Officer Team
Depth. Experience. Leadership.
Warren H. Winter
CEO and Chairman of the Board, co-founded EPIS after 26 years of experience at Portland General Electric (PGE), where he was Manager of Resource Planning, Power Cost Forecasting and Demand Forecasting. One of his responsibilities was the analytical support for the newly formed trading floor (the first for an electric utility). Earlier responsibilities included Manager of Engineering Systems, Manager of Financial Planning, and Director of Corporate Development and Manager of Revenue Requirements. Warren directed the development of the AURORA electric market model for EPIS, Inc. Education: BS in Electrical Engineering.
Peter J. Swartz
President, Corporate Board Member. He joined EPIS with over 20 years of experience in power system modeling and analysis. From 1982 to 2001 he was a Senior Analyst at the Northwest Power Planning Council. He was the principal author of the Council’s power system planning and decision analysis models, and the lead analyst in application of these tools to issues concerning resource economics and reliability in the Northwest power system. Peter was the Vice President of Development at EPIS for 9 years. Also, he was on the faculty at Oregon State University, where he taught management science and statistics in the School of Business. Education: MBA and a BS in mechanical engineering, with additional graduate work in operations research.
Thomas LaBerge
EPIS Corporate Board Member, Corporate Secretary, and Director of International Business Development. He has been actively involved in shaping the energy industry for more than 32 years. Tom has been on the cutting edge of utility industry change in: developing new businesses, energy forecasting, generation, energy trading, wholesale and retail energy products, information technology, and utility industry restructuring. He brings this rich understanding of the evolving energy industry to EPIS. At EPIS, Tom has focused on business development, corporate strategy, and sales. Prior to EPIS, for 19 years, he was with Portland General Electric, a medium sized US electric utility. At PGE he held a number of positions including Director of Strategic Issues and New Business Development, reporting directly for the CEO and Chairman of the Board. In this and other roles, he developed successful business strategies, worked with senior management teams to create new businesses and was actively involved in shaping and taking advantage of utility industry restructuring. After leaving PGE, Tom held leadership roles in ENRON, META Group, and started Strategy 42, a business strategy consultancy. Education: BS in Zoology, with extensive graduate studies in Systems Science and Mechanical Engineering.
Lee A. Barney
Vice Chairman of the Board, joined EPIS with 24 years of experience in the energy business at Portland General Electric. Lee managed Customer Choice, a trial program in Oregon to foster a deregulated market. For seven years, he was the Least Cost Planning Manager for PGE. He managed public processes, and was responsible for pulling together the Corporation’s Integrated Resource Plan. In this role, he was involved in forecasting and resource planning, renewable-resource planning, Corporate Financial Modeling and, for five years, managed the application of information technology to business problems. Education: BA in Economics, and an MBA.
Benjamin H. Thompson
Senior Vice President. He joined EPIS in 2003 with several years of experience in software development and other high-tech industries. He worked in Silicon Valley for over 4 years, first as a software engineer for a wireless communications company developing applications to monitor cellular networks. Later, as a semiconductor industry analyst for Gartner, where he was responsible for researching emerging markets, developing revenue forecasts, and maintaining a demanding publication and presentation schedule. At EPIS, Ben has held several positions of increasing responsibility, first in sales and marketing, and later, in managing data research. Then, he supervised human resources, IT, and administrative functions and managed the industry-leading customer support team. Currently, Ben leads the global sales team. Education: BS in Electrical Engineering, and an MBA.
John Scott
John Scott, Vice President of Development, brings to EPIS, Inc. more than 25 years of experience in power system analysis, planning and forecasting. John began his career in 1986 as a transmission planner at FPL, and from 1991-1992 he chaired the statewide Transmission Planning Task Force for the Florida Electric Coordinating Group (now the FRCC). John then transitioned to generation planning, where, amongst other things, he was accountable for evaluating system enhancement benefits, calculating fuel cost recovery for ratepayers, and developing a cost-effective DSM portfolio for the company. In 1999 he joined FPL Energy, now NextEra Energy, as the Manager of Fundamental Analysis. His responsibilities included forecasting North American electric prices, providing analytical support for contract negotiations and proffering asset valuations towards investment consideration. After leaving FPL, John worked as an independent consultant, providing software and advice to utilities for transmission planning and DSM portfolio decisions, and investment advice to both banks and independent power producers. John is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Florida and has been certified as an expert witness in the State of New York. Education: John received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and his MBA from the University of Florida.