Hometown Connections, Inc. (HCI) announced the appointment of Charise Swanson to Chief Operating Officer from her role as Vice President of Client Services. In her new role, Ms. Swanson will work closely with Marc Gerken, Interim President and CEO, as HCI focuses on helping community-owned utilities improve their business operations and risk management. In addition, HCI welcomed Ms. Charlie Cardin as Executive Consultant. Ms. Cardin will concentrate on helping utilities with strategic planning, technology assessments, systems integration, performance optimization, and project management.
Charise Swanson
Chief Operating Officer
A senior member of the HCI staff since 2020, Charise Swanson has spent 17 years developing creative solutions to complex problems for utilities in the areas of leadership, strategy, operational effectiveness, customer service, and compliance. She assumes the position of Chief Operating Officer and will concentrate on enhancing HCI’s business solutions in support of community-owned utilities needs and initiatives. She is a certified Totally Responsible Person (TRP) trainer focused on creating positive and productive work environments for leadership and employees and is completing her Juris Master at Florida State University College of Law.
Charlie Cardin
Executive Consultant
Charlie Cardin is a versatile technology leader with a deep-rooted passion for analytical problem solving and 20+ years of experience delivering superior cost savings and revenue while maximizing solutions across multiple organizations and industries. Her previous positions include Innovation Manager, Americas/Senior Manager for Johnson & Johnson as well as a Director of IT Strategy and other senior technology positions with Fidelity Investments. Ms. Cardin earned a Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from the University of South Florida and is a certified high-performance coach and project management professional.
Click to download PDF
“I am honored to appoint Charise Swanson as COO and to welcome Charlie Cardin to the Hometown Connections team,” said HCI President & CEO Marc Gerken. “Together with our Hometown team members, we are partnering with community-owned utilities to identify management challenges and opportunities, prioritize changes, and implement improved planning, governance, leadership development, and business operations. We are committed business partners who assist utilities through every step to help them meet leadership and business objectives.”
The Hometown Connections Advantage:
Taking the Risk Out of Business Operations
Hometown Connections is addressing a growing need in the public power sector—helping community-owned utilities, their joint action agencies, and their city departments reduce risk through the improvement of their business operations. No business is immune to operational risk. Inefficient and ineffective foundational business practices make organizations vulnerable to significant operational, financial, security, and reputational risks. Better business operations reduce costs, boost employee morale, and improve service delivery. HCI personnel and vendor partners bring clarity to a wide array of operational issues by identifying gaps, redundancies, and collaboration opportunities across the organization or in specific departments.
HCI’s priority remains community-focused support. Our team is committed to working with utilities and city administrators as business partners, providing services that recognize their unique needs. Working alongside our third-party vendors, we continue to work with best practices across the industry and provide comprehensive, strategic services. HCI’s current partners are Acumen, Apogee Interactive, Katama Technologies Inc., Marsh, MFP-Connect, PowerSecure, The Energy Authority, and Utility Financial Solutions, LLC. Together, Hometown Connections personnel and vendor partners serve as a singular resource for innovative utility management services and technology.
About Hometown Connections, Inc.
Hometown Connections, Inc. is a national, non-profit utility services organization serving community-owned utilities. HCI’s team of consultants and vendor partners provide affordable and high-quality solutions to help utilities and their city departments transform business operations, planning, employee engagement, the customer experience, and much more. Supporting operational excellence, each of HCI’s services and deliverables are scalable based on the size and objectives of the utility or municipality. @HTConnections, Facebook, LinkedIn.