Throughout the course of the year, Advanced Energy United has been growing, spreading our footprint across new states, increasing staff capacity, and, most recently, expanding our Board of Directors. This week, we officially recognize and welcome several new board members whose companies have made strategic commitments in support of our mission and our organization.
Advanced Energy United is the only industry association in the U.S. that represents the full range of advanced energy technologies and services, both grid-scale and distributed. The companies joining the Board – from industries as varied as transmission development, DER management, and vehicle fleet electrification – showcase the unique range of United’s transformative engagement where advanced energy business leaders collaborate on strategies that lead to market-changing policy.
Joining the Board of Directors are:
“The growth of our Board reflects the growing value we are providing to our members and the industry,” said Heather O’Neill, President and CEO at Advanced Energy United. “We’re proud to unite diverse sectors of the advanced energy industry as we engage with critical decisionmakers across federal, state, regional, and energy market venues. We are fortunate to have the expertise of these members joining us at the Leader level, and I’m looking forward to working closely with our new Board members to accelerate the energy transition and create a more affordable, reliable, and clean energy and transportation future.”
Cisco DeVries
Cisco is responsible for business development, strategic partnerships, public policy, and external communications at Renew Home – which helps millions of homes manage their energy use and reduce their utility bills, while stabilizing the electric grid. For nearly three decades, Cisco DeVries has been at the forefront of clean energy and climate policy, finance, and business. From 2019 - 2024, DeVries served as the Chief Executive Officer of OhmConnect, which pioneered residential VPPs by paying hundreds of thousands of customers to reduce their energy use when the grid was stressed. In 2024, OhmConnect combined with a spin-out from Google Nest to form Renew Home. In 2007, DeVries created one of the most successful clean energy finance products – Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) – now a multi-billion dollar industry and one of Scientific American magazine’s top 20 “world-changing” ideas. In 2008, Cisco co-founded (and led) the firm Renew Financial, which financed $1.5 billion in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects on homes and businesses across the United States. Previous to his private sector work, DeVries spent close to a decade in public service as the Chief of Staff to the Mayor of Berkeley, where he developed the first PACE program. He was also an appointee of President Bill Clinton with positions at the U.S. Departments of Transportation and Energy where he organized the roll-out of key Presidential and Secretarial initiatives throughout the U.S. as well as internationally. DeVries holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of California, San Diego and a Master’s degree from the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Erika Diamond
Erika serves as the executive champion for EnergyHub's clients and end-user customers. Erika's team is responsible for ensuring the voice of the customer is central to EnergyHub's strategy and product, and includes sales, program delivery, customer and client engagement, and market development. She has more than 15 years of experience in the energy and software space, having served as the SVP of Corporate Development at Recyclebank and VP of Business Development at ThinkEco. She was the Vice Chair of the Advanced Energy Management Alliance (AEMA) and former Co-Chair of the Women in Demand Management group of the Peak Load Management Alliance (PLMA).
J.D. Sitton
J.D. Sitton is the Chief Executive Officer at CTC Global. J.D. has led start-up and growth-stage companies in the energy technologies and services, healthcare, and industrial controls sectors for the past 20+ years. He has worked closely with leading investors and strategic partners to develop and launch new products and services for electric utilities, oil and gas companies, and petrochemical operators. J.D. holds an MBA from the Bauer School of Business and a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rice University.
Matt Stanberry
Matt is the Vice President of Market Development for Highland Electric Fleets where he oversees the company’s go-to-market strategy, government partnerships, proposals, and business development. Prior to joining Highland, Matt was part of the startup team at the cleantech business association Advanced Energy United, where he built regulatory and legislative programs around transportation electrification, public utility commissions, and federal climate policy. He started his career in consulting with ICF and Navigant. Matt holds a bachelor’s in environmental science and policy from Duke University and a master’s in public health from Johns Hopkins University.
Neil Veilleux
As Vice President of Market Development and Regulatory Innovation at Uplight, Neil built and manages the market development and regulatory affairs team in support of Uplight's customer engagement, enrollment, and load flexibility platform. With 20 years of experience, he excels in managing cross-disciplinary teams to create data-driven solutions for corporations, start-ups, government agencies, and nonprofits. Neil’s expertise spans the entire product lifecycle, from strategic planning to execution. He previously served as VP of Energy Services at The Cadmus Group, where he led the DER practice, and he has held roles as a Rappaport Public Policy Fellow at Harvard and a Fulbright scholar in Germany. Neil is passionate about driving impactful social, economic, and environmental change.