My name is Sarah Mitchell and I’m the Business Development Lead here at EfficiencyOne. I’ve been an employee with EfficiencyOne for 10 years.
After completing a university degree in International Development, with an environmental focus, I traveled abroad for a few years before coming back to Halifax to further my education at Nova Scotia Community College (NSCC).
I completed a year in the Construction Management program–a program I had chosen somewhat randomly– and applied for a one-year co-op position with EfficiencyOne’s Custom Team.
I’ve been with the organization since.
I didn’t have a technical background, so working on the Custom Team was a learn-by-doing approach.
When I was handed a pilot program for compressed air leak management, it was a great opportunity to learn about industrial facilities and the types of efficiency opportunities present.
During compressed air leak surveys, I worked on-site to scan air lines and tag leaks. I also worked closely with equipment operators to identify any issues they noticed or ideas for improvement.
These leak surveys provided a unique opportunity to gain insight into a facility’s operations. This helped me understand some of the challenges they faced in making improvements or implementing energy efficient upgrades.
Starting as a co-op student and then getting hands-on experience helped me move into my role as Business Development Manager (BDM)–a role I’ve been in for six years now.
In this role, I have gained more appreciation for the barriers that industrials face in trying to reduce their energy consumption and how EfficiencyOne can help them overcome these challenges.
As a Lead BDM working with the large industrials in Nova Scotia, it’s been exciting to develop a program that supports this sector in achieving their energy reduction targets.
Since starting with EfficiencyOne, I have seen changes in how industrials approach energy management and increasing concern around greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A key change is that the majority of these organizations now have GHG emission reduction targets to meet in the next few years.
We can help them both on a strategic and project management level.
As an EfficiencyOne employee, I have the opportunity to be challenged and learn something new almost daily. This has been key to enjoying my work.
I remember in my co-op interview being asked about the difference between voltage and current and I couldn’t answer it! I had a lot to learn and patient engineers have been essential to my learning.
When it comes to the companies and industries I work across Nova Scotia, it’s been so varied and interesting. The theme song to the show “How It’s Made” runs through my head–only occasionally being hummed out loud.