1. NAMASTÈ SOLAR
Team members – Sri Ganesh, Sangita, Vel Vikram, Gokul

2. 2 SHRM - NAMASTE SOLAR

3. Introduction
 Year 2008.
 “Green renovation”
 Black Jones – vision ( Renewable energy company)
 Why Nepal…
 (Learned things right the first time)
 Namaste Solar.
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4. Opportunity …
 RES IN 2004
 Purchase of 10% supply of electricity by 2015 from
renewable energy.
 Jones-business planning ,Kennedy-technical design
& installation activities ,tuomey-marketing
 Decentralization, risk & rewards
 Incorporated in feb 2005
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5. BUILDING A TEAM
 Recruitment was a challenge.
 This business was growing.
 Very less experienced people.
 Cheaper one is to go and pirate employees from
other companies.
 (skill + philosophy)= good fit.
 Important thing – Long term commitment.
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6. Cntd.,
 Minimum 5 years for commitment towards job.
 “Amazing group of people”
 First 4 years – grew with 55 people with
extraordinary high retention…
 2008.. Kennedy left &
 Salary structured changed from 2 tier to 10 tier wage
scale.
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7. Employee ownership
 Critical part of vision is – a strategy for attraction and
retaining employees – commitment to employee
ownership.
 All employees have equal opportunities to buy
shares..
 Employees ho left need to sell back shares…
 Goal – to pay out departing stockholders quickly.
 2008 – 37 employees(22/3 rd of total) held equity in
the firm.
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8. Organizational mission values and culture..
 Mission.
 Benefits all stakeholders equally –
customers, employees, investors, communities and
the environment.
 Care for the
earth, customer, community, company, ourselves.
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9. BPM
 A Process called Big Picture Meetings
 Discussion of the issues facing by the company
 Expected to attend and encourage to participate
 Diverse Perspective will have better chance of
Optimal solution
 More People you bring in, the more creative you get.
 Companies strove for FOH
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10. From Consensus to Delegation
 Decision making was by Consensus.
 Consensus means everybody must give a thumps
up.
 Later changed the process to consent.
 Logo Decision without BPM review
 BPM continued to deal with some issues as a group.
It delegated others to specific teams or commitees.
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11. From Consensus to Delegation
 Governed by five-person board of director.
 Each year 3 directors were elected so board
turnover was rapid.
 All shareholders were eligible to vote for members of
the board
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12. Investment offers:
 By 2008, Namaste solar become the largest solar
electricity company in Colorado.
 Customer referrals and repeat customers.
 Target was to earn revenue of more than US$ 14
million.
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13. Cntd.,
 Company growing at a breakneck pace.
 Colorado ranked 4th in installed capacity.
 Competition from national and local firms.
 Venture capital and private equity firms acquired
stakes from competitors.
 Jones felt pressure.
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14. Cntd.,
 Jones getting telephone calls.
 “It was like, that’s 5 times what we were internally
valuing our company at.”
 Burnout and Overload.
 Wes’s departure.
 In mid 2008, 2 firms emerged as serious bidders.
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15. Sitting in the Crucible
 Three options were narrowed down.
 Path A- “ sell the whole kit and caboodle”
 Path B- Hybrid(partial ownership)
 Path C- 100 percent employee owned
 Path A and B would bring fresh infusion o capital
 “Investors would supply that”
 Big fish gobbling up the small fish
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16. Cntd.,
 For employees the matter was more personal:
- lots of money
- less stressful jobs
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17. Fears
 Loss of control
 Grant program would be stopped
 Loss of family feeling
 Lack of support for “holistic profit”
 No guarantee for path B
 Resistance to change
 Fox recalled, path C “too idealistic”
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18. Conclusion…
“ Let’s just sit in the crucible, sit in the fire a little bit
longer until we are able to make the right decision.”
“ we won’t look back and regret.”
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19. Questions….
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