A Decade In, Ten Lessons Learned
Buffalo, N.Y. – Solar Liberty (No. 78) is 10 years old, and with age comes wisdom. Founded in 2003 by brothers Adam and Nathan Rizzo (right), the company has installed and distributed more than 50 MW worth of solar panels. As the company looks back on the past decade, we asked Adam and Nathan to share 10 lessons they have learned at Solar Liberty. This is what they said:
- Be a good corporate citizen and give back to the community. We have donated more than 100 solar-electric installations to non-profit agencies, schools and churches.
- Understand customers and their needs, since you work for them.
- Keep current on industry trends by studying real-time information.
- Deliver a quality product that outperforms the competition.
- Hire — and keep — talented people who share the same vision.
- Be nimble, creative and quickly adjust to market changes.
- When you see an opportunity, go for it aggressively.
- Don’t just sell to your customers, educate them.
- Show respect to everyone you deal with, including customers, vendors and competitors.
- Be humble and help those in need, because it will come back 1,000-fold.
Exemplifying the last point, the company works with the Solar Liberty Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on improving the quality of life in less-developed nations through renewable-energy resources. The foundation assists those in need with solar electrification, solar-water filtration and solar cookers. SPW
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Exxon-Mobil’s worst nightmare.