Our Employee Spotlight series celebrates and highlights the EVLO team’s unique talents, achievements, and perspectives. This month we’re shedding light on the unique professional journey of Nancy Généreux, Electromechanic Supervisor.
What is your professional background?
I love what I do today, but I wasn’t always in the electromechanical sector. I actually started my career as a travel agent, though I quickly realized that I wanted something more challenging and with better working conditions. After a couple of years, I started in electromechanics at an electrical control company, where I built all sorts of equipment. I went on to spend the next 30 years of my life constructing control panels, handling technical field installations, improving industrial system efficiency, and supervising my colleagues on a range of electromechanical projects. It was midway through 2020 when I decided that I wanted a renewed challenge and joined EVLO’s project and maintenance team working with utility-scale batteries — something I hadn’t done before. Much like other electromechanical work, however, I quickly got into the rhythm of things and was happy to have the opportunity to learn about such an exciting and impactful industry.
What made you pursue a career in energy storage with EVLO?
Joining EVLO allowed me to make use of my existing skills while diving into a new industry and challenge. Problem-solving on difficult projects has always been extremely rewarding; there’s nothing like finally getting the right solution after successful trial and error. At the same time, my role with EVLO demands I travel to various BESS sites for installation, maintenance and on-site training, meaning I’m on the move quite a lot. Travelling was always my favourite part of my job as an agent, so being able to combine it with hands-on, practical electromechanic experience is just fantastic for me. I’ve travelled all over since joining EVLO, including France, Northern Canada, San Diego, Western Canada, and more, with each trip bringing its own thrills and challenges.
What is your favorite part of your job?
I love project origins, when I’m doing the first round of inspections, equipment is arriving, and site photography is taking place. There’s a lot of team and project coordination that needs to be done, and it’s all really exciting for me. Plus, new projects give me the chance to meet all sorts of amazing and talented people. Eventually, once the initial logistics of a site have been prepared, we begin the step-by-step installation process, which is really important as it allows us to be precise and take extreme care in our actions. This is also really fun, as you literally get to see a project come to life, from blueprints to reality, almost like you’re building with Lego! And of course, the final feeling of accomplishment when it’s all over, when you can look back and say “That’s us. We created that. And now, it’s going to make a meaningful difference for this community.” Well, there’s nothing quite like it.
Can you share a proud moment from your time at EVLO?
During the middle of winter in late 2022, my team and I installed a BESS in a remote town that was prone to outages in Northern Quebec. After navigating through the deployment, we successfully tested the BESS for six consecutive hours, demonstrating that we could keep the community safe, warm, and comfortable while they waited out outages. This gave me and the team an intense feeling of pride. I also underwent a series of classes this past year to learn English, which has allowed me to work on and oversee a greater number of projects, including the Summerland construction site in British Columbia — one of my greatest personal accomplishments. Learning a new language isn’t easy, but with the help of my colleagues, it has been fun.
What has your experience been as a woman in a traditionally male-dominated role and industry?
We’ve made significant strides towards gender unity, but still, there are ups and downs. While my colleagues at EVLO are amazing and recognize that competency is in no way tied to your gender, those attitudes don’t always permeate beyond our organization. As someone responsible for overseeing the installation and maintenance of dozens of projects, I work alongside a lot of third parties. It’s not uncommon for people to presume my male colleagues — as opposed to myself — are the on-site supervisor, or to show initial apprehension with my leadership. Of course, this quickly changes once the actual work begins, so I don’t take it personally and remind myself that everyone can benefit from meeting new people and learning new lessons.
What would you say to young girls who want to be where you are today, helping fight climate change through energy storage?
Be who you want to be in life regardless of what others say. If you know you’re right for something, then do it, keeping in mind that hard things are worth accomplishing! Trust your skills, build connections, and most importantly, build confidence in yourself.
