Power Woman

By Stefanie Caraviello

When asked if she’s nervous about taking over the reigns as the new vice president of Progress Energy’s Southern Region, Melody Birmingham-Byrd says she knows she has some big shoes to fill. But she quickly adds, “I brought a pair of my own.”

That’s the attitude of this strong, confident woman who is now poised to head operations for some 320,000 customers across the Carolinas. She’s a power woman with nowhere to go but up.

Melody Birmingham-Byrd started her career in the automotive industry. She says her switch to the power industry didn’t happen by chance. It was because of hard work and no fear.

“I was fortunate to be recognized by one of the senior managers (at the automotive firm) who knew of me and asked if I would be interested in coming over to Carolina Power and Light and helping start a new department within fossil generation. So I said why not.”

Byrd says even though she knew nothing about the power industry, she knew enough about her own skills and self determination to give this new venture a try.

“I truly believe whatever the job, I can take any skills I have and use those and build upon those to get results. I thrive on getting results. It thrills me, wakes me up in the morning and helps me sleep at night.”

Byrd says if she did hesitate on taking the new job, it was because the power industry was perceived as being a very stodgy, conservative environment with few women in management or executive roles. But what Byrd ended up learning was that her age was more of an obstacle than anything else.

“It was not much gender or race from what I have experienced. I often times have been the youngest within my peer group. But I think I can hold my own. I recognize that this may be an obstacle, but I don’t let that stop me from making recommendations, collaborating with my peers and challenging my peers.”

Byrd started working at Carolina Power and Light, which is now Progress Energy, when she was 29 years old. Eleven years and several promotions later, Byrd is embracing her new role as vice president and says she will never forget the people who helped her get here.

“As I look back trying to understand how I got here, it was really just through lots of hard work. And I have been fortunate to have that hard work recognized by others.”

One of those people who recognized Byrd’s hard work is Emerson Gower, the former vice president for Progress Energy’s Southern Region. Gower had been with Progress Energy and its predecessor, Carolina Power and Light, for 38 years. Byrd took over Gower’s position in January.

“I respect Emerson,” said Byrd. “He’s amazing, the pinnacle of what I think a leader should be within a company and a community. I would be nervous if I didn’t have someone like Emerson to learn from. I’m not nervous because I know what great looks like.”

Byrd plans on building on the legacy Gower leaves behind to ensure Progress Energy is able to provide reliable and affordable energy to its customers.

“My desire for Progress Energy in the next 10 years is that we will be able to meet the demand of our increasing amount of customers. We know that the service area is growing…but in order to meet the growth challenges, we need to be prepared.”

Progress Energy believes the best way to meet the complex energy needs is by balancing a diverse mix of strategies, including energy efficiency, alternative energy and state of the art plants.

“We believe this balanced solution is the best way to ensure clean, reliable and affordable power to all of us and our children,” said Byrd.

Nuclear energy is a part of the piece that Progress Energy would like to see become a reality in South Carolina. While recognizing that nuclear energy can be expensive to start up, Byrd says South Carolina is ahead of the game when it comes to providing the workforce to support nuclear energy.

“We are in the right state when it comes to the schools we have. The tech schools are a major resource for South Carolina to prepare for clean energy and nuclear energy…I think we have the opportunity to be looked at as the benchmark for the Southeast.”

For Byrd, the challenge of preparing for a “powerful” tomorrow is both thrilling and necessary. And as she leads her team at Progress Energy into the future, she says she tries to instill in them the life lessons she believes herself.

“Sometimes you have to believe you can do it even if you’ve never done it before…to be successful, you have to step out and do things that others may not have thought were possible. That’s what differentiates you as a person and a company.”

Stefanie Caraviello is the multimedia managing editor at the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.