CLASSES

RESIDENTIAL WALK THROUGH/CHECKLIST ENERGY AUDIT TRAINING

OBJECTIVE:  To provide training for utility employees to conduct a walk through energy assessment in a home with a consumer - and evaluate energy use, have educated discussions, and provide information and a written report.

SCOPE:  The training is designed to be educational, but not extremely technical.  A large percentage of consumers who need help with energy information about their residence do not need detailed technical information or a blower door test, etc.  A checklist would be used for consistency and thoroughness.

DISCUSSION:  There is a growing need for marketing and member services employees to have access to basic energy efficiency training.  Approximately one third of the employees who have taken the two hour “Energy Conversations” course have indicated on their evaluation forms that they would be interested in a one day residential energy efficiency class, or a one day energy audit class. (Detailed, technical energy audit training is sometimes as long at 2-3 days, and often may not even involve field training. But there is a place for it and there are numerous resources for those employees who do need advanced training.)

COURSE DESCRIPTION:  The class would be approximately one day in length or less.  It should include a minimum of 3-4 hours in the classroom, and a field trip for an actual test audit as an option.  A checklist is furnished and used as the guide for completing your on site energy audits.  It is easily customizable for your climate and needs.  Subject matter would be approached from two perspectives.  One would be the questions consumers most commonly ask.  The other would be the energy efficiency of the building envelope and the systems.  An infrared camera (costing about $200) that attaches to a smart phone or tablet will be demonstrated in the class, with the outcome being to furnish infrared documentation of cold and hot spots (infiltration) to the consumer.

BUDGET FOR TRAINING:
$1500 per day instructor fee + travel expenses.  

$1000 per additional days in same location + expenses.

REFERENCES:

Jake Thomas, Union Power Cooperative, NC

     "Eddie McKnight is a valuable resource who helped me and my Cooperative develop a comprehensive Home Energy Audit Checklist.  At the time of my training I was a new employee who was looking for basic instruction to help get me started.  Eddie assisted me with an easy to use checklist that can be customized to perform an educational walk through energy audit.  Eddie is a great communicator and educator.  No matter If you are a seasoned employee or a new employee, Eddie will cater his training to ensure you have a positive learning experience."

Phil Stern, Somerset Rural Electric Cooperative, PA

     “I thought it would be beneficial to have Eddie McKnight from McKnight Associates share his knowledge to our technicians that had little or no training in this field before.   The Checklist Energy Audit Training was interesting, as well as very educational even for someone that has done energy audits for years, like myself.  In addition, through his products, we were able to create a tailored home energy efficiency checklist for our specific needs and climate.  After the seminar I have confidence our technicians are able to perform a thorough, effective and accurate walkthrough for our members.”

 

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MEMBER CONVERSATIONS

OBJECTIVE: “Member Conversations” is a two to three hour course designed for non-technical audiences (or a refresher for customer service or marketing employees). The class begins with a review of Branding (who we are and what we do) and Basic Customer Service (Things we should and shouldn’t say).  A Teamwork demonstration using “a bundle of sticks” sets the stage for working together to improve the Member Engagement at your coop. The goal is for participants to improve customer service skills and leave the class empowered to respond to inquiries and questions from consumers. A roleplaying exercise on dealing with tough consumers can be a highlight of the class.  The class ends with a thorough discussion of “Who is on the phone or in my lobby,” delving into why is the member asking questions, why are they upset, etc.  It may have nothing to do with the electric bill.

SCOPE:  High bill complaints and energy efficiency questions are all addressed with numerous answers and appropriate information to have a conversation that is helpful to consumers. A total of 16 questions that are the most common ones asked by consumers are all addressed. 

WHO:  The primary audiences are service reps and call center reps who have daily contact with consumers in the office or on the phone.  Many coops have found the course useful for all employees to attend, as it deals with the most commonly asked questions about energy usage and high bills, since all employees represent the utility when out and about. Directors and the public also find the course useful. 

COURSE DESCRIPTION:  A Branding discussion begins the class with employees being able to clearly understand who the coop is and how they represent the brand by engaging with members.  Several exercises are used to improve knowledge of this and team building.  And customer service skills are important – what to say and NOT to say to members.  In the fast moving class, pictures of hundreds of good and bad energy efficiency methods are shown and discussed.  A primary part of the course involves table top demonstrations on infiltration, insulation, lighting, lighting color, weather stripping and duct sealing - designed to simply and clearly demonstrate hands on learning. If you don’t already have them, they may be borrowed from neighboring utilities or they will be shipped to the workshop site in advance and you only pay shipping, or you can purchase them. 

