Mutual Aid to Market Forces: The New Era of Utility Resource Acquisition
As major events grow larger and more complex, utilities are rethinking how they secure the people, equipment, and contractor support needed for response and restoration. This panel will examine how leading organizations are balancing traditional mutual assistance with direct contractor sourcing and hybrid resource strategies.
Panelists will discuss pre-event planning, mutual aid coordination, contractor engagement, logistics challenges, and lessons learned from recent storms and large-scale incidents. Hear how utilities are adapting resource acquisition models to improve speed, flexibility, and execution when demand for crews and specialized resources is at its highest.
Moderator:
Jim Nowak, Senior Consultant, Chartwell, Inc.
Jim Nowak is a seasoned utility industry executive with over 37 years of experience leading emergency management, outage restoration, and operational innovation. He has held senior roles at American Electric Power, ARCOS, and Tempest, and today serves as Senior Consultant at Chartwell, Chief Client Advocate at Crew Surge, and Partner/COO at TRE Solutions. Jim has co-chaired national industry groups for EEI and co-founded the Great Lakes Mutual Assistance Group, helping shape mutual aid and incident response practices across North America. He brings deep expertise in SaaS technology adoption, customer success, and resilience planning to enhance the reliability and safety of critical utility services.
Panelists:
Glen Aichinger, Vice President of New York Emergency Preparedness & Resilience Planning, National Grid
Glen Aichinger is Vice President of New York Emergency Preparedness & Resilience Planning at National Grid, where he leads preparedness, planning, and resilience efforts across the state. A respected utility leader with more than three decades of experience, Glen has held a broad range of operational and emergency planning roles spanning electric operations, resource planning & support, and engineering. Based in Buffalo, he is recognized for building strong partnerships with utility and public-sector stakeholders to advance readiness through collaboration, discipline, and innovation. In addition to his New York leadership role, Glen represents National Grid in regional and national mutual assistance efforts as a member of the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) Mutual Assistance Executive Committee, where he has served since 2016. Glen holds engineering degrees from the University at Buffalo and the Rochester Institute of Technology.
Angie Gibson, Vice President of Emergency Preparedness and Response, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E)
Angie Gibson is Vice President of Emergency Preparedness and Response at Pacific Gas and Electric Company, where she leads enterprise-wide emergency management, business continuity, all-hazards planning, training and exercises, the company’s 24/7 Hazard Awareness Warning Center, and its Geoscience team. A Disaster Science Fellow with a degree in Public Safety Management, Gibson has built a distinguished career developing world-class emergency management programs. She has played key leadership roles in major incidents including Superstorm Sandy, Hurricane Maria, and California wildfires, and has helped shape PG&E’s approach to preparedness, response, recovery, and long-term resilience.
Alan Bradshaw, Vice President of Utility Relations, Holland Power Services
Alan joined Holland Power Services in June 2024, bringing with him 41 years of experience from Dominion Energy in Virginia and North Carolina. During his career at Dominion Energy Alan served in a wide range of leadership roles including in Operations Centers, Emergency Preparedness, Distribution Design and Strategic Partnerships. He served on EEI’s Mutual Assistance and Emergency Preparedness Executive Committee, the National Mutual Assistance Resource Team, and the VA811 Board of Directors. Based in Williamsburg, Virginia, Alan’s role at Holland Power Services is to collaborate with electric utilities across the United States and Canada to provide experienced, qualified, and safe restoration crews when their service territories are impacted by power outages. Alan’s work at Holland Power Services allows him the privilege to continue his passion for public service and helping communities recover during times of need.
Todd Fountain, Director, Distribution Vegetation Management, Duke Energy
Todd Fountain currently serves as the General Manager of Emergency Preparedness for Duke Energy Florida, bringing over 35 years of industry experience to the team. Todd began his career as a Groundman and advanced to become a Journeyman Lineman, demonstrating a strong commitment to professional development from the outset. After several years as a lineman, Todd pursued his interest in Distribution Dispatching, dedicating 17 years in this arena and ultimately becoming the Director of the Dispatch Control Center. Following this, Todd transitioned to Director of Duke Energy’s Vegetation Management Program, where they led initiatives for four and a half years prior to assuming his current role as General Manager of Emergency Preparedness. Throughout his career Todd has responded from every hurricane to impact Florida from Hurricane Andrew in 1992 to Hurricane Milton in 2024, ensuring safe and timely power restorations for thousands of customers throughout out his career.
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