Norma Krousey joined Dairyland on Monday as a Mail Processing Technician in Powered Printing. Norma was most recently employed as a Factory Line Worker at Ashley Furniture Company. | GREAT PLACE TO WORK VIDEO | |
Strategic Priority: People First
Dairyland is launching its first Recruitment & Retention video today, featuring Lineworker-Construction Spencer Bisek, Manager, SOC Eric Hammes and Benefits & Compensation Specialist Christa Weisenberger.
Each team member shares their perspectives on what makes Dairyland a great place to work, touching on their individual roles and goals. The video is the first in a series, which will represent all areas of our cooperative. Thank you to Spencer, Eric and Christa, for sharing your experiences and outlook!
Call for volunteers
If you would like to be included on a list for potential video spots, please submit this form. Don’t worry, you won’t just be thrown in front of the camera! Participants will be prepared with information, guidelines and the opportunity to ask questions and review their segment.
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Strategic Priority: Asset Reliability & Diversification
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) has approved the Land Exchange Agreement for the Cardinal-Hickory Creek Transmission Line Project. The land exchange involves Dairyland and one of the other two co-owner utilities, ITC Midwest. This decision is a major step forward towards project completion. USFWS also issued a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).
Dairyland and ITC Midwest proposed the land exchange to USFWS to enable project construction at the Nelson Dewey Mississippi River crossing along a 1.1-mile segment currently within the Refuge. The co-owners will dedicate and transfer land into the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge in exchange for ownership of the strip of land the 345 kV transmission line will traverse. The approved land exchange will add high value acreage to the Refuge and reduce the transmission footprint within it.
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President & CEO Brent Ridge was a featured presenter on Feb. 27 at the Wisconsin Leads: WMC Executive Fellowship Program at the Cargill Room in La Crosse (photo).
Brent provided a Dairyland overview and discussed energy delivery (past, present and future) with "Energy Policy: At the Cross Section of Reliability, Affordability & Sustainability." He also presented on leading change and servant leadership in uncertain times.
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Congratulations to Greg (System Operations) and Becky Flege's son, Roger, who placed fourth in the D3 120 lb. category at the WIAA State Individual Wrestling Tournament, held at the Kohl Center in Madison last weekend.
Roger is a sophomore at Aquinas High School in La Crosse. Greg's son, Tate, is a former WIAA wrestling state champion. Tate wrestles for UW-La Crosse as a freshman this year. Congratulations to Roger and the Flege family!
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Please find details and submit your electronic application for the following positions through Workday Career:
Internal Only Posting: Feb. 28 - March 8
Foreperson, Electrical Maintenance: Safely perform and direct testing activities, repair, maintain and construct substations, capacitor stations, motor operated switches and transmission systems. Will be completely versed in the
responsibilities of the Electrician “B” and Indentured Apprentice Electrician “B” roles. Assist Supervisor, Electrical Maintenance with projects and tasks as directed.
Note: Successful candidate must reside/relocate within a radius of 25 air miles of the La Crosse Service Center.
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GIS Intern Jacob Kampf is helping organize a "Sara Softball" charity softball tournament on April 28 to benefit the Sara Hougom Foundation. Funds raised from this event will go towards building positive relations between La Crosse’s youth and law enforcement agencies. Click here for details on Sara Softball.
If you have questions or are interested in joining a Dairyland team to play in the tournament, please contact Jacob.
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KUDOS: JANUARY PEOPLE POWERS AWARD | |
Dairyland Strategic Priority: People First
Photo: Winner Dave Walleser (Fleet Operations) with Darin Belille (Transmission Services), Ryan Kenealy (Safety) and Travis Martin (Fleet Operations).
Congratulations to Fleet Mechanic III Dave Walleser for earning the January People Powers award! Dave was nominated by Ryan Kenealy (Safety) for acting with a Safety First mindset.
In his nomination, Ryan highlighted Dave's gumption and 200% accountability for safety as evidenced by his Good Catch. “Dave was removing the bucket for replacement when he found loose bolts. He then checked another unit with the same type of bucket and found those bolts to be loose and immediately informed his peers and Travis. Travis worked with the team to come up with a plan to address the issue, and submitted the Good Catch in addition to his email communication explaining the problem and the actions they were taking to remediate. Thank you, Dave, for this outstanding Good Catch!”
Thank you, Dave, for your leadership and Safety First People Power actions to help ensure everyone goes home safe, every day.
