1QC - Consulting Team

Our senior members have successfully executed utility consulting projects and benchmarking programs for the last 20 years. The team brings both national and international experience to our clients, with several of our team having had multi-year overseas postings during their careers.

Ken Buckstaff, Managing Director, leads the recruiting efforts for the 1QC benchmarking communities. He also serves as Engagement Director for consulting projects in T&D and Customer Service, as well as for our regulatory support projects. Some of his recent clients include PSE&G, TECO, Direct Energy, HydroOne Networks, National Grid, and Great Lakes Power. Prior to joining 1QC, Ken was a Partner at PA Consulting, a Senior VP at PHB Hagler Bailly, and a Partner at Theodore Barry & Associates. His career includes overall direction of utility benchmarking studies for over 20 years, as well as providing consulting services to major US and international utilities. Ken has served as an expert witness in numerous regulatory proceedings and has led the development of performance improvement approaches and techniques for three different consulting firms. Ken also worked for the Salt River Project as an engineer and manager. Ken holds an MBA (UCLA) and a BSIE (Lehigh University).

Gene Dimitrov, Director, leads our consulting activities. Gene has more than 21 years of consulting experience in business change and process management including project development, management and implementation in the Energy, Telecommunications, Process Manufacturing, and Financial Services industries. Gene supports electric and gas utilities in the areas of Transmission, Distribution, and Customer Service with an emphasis on business strategy, process and organizational change. Over the last 10 years, Gene has managed Customer Service Benchmarking programs and large client engagements at National Grid, CenterPoint, Exelon, and SCE. He as worked as a Vice President and Managing Consultant for two international consulting firms. Gene holds a BS (Case Western Reserve University) and a Masters in International Business (University of South Carolina).

Debi McLain, Director, leads the infrastructure development for 1QC's Benchmarking Services. She also serves as the Program Manager for the Customer Service, APPA Customer Service and Electric Transmission & Distribution benchmarking communities. Prior to joining 1QC, Debi was a manager of utility benchmarking surveys for 18 years. In her current role she manages the client interfaces and produces the questionnaires, statistical reports and analytics for the surveys. She also works on consulting projects for major North American utilities. Previously, Debi has worked for PA Consulting, PHB Hagler Bailly and Theodore Barry & Associates. Debi holds a BS (CSU).

Tim Szybalski, Director, leads the 1QC product development effort for Benchmarking Services. Prior to joining 1QC, Tim was a Managing Consultant at PA Consulting and a VP at PHB Hagler Bailly. He managed electric T&D, customer service, and corporate services benchmarking surveys for 12 years. Tim has been a consultant on significant client engagements at major US and international utilities. In addition, Tim has worked for PG&E as a director of an internal consulting group, in the energy practice of an international consulting firm, and at SDG&E as an engineer and Construction Methods Supervisor. Tim holds an MSIE (UC Berkeley), an MBA (SDSU) and a BSIE (Stanford) and is a registered Professional Engineer (IE) in California.

Dave Canon, Senior Advisor, retired from Oncor Electric Delivery in 2008, after 38 years of service at Oncor and predecessor companies. He has broad experience in electric T&D, having served in engineering, planning, and operations. He has been involved in electric utility benchmarking for almost 20 years. While at Oncor, he served as chairman of the Distribution Subcommittee of EUCG, vice-chairman of the T&D Committee of EUCG, and on the steering committee of the Southern Company Distribution Benchmarking Program. In 2006, Dave was appointed one of 11 Texas Utilities (TXU) Fellows, recognized as “...experts whose contributions have made TXU a leader in the past and will provide the knowledge to move us forward…”. Dave holds a MSEE (University of Texas at Arlington) and a BSEE (The University of Texas at Austin).

Consulting Partnerships:

Dr. Alan Bowman, Senior Fellow , is Professor of Management in the Master of Business Administration Program at Union Graduate College in Schenectady, NY. He teaches Master’s level courses in the areas of Operations Management and Management Science. His research and consulting activities have been diverse; most recently his research interests have focused on building computer simulation-based tools to assist companies engaged in six sigma quality improvement projects and his consulting activities have focused on helping clients analyze performance data to identify best practices and opportunities for improvement in a statistically valid manner. Alan began his career at the Salt River Project, a utility serving Phoenix and the surrounding area, where he worked in an internal consulting group, doing analytical projects in the Customer Services and Distribution organizations.

Mike Beck, established MJ Beck Consulting LLC in 2006 as a vehicle to provide specialized service to the energy industry, specifically in the power and environmental areas. He has been involved in energy consulting for over 20 years and has consulted for a variety of organizations on a broad range of topics including generation and transmission operations, strategic planning, asset valuation, knowledge and risk management, environmental strategy, and competitive analysis. An attentive leader with a proven, results-driven record of business development, project management, and problem solving, he uses excellent communications and interpersonal skills to work with clients to deliver measurable, distinctive results. Prior to forming MJ Beck Consulting, Mike held senior positions at Hagler Bailly (formerly Theodore Barry & Associates) and PA Consulting. He holds a BS degree in Civil Engineering (University of Pennsylvania), an MBA (Drexel University) and is a Registered Professional Engineer in the state of New Jersey.

Jim Tharrington, Senior Consultant, is a recognized expert in the field of information technology, with substantial experience in the use of outsourcing (including infrastructure, business processes, applications development) to deliver information systems services. His most recent consulting work has focused on the benefits and limitations of outsourcing for many information systems-related functions. Those assignments have covered data center, desktop, help desk, call center, telecom, server, and applications development / maintenance (both domestic and offshore). Jim has developed baseline assessments, written RFPs, outsourcing contracts, negotiated contract elements, and developed contract-pricing analysis. Jim has extensive experience in developing business analytics and performance measurements. He has published extensively on the subjects of information technology, industry and management topics, and has taught business (marketing and management) and information technology undergraduate and graduate coursework at New York City Technical College, College of Insurance, Sacred Heart University, and Fairfield University. Jim holds an MBA (St. John’s University) and a BS in Chemistry (St. Francis College).

Christine Kozlosky is President of the Ascent Group, with more than twenty years of consulting experience with regulated industries. Her areas of expertise include customer service operations, performance measurement and benchmarking, innovation and best practice discovery, business process re-engineering, market research, and information systems management. She is the managing editor and publisher of The Service Delivery Advantage, a research publication dedicated to promoting customer-service excellence. Chris is also the editor and publisher of an online call center and customer service benchmarking service for utilities and non-utilities. Christine holds a BS in Information & Computer Science (Georgia Institute of Technology).

About 1QC

Consulting Services

Benchmarking Services

Community Links

Careers