We're very excited to welcome George Hawkins, Founder and President, Moonshot LLC to the WaterNow Alliance Advisory Committee. George, the former CEO of DC Water, has been speaking about his innovative work with the agency across the country, and we were honored to have him join us last month in Salt Lake City for the WaterNow Alliance 3rd Annual Summit.
George brought a bold perspective to Salt Lake, examining the challenges that the water industry faces with a first-hand perspective. When he started with DC Water, the utility was plagued by stagnation and lack of information. "I realized I had joined an agency few people liked, even as I watched the valiant crew trying to repair a pipe that was nearly a century old while looking at printed maps stained from years of use and wondering who would talk with the customers glaring at us." As CEO, he pushed his employees to rethink their jobs and their roles as a utility and a service provider.
He brought this same perspective with him to the Summit. George advised that utilities will succeed when they're willing to embrace innovation and position themselves as effective community partners: "It's easy for water utilities to be invisible, to do everything in the background, not innovate, not change. But stagnation is a fist." This wasn't easy, through many rate changes and a dismal public approval rating, George pushed the agency to become more outwardly focused, to engage with critics and constituents, and to be a leader in innovation. As a result, DC Water is now a world class enterprise with a national reputation.
As he embarks on his new adventure as Founder and President of Moonshot, we're enthusiastic about the work George is doing to inspire public entities to change their culture and to become more effective community partners and service providers.
To learn more about George and his work, be sure to check out Moonshot.