Veteran business man and Vietnam veteran Louis E. James, CEO, SEEL, LLC, was featured in the fall 2019 edition of DTE Energy Smarts for Michigan Business. The five-page article written by Lisa Stanczak and entitled, "Business-building veteran", touted James as a creator of business opportunities and a pioneer of urban energy efficiency.
According to the article:
"Since 2009, when the company first partnered with DTE, SEEL has served more than a half million households and 11,000 small businesses throughout the United States, targeting hard-to-reach communities and engaging with them to provide energy efficiency assistance and solutions. Traditional methods of mass communication are often ineffective in reaching residents of some urban communities, so SEEL has developed a very successful custom approach."
This year, SEEL is celebrating its 10th anniversary as one of the largest minority-owned, disabled veteran-owned energy program management firms in the nation.
James offers the following tips for creating a successful and sustainable business:
Educate yourself on the energy industry, its programs, services and customers.
Get out of the office and talk to people.
Thoroughly explain job requirements to potential hires; talk and listen to employees. Communication and training are key.
Match employees to jobs based on their skills.
Provide employees with ongoing training.
Provide benefits, such as good health insurance, for employees.
Be patient. Success takes time and deliberate measures to grow.
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