Highlights from the Net Zero Sessions, 3rd June 2020
An interview with Greg Jackson, CEO & Founder, Octopus Energy
The Net Zero Sessions, organised by Forgather, are a series of gatherings and curated conversations for business leaders to discuss the role we can play in tackling the climate emergency. Greg Jackson, Founder and CEO, of Octopus Energy along with MC and co-host Oli Barrett, got the first of these off to a sizzling start via Hopin recently.
Greg’s passion has long been to create a world where we inflict less damage on each other. His aim is to do good on the biggest scale and he was inspired to enter the realm of renewable energy by his own bad experiences with default tariffs, convinced he could provide better customer service than retail energy rivals. Greg is not from the energy world, rather an expert in customers and technology. And he’s winning.
Your margin = my opportunity
Quoting Jeff Bezos – ‘your margin is my opportunity’ (6.20-6.45 in video) - Greg tells how Octopus is forging ahead in this sector. Technology is needed to react in real time to different energy sources, something incumbents can’t do due to legacy platforms. Founded in 2015, Octopus now has 1.5m customers, 5% market share (UK) and is live in UK, DE and AU. Customer numbers have doubled in the past year. A recent significant deal has seen AU$ 300m raised to allow Greg to focus on providing better service and lower prices in green energy.
Don’t be afraid of ambition
When Oli asks him to comment on barriers to scaling the business, Greg is unafraid to admit his own fear of failure (7.50-8.45 in video). Not confident about asking for $10m start-up capital based on a ppt presentation, he waited until he found the right partner.
(10.30-11.05) It’s when he finds himself sitting in a deckchair in the Peak District outside a tent when the realisation dawns that breezing past the Big 6 is not a big enough goal. He say: ‘when you’re changing the world, you can grow to 100m customers – and you can’t be scared of making statements like that’.
So his goal is to transition to cheaper greener energy across several countries – fast.
Trust your team
Asked to address recent experiences, Greg says ‘it has taught us an enormous amount about our team… and make sure we look after ourselves and our customers’. He dwells on this theme and cites his experience with a colleague called Tina (14.55-16.45). Tina, aged 48, worked with a young Greg years ago and provided him with a valuable life lesson when she told him: ‘FFS Greg…there is nothing you need to tell me about how to do my job, alright?’. She was right. Greg’s company culture is based on trusting people, giving them the freedom to be brilliant, and to be themselves.
Looking to the future
Towards the end of the session, Greg talked about Octopus planning (23.00-23.45) and how he chooses to ask questions like: what would the world be like if we’d never had fossil fuels – what if gas didn’t exist then what would we do? Thinking on a clean sheet of paper about a different world.
To that end, Octopus is helping to create the Future Energy Research Centre – providing detailed modelling of how renewable systems can work.
As a speaker, Greg was honest, forthright, lively, passionate, engaging and personable. And the content was exciting – see for yourself.
Next Sessions:
Balancing Profit & Purpose in a Global Crisis
Tuesday 16th June 4pm-5pm
Tom Adeyoola, NED, Verco, Do Nation
Phil Haughton, Founder, Better Food
Vicky Murray, Head of Sustainability, Pukka Herbs
Kate Sandle, Head of Programmes & Engagement, B Lab UK
Nick Sturge MBE, Chairman, NED, Strategy Advisor
Sustainable Retail Challenges
Tuesday 30th June, 10am-11am
Richard Walker, Managing Director, Iceland Foods
Blandine Surry, General Manager, Loop Europe