Public/Private Partnerships During a Crisis
When major events escalate, no single organization can respond alone. Effective coordination between utilities, government agencies, and private-sector partners becomes essential to maintaining operations, restoring service, and supporting communities. Yet these partnerships are often tested in real time, under pressure, with competing priorities, and evolving information.
This panel brings together leaders from utilities, emergency management, and the private sector to examine how these relationships function during a crisis. Panelists will share practical insights on coordination structures, information sharing, resource alignment, and the role of business and industry partners in response and recovery. The discussion will highlight what works, where breakdowns occur, and how organizations can strengthen partnerships before the next event.
Moderated by: Carlos Torres, Resilience Executive Advisor, Chartwell Inc.
Carlos has nearly 40 years of utility leadership experience. As VP of Emergency Preparedness & Business Resiliency at Consolidated Edison Inc., he led crisis responses, including 9/11, 2003 Northeast Blackout, and Superstorm Sandy. He was asked to lead Puerto Rico’s power restoration by their Governor after Hurricanes Irma and Maria and has worked with numerous consulting firms advising utilities, and regulators. He has served as board member and senior advisor to various organizations and currently serves on the boards of Disaster Tech Inc. and the All-Hazards Consortium, helping utilities enhance resilience and crisis response.
Panelists:
- Daniel Isom, Vice President Safety, Security, and Crisis Management, Ameren
Daniel Isom II is the Vice President of Safety, Security, and Crisis Management at Ameren. He is the retired Chief of Police for the Metropolitan Police Department-City of St. Louis appointed St. Louis’ 33rd Chief of Police on October 6, 2008. He joined the St. Louis Police Department on August 29, 1988. He has worked in patrol, investigation, training, internal affairs, and management positions during his career. He was promoted through the ranks to Major before being selected Chief of Police. He served as the Missouri Director of Public Safety, and a member of the Ferguson Commission and the Director of Public Safety for the City of St. Louis. He has received a Bachelor’s, Master’s and Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice, all from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He also holds a Master’s in Public Administration from St. Louis University. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, FBI National Executive Institute, and the Police Executive Forum Senior Management Institute. Eisenhower Fellowships selected him as an U.S.A. Eisenhower Fellow in 2013 to study police education and training in Europe. Dr. Isom was also a Fellow at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics in 2016.
- Jesse Sythe, GridEx Program Manager, Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center, North American Electric Reliability Corporation
Jesse Sythe is the GridEx Program Manager at the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center (E-ISAC). With more than 20 years of experience in transmission operations, nuclear power, and emergency preparedness, Jesse has built a career focused on strengthening operational resilience through training, simulation, and large-scale exercises. For the last four years, Jesse has led the planning and execution of the largest grid security exercise in North America, with the ninth GridEx being planned for November 2027. Jesse holds degrees in English and Nuclear Engineering Technology, and he is finishing a Master’s in Energy Policy and Climate this fall. When he’s not preparing the electric industry for worst-case scenarios, you’ll find Jesse in Atlanta, always up for a good conversation on exercises and how to make critical infrastructure more resilient.
- Persia Payne-Hurley, Assistant Director for Partnership Engagement, NCEM
Persia Payne-Hurley is Assistant Director for Partnership Engagement at North Carolina Emergency Management, where she leads statewide initiatives that strengthen collaboration between government, utilities, businesses, and nonprofit organizations before, during, and after disasters. She oversees North Carolina’s nationally recognized Business Emergency Operations Center (BEOC), Vendor Disaster Re-Entry, CERT, and Volunteer programs. Payne-Hurley created the nation’s first operational BEOC, a model now emulated across the country. A retired U.S. Army major and visiting lecturer for the Institute for Security Governance at the Naval Postgraduate School, she is a nationally recognized leader in public-private partnership development and emergency management.
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