Congratulations People Powers nominees!
The following Dairylander was also nominated for a People Powers award in the month of January, in the category noted. Thank you for your excellent contributions as part of the Dairyland team!
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Jess Peters nominated by Amber Manke (Cooperative Purpose)
Nominations for this month are open. Click the WorkTango button on the Breaker!
Did you know? People Powers award winners earn the following for their above and beyond work performance: Breakfast with President and CEO Brent Ridge, 5,000 WorkTango points, People Power Award Certificate, apparel item, recipient pin and special recognition at Dairyland’s Annual Meeting.
| BEST WISHES IN RETIREMENT, DEB! | |
Congratulations to Director, Member Relations and Chief Communications Officer Deb Mirasola, who is retiring on Friday, March 8, after 36 years of service to Dairyland.
Deb joined Dairyland on May 16, 1988, as a Publications Assistant and progressed through communications, public relations and marketing positions from 1988-1999. In September 1999, she was promoted to Manager, Corporate Communications which transitioned to Manager, Communications and Marketing in 2011. In 2015, Deb was promoted to Director, Communications and Marketing before being named Director, Member Relations and Chief Communications Officer in 2021.
In the late 1990s, Dairyland launched EnPower, a marketing organization developed as an innovative strategy to address deregulation for distribution cooperatives. During this time, Deb provided communications and marketing services for both organizations. Touchstone Energy (TSE) also launched in 1998 as a service to help combat deregulation by bringing co-ops together across the country and giving them a national voice to share the benefits of cooperatives and increase engagement with members. Deb has been involved with TSE from its inception, serving in a variety of roles and has held a seat on the Board of Directors since 2015, including President from 2021-23 and President Emeritus.
Deb has been a part of many changes and innovations, including the move to Dairyland’s current building in 1989 from its previous location further north on East Avenue. She recalls the adaptation of email at Dairyland and how that revolutionized communicating within the workplace, and the concerns and preparations surrounding Y2K, including speaking with reporters to reassure them that the lights were still on. Deb also led the development of Dairyland’s digital presence with the creation of our first website in the 90’s and launch into social media starting with Facebook in 2011.
Other memorable experiences include: the growth of renewables, including our marketing of “cow power” methane digesters; planning Dairyland’s Annual Meetings with many themes (and going virtual in 2020); power plant closures and the Alma stack demolition; media responses to emergencies and outages; and on-going critical projects like the Nemadji Trail Energy Center and transmission lines. The COVID-19 pandemic and activating the Business Continuity Plan also stands out as communications was fundamental while many employees transitioned to working virtually from home. In 2020, Deb also coordinated many details for Vice President Pence’s Labor Day visit to Dairyland.
Of the most notable to Deb has been building Dairyland’s strong reputation as an innovative G&T and excellent employer. “I am grateful to have had a rewarding career with Dairyland and am proud to have led a talented team that has launched communications tools, engaged members and provided valuable services,” said Deb. She also notes the business transition of Powered Printing and the growth of their services for Dairyland, our members and the broader community.
Deb and her husband, Joe, have two sons, Victor (Michelle) and Tony (Jennifer), as well as two grandchildren, Samuel and Valetta, with another grandson due in March.
In retirement, Deb looks forward to spending more time with family, enjoying visits with her dad and quality time with their grandchildren. Deb and Joe love to travel and are excited to plan a return trip to Italy plus Sicily, with more time for new destinations. Exploring more of the beautiful Coulee Region and spending time on the river are also on her list of retirement activities with time for photography, researching family history, playing tennis/pickleball and enjoying their pool. Deb plans to remain engaged in the community with the Kiwanis Club and currently serves on the UWL Alumni and Friends Foundation board of directors.
“My career at Dairyland has been truly rewarding and I am grateful to have been a part of this team for the past 36 years. One of the best parts has been the opportunity to build relationships with so many great people – my colleagues at Dairyland, our member cooperatives, other utilities and in our communities,” said Deb. “Dairyland has experienced vast changes, but one constant has always been our cooperative mission to improve the quality of life in our region. I’m glad to have been part of Dairyland’s strong history and am confident in our cooperative’s continued bright future.”
-Ellie Rundahl (Communications & Member Services)
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Celebrate Deb at work! Join your coworkers for cake and a Dairyland retirement celebration in the Riverside Café on Thursday, March 7, at 1:30 p.m.
