Derek Hansen on what makes a solar company great, not just good #367

Clean energy company culture is what separates good solar EPCs from great ones, and Mynt CEO Derek Hansen has a name for how he builds it: inspire, empower, support.

Company culture in the solar and storage industry gets talked about far less than it should, and this episode makes the case for why that needs to change. 

Derek Hansen is CEO and co-founder of Mynt, a vertically integrated development, engineering, and construction firm that builds solar and battery storage projects for commercial real estate owners and other solar developers. Tim Montague hosts this conversation, framing it around a question that gets skipped in the industry: what actually separates a good company from a great one. 

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why Mynt is shifting its project mix from mostly solar toward majority battery storage
• How Derek Hansen's inspire, empower, support philosophy drives EPC leadership
• What personality assessments and one-on-one conversations reveal about a team member's strongest work
• How Mynt built a buddy system to pair complementary skill sets on project teams
• Why Mynt chose to unionize its install crews under IBEW after California's new prevailing wage mandate
• The reason Hansen ties personal significance and legacy to day-to-day work at a growing EPC

If you work in solar, storage, microgrids, or the broader energy transition, this conversation offers practical insights into building stronger teams, creating meaningful company cultures, and preparing for the next phase of distributed energy. 

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The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America’s number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems.  Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com