BUDGET FOR TRAINING:
$1500 per day instructor fee + travel expenses
$1000 per additional days in same location + expenses

REFERENCES:

 Butch Williamson, Rappahannock Electric Coop, VA, now CEO at A&N Electric Coop, VA:
      “Before we can really talk about improving member engagement, we need to better understand some of the challenges our members are facing on a daily basis.  ‘Energy Conversations’ taught by Eddie McKnight provided all areas of our workforce the training that helps build employee confidence in meeting our members’ needs by having relevant conversations about costs and efficient uses of energy. 
     No matter what your role is at your cooperative, our members look at all of us as energy experts.  It doesn’t matter how long you have been part of the Co-op family, this training is a great start for building the foundation for continuing dialogue with members.  The post workshop evaluations showed that Eddie’s experience with members over a 34 year career in the electric industry was invaluable to our employees.”

 Vanessa Clayborn, Meriwether Lewis Electric Cooperative, TN:
      "The Energy Conversations training is right on target.  It opened the conversation about energy efficiency and savings with our customer service team.  It took real-life questions they get every day and armed them with confidence to not only answer the inquiries but especially to help our members.  The training material was practical and easy to understand, and Eddie McKnight put them at ease to ask questions, share, and get involved. It. Is. Awesome!"

 Jim Nimmo, Farmers Electric Coop, TX:
      “You almost never hear someone say they are looking forward to training. I theorize it’s for one of three reasons:  1. It will be a waste of time and no new information will be shared.  2. The trainer talks down to the students and makes them feel dumb or stupid.  3. The trainer is really a salesperson who hopes to make a sale at the end of the session.
     Mr. McKnight is none of these. He was well prepared, and gave great examples of things our employees could say when engaged with a member over the phone or in line at the supermarket. He didn’t try to dazzle us with his brilliance nor did he try to confuse us. He delivered great content without making us feel dumb and there was not a high pressure sales pitch after the fact. It was training like it should be.”

 Janet Rehberg, Ohio’s Electric Cooperatives, OH:
     "With more new member services employees joining the cooperative family, we wanted to offer Energy Conversations to assist them on how to answer members’ questions about energy use.  We had a lot of experienced employees take this class as a refresher as well.  
     We hosted two workshops per day at three different locations around the state of Ohio to allow for more flexible scheduling and convenience for our member cooperatives.  Employees were very receptive and engaged with the trainer, Eddie McKnight, and the course material. We had an overall evaluation rating of a 9.4 out of 10 with 43% scoring all 10’s."

 Susan Tann, Roanoke Electric Cooperative, NC:
     "The Energy Conversations class provided our team with knowledge and insight on electricity, best practices for insulation and other energy efficiency topics and easy ways to communicate to our membership who have high bills, or just to educate them about electric usage.  Because of clear explanations and examples by Eddie McKnight, the instructor, at the end of the class everyone was anxious to go home and complete an audit of their own home.  This class was very informative."

 Carline Mitchell, Somerset REC, PA:

     "We recently had one of the coldest starts to a new year that I can remember. Electricity use was higher due to extra heating. We needed to prepare for the backlash of high bill complaints from our members when their higher than average electric bill arrived. I received some information about McKnight Assoiates' Member Conversation Class. I got in touch with the instructor, Eddie McKnight; it was that easy. After talking with Eddie, I was set on having him do the class before our next billing cycle to prepare our consumer service representatives. Coming from South Carolina to Pennsylvania in January isn’t always a good idea, but Eddie fit it into his schedule. It was a great class and gave our employees some added ammunition to field high bill complaints. All of our employees gave Eddie the highest evaluation scores possible at the end of the class."

“LIGHTING – A REVOLUTION IN THE MAKING.”  

In the past decade, a revolution has occurred in the world of lighting.  The percent of energy use in the home by lighting is dropping drastically as more and more types of lighting arrive at local stores.  Can your employees answer questions about what is the difference in Incandescent , CFL, LED, OLED, lumens per watt, lighting color, and much more?  Which lights contain Mercury?  The answers are all simple and the news coming from the world of lighting is fun and exciting.  Hear all about it in an hour long breakout session at a conference, or have it at your utility!