Executive Leadership

Jeff D. Heggedahl

President and Chief Executive Officer

As president and CEO of Ecova, Jeff Heggedahl is responsible for creating a clear vision for the company as the leader in total energy and sustainability management. Jeff is recognized as a proven leader who can transform and grow companies through strategic planning and acquisition, increased profitability, and enhanced customer loyalty to become leaders in their respective industries.

"Ecova helps our clients save significant amounts of money on a recurring basis and make a meaningful difference in our planet and our environment."

Prior to joining Ecova in 2009, Jeff was president and CEO of Scantron Corporation, a testing and assessment company. Under Jeff's leadership, Scantron doubled its corporate revenues in less than two years. Before that, he was the president of the largest division of the Harland Corporation, in charge of acquiring and successfully integrating a number of companies.

Jeff holds a B.A. in business and communications at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota and an M.B.A. from the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul Minnesota. Jeff also completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in Cambridge, Mass.

When he is not leading Ecova, Jeff enjoys spending time with his wife and entertaining friends at their house in Minnesota.

Donato Capobianco

Senior Vice President and General Counsel

As senior vice president and general counsel, Donato Capobianco provides legal counsel on a wide variety of corporate and commercial matters for Ecova. Donato brings his background in retail as well as energy/utilities to every legal issue the company negotiates, including contracts, real estate, trademark/patent/IP, employment, and compliance.

"I really enjoy looking at transactions and issues from every angle to determine the best course of action."

Prior to joining Ecova in 2010, Donato was senior vice president and general counsel for Hollywood Entertainment Corporation/Movie Gallery, Inc. At Hollywood, Donato supervised both the legal and real estate departments and was the head of the company's utility department. Before that, Donato was a Certified Public Accountant.

Donato graduated Summa Cum Laude with his B.A. in Business Administration from the University of Notre Dame and earned his J.D. from New York University School of Law.

In his free time, Donato enjoys spending time with his family, especially at the Columbia Gorge.

Julie Kearney

Senior Vice President, Human Resources

As senior vice president of human resources, Julie Kearney is responsible for attracting, developing, motivating and retaining talent at Ecova. She leverages her 20-plus years of human resource and organizational development experience to direct all human resource operations, including talent acquisition, compensation and benefits employee training and development, leadership development, employee relations, employment policies and human resource systems.

Under her leadership, Ecova has been able to attract many talented, smart colleagues who are committed to the company's mission, strategic vision and who work collaboratively to make a positive difference in the world.

"Our people are critical to our success and I am proud to say that Ecova has the best and brightest employees in our marketplace."

Prior to joining Ecova in 2007, Julie worked as a human resources consultant focusing on clients in the energy industry, such as PacifiCorp/Scottish Power and Ecos. Julie's experience also includes more than 10 years managing both domestic and international human resource initiatives and teams for Fortune 500 energy companies, such as PGE, Enron Broadband and Enron North America.

Julie holds a B.S. in business management and human resources management from the School of Business Administration at Portland State University.

A beach lover, Julie and her family spend as much time as possible at their house on the Oregon Coast.

Gene Lynes

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

With more than 30 years of financial experience in technology and service-related industries, Gene Lynes is executive vice president and CFO for Ecova. As the company's top finance executive, Gene ensures that the company's strategy is in line with its financial health. Leading the finance and accounting groups, Gene is responsible for financial plans and policies, fiscal controls, regulatory compliance, financial reporting, and corporate investments. He also works closely with the rest of the management team on mergers and acquisitions.

"Ecova is growing and evolving quickly, and we're making a difference. It's an exciting time to be a part of this industry and this company."

Prior to joining Ecova in 2009, Gene was chief accounting officer at Kofax, an international software company, where he assisted with acquisitions, global operations, and ERP conversion. Prior to Kofax, Gene worked for Scantron Corporation, most recently serving as CFO and COO, responsible for financial and operational excellence as well as business integration activities.

A Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Gene has also served as a senior audit manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he helped a wide variety of clients with financing arrangements and structural transactions as well as audit and compliance requirements.

Residing with his family in San Diego, Gene enjoys spending weekends in the California sunshine.

Seth Nesbitt

Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer

As vice president and chief marketing officer (CMO) of Ecova, Seth Nesbitt leads all aspects of marketing and product management, helping the company to become the leader in total energy and sustainability management. Seth is responsible for clearly communicating the company's vision and capabilities to current and potential customers, as well as for solidifying the company's position as a trusted advisor in the evolving energy market.

"It's a privilege to be working with a group of people who are attempting to address one of the biggest, most difficult, and most important challenges of our time: how to use our resources more effectively."

Joining Ecova in 2010 from Parallels, Inc., a fast-growing cloud computing firm, Seth has an established track record working with companies in high- and hyper-growth stages. At Parallels, Seth led marketing for the company's B2B division. Prior to that, he was vice president of products and solutions marketing for Amdocs, Inc., a $3 billion software and solutions provider for the telecommunications sector. Before that, he held field marketing and corporate communications positions in Nortel Networks, which was acquired by Amdocs.

Seth holds a B.A. in history from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN and an M.B.A. from Oxford University in Oxford, England. Seth is also a member of the North American Advisory Board for the CMO Council.

When he is not working, Seth enjoys reading real books (not in electronic format) and fly-fishing in the crisp rivers of the Pacific Northwest.

Hossein Nikdel

Vice President and Chief Technology Officer

With over 20 years of IT leadership experience, Hossein Nikdel is the vice president and chief technology officer at Ecova. In this position, Hossein is responsible for creating a streamlined IT organization that enables Ecova to successfully execute on its business strategy and deliver high-quality services to its clients. He is also responsible for ensuring that the customer-facing applications Ecova delivers are powerful, insightful and intuitive.

"Ultimately, the job of IT is to enable the company to achieve its business goals. Together with the human and intellectual capital within the company, the IT organization must be aligned with the business objectives of the corporation in order to be successful."

Prior to joining Ecova, Hossein was the director of global IT services at Purcell Systems, where he was responsible for developing and implementing corporate and IT strategies that aligned with the company's overall business priorities. Before that, he was the director of information systems and technology for Telect, Inc., where he oversaw the implementation and management of over 120 technical services and 60 business applications, supporting over 2,000 employees in six international locations.

Hossein holds both undergraduate and graduate degrees from Eastern Washington University as well as work toward a Ph.D. at Washington State University.

Ed Schlect

Executive Vice President, Corporate Development

Spending one out of every five days on the road, Ed Schlect is continually looking ahead to the next market opportunity. As executive vice president of corporate development for Ecova, Ed helps craft the company's long-term corporate strategy and directs its merger and acquisition plans.

With more than 25 years of experience in the utilities industry, Ed helped found Ecova (then WWP Energy Solutions) in 1996 as director of technology and energy management services. Before Ecova, Ed worked for Washington Water Power and Pacific Power and Light in a variety of engineering and auditing positions.

"I enjoy helping Ecova find new ways to help our customers run their companies more efficiently."

Ed holds a B.S. in civil engineering and completed post-graduate work in engineering management at Washington State University and operations management at Harvard Business School. He is also a licensed professional engineer, certified energy manager, and green building engineer.

When he's not traveling for Ecova, Ed can be found on the road—literally—riding road bikes with his wife. Ed's favorite places to ride are in Oregon's Willamette Valley; Walla Walla, Wash.; and Colorado.

Jana Miller Schmidt

Senior Vice President, Sales and Client Management

Jana oversees the sales and client management organizations at Ecova, providing general management expertise and revenue growth for the company. Jana focuses on offering compelling solutions that grow results for Ecova’s clients on their efforts to save resources. This approach helps a diverse and broad base of clients better address their energy and sustainability challenges.

"Bringing the benefits of Ecova’s full product and service offerings to our clients will enable them to better understand their resource use, lower their costs, and improve environmental performance."