Celebrate Deb at the Eagle's Nest! Additionally, Deb and her husband, Joe, are hosting a retirement party on March 9 at the Eagle's Nest Sports Bar. (See details and RSVP contact at left.)
| MISO RELIABILITY IMPERATIVE: ALARM BELLS | |
Strategic Priorities: Asset Reliability & Diversification; Safety Culture
The MISO has released its Reliability Imperative, noting that the power grid faces complex challenges. The report aligns with the resource planning challenges and opportunities discussed by Dairyland's Executive Team during District Meetings. The full report is available here; following is an excerpt:
“The challenges we face are not way down the road; they are here right in front of us,” said MISO Chief Executive Officer John Bear. “We need to execute on the solutions that we’ve already developed with our stakeholders, and we need to collaborate more closely to address these pressing issues.”
In addition to significant changes to the generation fleet, the electric power industry is facing an increase in extreme weather events, large load additions, electrification, supply chain issues, permitting delays and fuel assurance issues. This confluence of factors contributes to MISO’s rapidly changing reliability risk profile.
In light of the urgent and complex reliability risks, MISO is working with its members and states with a more concentrated focus on:
- Refining generation resource plans across MISO by accelerating the addition of reliability attributes and moderating retirements to avoid undue reliability risk.
- Maintaining transition resources as reliability “insurance” until promising new technologies become viable at grid scale.
- Increasing awareness of the areas in which electricity providers, states, and MISO must coordinate and work together to reliably manage the energy transition.
NTEC Connection: The MISO report underscores the importance of the low-emitting Nemadji Trail Energy Center, which will maintain reliability while supporting increased deployment of renewable energy. No matter what the weather, NTEC can ramp up in minutes – generating power when wind and solar need back-up. NTEC will also benefit the environment by displacing higher-emitting plants.
MISO (Midcontinent Independent System Operator) is one of the nation's largest regional transmission organizations, responsible for operating the power grid across 15 U.S. states and the Canadian province of Manitoba. (Dairyland is a member of MISO.)
| VOLTWRITE: HOW EMPLOYEES CAN USE IT | |
Strategic Priority: Growth & Innovation
Last week, Dairyland launched VoltWrite, a generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool for all employees. VoltWrite has been designed as a secure and robust in-house alternative to external AI platforms. To start using VoltWrite, click here to access the tool directly, which is also available on the Breaker (Resources > Information Services). Click here for VoltWrite FAQs (located on the Breaker under Information Services > Key Topics).
How Employees Can Utilize VoltWrite (no technical expertise required!):
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Email Drafting: Struggling with starting an email? Feed VoltWrite the context, and it will provide you with a structure upon which you can build your message.
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Professional Responses: When replying to emails, maintaining professionalism is key. VoltWrite helps by suggesting tone-appropriate language and content.
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Content Creation: Need help kickstarting an article or creating compelling narratives for your presentations? Ask VoltWrite for a prompt or an outline, and let your creativity flow from there.
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Editing Assistance: Already have a written piece? Input it into VoltWrite to receive recommendations on making your content more clear, concise, or polished.
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Research Assistance: VoltWrite can be a valuable tool for your research tasks by providing summaries and extracting key information from complex documents. If you're seeking to understand the latest trends in the electric cooperative industry up until September 2021, for example, you can input related documents into VoltWrite. It can then summarize these documents, extract critical information and offer insights based on the data it was trained on.
Questions? Please submit them here.
| YOU FIRST: WEEKLY WELLNESS NEWS | |
You First Focus: Building Beneficial Boundaries
What does it mean to have boundaries? Boundaries are a healthy, normal and necessary part of relationships. They set the expectations, and sometimes limitations, for what an individual is comfortable with in a relationship. It applies to all types of bonds from family, friends and coworkers to community connections and acquaintances. Personality, cultural background, upbringing and social norms influence your boundaries.
How do you determine your own personal boundaries? Explore the values that are important to you and align these with your boundaries. There are different types of boundaries to consider: mental, emotional, physical, time, material, conversational and internal (e.g., rest and space).
How do you go about communicating your boundaries? Think through what you want to say before saying it. Focus the message on how you are feeling, using “I” statements to express your thoughts and needs.
What do you do if you get pushback on your boundaries? Reiterate your needs, keeping the response short and sweet. You can even validate others by saying that you understand why this is difficult for them, but be clear that it is a boundary you need to establish. If someone continues to disrespect your boundaries, it may be time to explore the relationship dynamic further.
-ERC Blog, January 2024
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