP opened the Energy Innovation Center in Rutland, allowing collaboration between partners to increase energy efficiency and decrease costs.
GMP is not only devoted to the environment, they are also committed to their employees, with a detailed Code of Ethics and pledge to employees by redefining success in business. Employees are encouraged to have healthy minds, bodies and families.
To achieve that, GMP offers lunch & learn socials with stress management, monthly preventive body maintenance and ergonomic assessments and on-site chiropractic care. To further engage with its community, GMP offers each employee four hours of paid time for community or volunteer work. At least once per year the company coordinates events for employees to use those four hours.
Customers are invited to give back as well and can give excess net metering credits to local non-profits that would decrease their electric bill.
GMP operates a variety of community outreach programs, including osprey restoration, which aided in the removal of the osprey from the endangered species list in 2005. They also host the Gift of Life Marathon, a project that evolved out of employee blood drives.
In 2012, the Red Cross collected 1,955 pints at the Gift-of-Life Marathon, just shy of the national record of 1969. On December 17, 2013, Rutland broke the national record for a single-day blood drive.
With a focus on innovation, customer service, commitment to employees, and pride in supporting the community, Green Mountain Power embodies the business excellence representative of the Deane C. Davis Award, making them a strong contender in the race for this distinction.
“We are proud to have Green Mountain Power as the recipient of the 2018 Deane C. Davis Outstanding Business of the Year Award,” said John Boutin, publisher of Vermont Business Magazine. “They truly are deserving of this honor and join 28 other Vermont companies to be recognized over the years as one of the best in Vermont.”
The two other impressive finalists for the Deane C. Davis Outstanding Business of the Year Award were Chroma Technology and ReArch Companies.
At the Deane C. Davis Award ceremony, five previous winners of this prestigious award were inducted into the Deane C. Davis Hall of Fame. The companies inducted were 2011 winner Foley Family of Companies, 2012 GW Plastics, 2013 Dealer.com, 2014 Champlain Cable and 2015 PC Construction. The DCD Hall of Fame is located in Kalkin Hall on the UVM Campus.
Vermont Business Magazine is the state's most respected business publication. Since 1972, Vermont Business Magazine has published statewide business news, economic and political news and commentary, business and individual profiles, data, analysis and statistics.
The Vermont Chamber is the largest statewide, private, not-for-profit business organization; they represent every sector of the state’s business community. Its mission is to create an economic climate conducive to business growth and the preservation of the Vermont quality of life.