PLMA Session Previews: Breaking Silos & Unlocking Demand Flexibility
The grid is evolving in real time—and the strategies that worked yesterday won’t be enough to meet the demands of tomorrow. The conversations shaping what comes next are happening at PLMA’s Spring Conference this May. And we’re excited to share that RI will be part of the conversation.
Two of our team members will be sharing insights, bringing real-world experience, practical strategies, and a clear-eyed view of what it takes to turn innovation into impact.
Breaking Down Utility Silos: A Cross-Functional Approach to Scaling Load Flex
May 13 | 9:00 – 10:30
Track B | Featuring Elizabeth (Eli) Font
A closer look at how breaking down silos lays out the groundwork for successful strategy implementation.
Learn how Seattle City Light is developing its 10-year DR Strategy by strengthening engagement, partnerships, and buy-in across the utility. This session highlights the importance of involving not only end customers, but also the internal utility teams critical to program implementation. We’ll explore the shift from a siloed approach to a more coordinated effort, along with the methods used to build trust, deepen relationships, and key lessons learned along the way.
Session takeaways:
- Transactional relationships don’t go far—engagement works best as a reciprocal partnership.
- Stakeholders get fatigued when feedback is requested but not acknowledged or acted on.
- Set clear intent for engagement and only ask for feedback when you’re willing to act on it.
Control vs. Cost: The Battle Between Virtual Power Plants and Dynamic Rates
May 11 | 9:00 - 10:30
DERs as a Grid Resource Workshop | Featuring Eric Van Oden, Moderator
In this fast-paced debate session, industry experts make the case for control vs. cost.
As electrification accelerates, grid constraints tighten, and intermittent renewable resources grow. The question of how to unlock demand flexibility takes center stage: control or cost? Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) offer automated, orchestrated load control that responds in real time to grid needs. Dynamic rates, by contrast, use price signals to influence customer behavior and shift demand over time. Both approaches aim to deliver flexibility—but take very different paths to achieving it.
Session takeaways:
- How VPPs and dynamic rates differ in approach, design, and customer engagement
- Strengths and limitations of automation-driven vs. price-driven flexibility
- Key tradeoffs across customer experience, grid impact, and scalability
These sessions address different sides of the same challenge: how to unlock meaningful demand flexibility in a changing grid. One focuses on the foundational work needed inside utilities—breaking down silos, building alignment, and strengthening engagement to support long-term DR strategy. The other explores two leading approaches to delivering flexibility: control through automation (VPPs) versus influence through pricing (dynamic rates). Together, they offer a well-rounded view of both the organizational groundwork, and the real-world tools utilities are using to shape the future of demand response and peak load energy management.
Advancing Ideas into Solutions
PLMA isn’t just about sharing ideas. It’s about testing them, scaling them, and turning them into programs that deliver real results for utilities and the communities they serve. We’re excited to contribute to the momentum, learn alongside our peers, and help advance innovation in load and grid flexibility.
If you’re attending, let’s connect—and don’t miss these sessions exploring what it takes to scale flexible, affordable, and results-driven energy programs.
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