Matt Owens, Director of Business Development at Stem, Inc., provided insight on several key industry trends for Parks Associates’ eighth-annual Smart Energy Summit: Engaging the Consumer, which will be held February 20-22 at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, Texas:
What do you think is the most challenging issue for your company as it relates to the residential energy management market?
Rates do not reflect utility costs and therefore do not encourage the right customer energy 
management strategies.
What are the major challenges that your business must address in 2017? In 2020?
In 2017, growing awareness and knowledge within the utility industry about the benefits of energy storage and how to properly value them in the electricity generation and delivery value streams. In 2020 ,massive scale and adoption of energy storage.
What are the major barriers impacting consumer adoption of energy related products and services?
Price signals, opportunities for third parties to offer energy management services are limited.
What are the biggest opportunities for the smart home industry to work with the utility industry?
Renewables, energy storage, demand response, and premium services such as back-up power.
What impact will smart products and smart home services have on consumer adoption of energy solutions?
They are already driving adoption with innovative products. Customers are becoming more energy aware and are demanding new solutions.
Owens will speak on the session “Consumer Behaviors and Variable Rate Plans: Challenges and Opportunities” on Tuesday, February 21 at 1:00 p.m. Other speakers on the panel include Griddy Energy LLC, Genability, ROC-Connect, and Curb Inc.
For more information on the Smart Energy Summit, visit www.SES2017.com or register by clicking here.