Before joining Ecova, Jana was Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing for Harland Clarke Corp. In that role, Jana led a national sales, client management and marketing organization that served over 11,000 clients in the financial services industry with over $1 billion in revenue. Jana also served as Vice President of Business Development for Harland, leading the company’s organic growth strategies for its three business segments which included integrating acquisitions and developing cross sell methodologies across the organization.

Jana holds a B.S. in psychology from Colorado State University. Jana also sits on the board of directors of Junior Achievement of Georgia, and the board of the OFC Venture Challenge for Minority Entrepreneurship Education. The National Diversity Council named Jana Schmidt as one of 2010’s Most Powerful and Influential Women of Georgia.

When not traveling to see clients, Jana loves spending time with her family and is an avid tennis player and a beginner golfer.

Scott Simmons

Vice President, Service Delivery

As the vice president of service delivery for Ecova, Scott Simmons is responsible for helping our customers gain the insight they need to make informed decisions about energy and utility usage across their entire portfolio, reducing consumption, cost, and carbon footprint.

With nearly 450 employees in his business unit, Scott oversees the application of the company's proprietary technology solutions to increase customer profitability, reduce risk, and enhance reputations through resource optimization.

"I'm amazed at the real impact we have on a daily basis. We help our customers conserve energy, reduce costs, and positively impact the environment in which we live, and that makes Ecova an exciting company to work for."

Prior to joining Ecova in 2005, Scott was the director of finance and operations and acting executive director at Sirti, non-profit organization focused on commercializing and accelerating technology-based startup companies.

Before Sirti, Scott spent five years as director of finance for XO Communications, where he was responsible for managing the financial operating results of the company's northwest region business unit, developing pricing for the regional sales teams, and analyzing and implementing process improvements in the sales order flow process. Scott was also previously a certified public accountant with the national accounting firm BDO in their assurance practice. Scott holds a B.S. in business and accounting from the University of Idaho.

Contrasting his conservative financial professional persona, Scott spends his weekends seeking adrenaline rushes riding motorcycles, wakeboarding, surfing, skiing, and snowboarding.

Jon Thomsen

Executive Vice President, Utility Division CEO

As executive vice president and Utility Division CEO at Ecova, Jon oversees the Commercial and Industrial service delivery operations as well as all demand side management services provided to utility companies. From Energy Supply Management, Facility Optimization and Efficiency, Carbon, Sustainability to the entire portfolio of mass market, commercial and industrial utility program capabilities, Jon's teams make a world of difference for our clients.

Prior to the acquisition of Ecos by Advantage IQ in 2009, Jon served as president and CEO, overseeing the day-to-day management of the organization. Jon worked closely with Ecos' executive team on strategic planning and corporate development activities that supported the company's long-term growth objectives. Prior to being named President and CEO, Jon was Ecos' Corporate Development Officer (CDO) and also managed the launch of the Business Solutions division, focusing on environmental sustainability advisory and carbon mitigation activities. Prior to his position as CDO, Jon was the vice president of the Ecos Utility Solutions division, where he managed the strategy and operations and was responsible for delivering energy efficiency program services to utilities across the United States and Canada.

"Without a doubt, I enjoy working with interesting, passionate and bright people who, every day, connect the dots of accomplishment and make a world of difference for our clients, our employees and the communities in which we work."

Jon has a solid business background in operations, strategy, international business and finance, having held senior executive positions at successful startup organizations and at Fortune 500 corporations. Prior to Ecos, Jon held roles ranging from chief executive officer of Lite Harvest Foods to vice president of Enron Broadband, where he oversaw Latin American operations and eventually the company's $120 million venture fund focused on mid- to late-stage technology investments. Prior to Enron, Jon worked for Salomon Brothers as a Latin American equity analyst and served in the Peace Corps in Central America.

Jon holds an MBA from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and a B.S. in economics from Willamette University.

When he's not at work, Jon spends time with his family windsurfing, skiing or just spending time outdoors, attempting to relive the athleticism of his youth without injury.