The McDonnell Group

The program featured a welcome by TAG President Tino Mantella, a review of the Smart Grid Society’s call to action around its mission and vision, an introduction of all board members, and a keynote presentation entitled What is Smart Grid? by TAG Smart Grid Society board chairman Anthony Maiello of GE.

The mission of the TAG Smart Grid society is to educate, enlighten and accelerate the development of Smart Grid in Georgia by exploring key technologies and collaborations necessary to drive Smart Grid systems into reality.

Commenting on the results of the kick-off meeting, board chair Anthony Maiello said, “The fantastic turnout for our kick off meeting and the positive feedback we received in our surveys reaffirms our belief in the mission of the TAG Smart Grid Society and what our group will accomplish through teamwork. We are on our way towards achieving our objective of accelerating Georgia’s leadership role in the global Smart Grid marketplace.”

In a research survey conducted on site after the event, attendees rated their top areas of interest for the future session topics as Smart Grid IT issues, renewable energy, solar power, and grid management. Sixty percent (60%) of attendees rated the kick off session “outstanding,” thirty seven (37%) percent rated it as “good,” and the balance rated the session as adequate.

The TAG Smart Grid Society will co-present its next meeting on November 19, 2009 together with the TAG Marketing Society. The session will bring together some of Georgia’s top energy technology executives from IBM, GE, Siemens and Landis+Gyr for an insightful panel discussion on the mega trends occurring in the energy industry and how they are driving innovation in strategies for B2B technology marketers serving the smart grid, renewable energy, energy efficiency, and information technology industries. 

The group's December 10, 2009 event will include top Georgia State political officials and senior executives from leading Georgia companies.

The upcoming events, open to all current TAG members and the general public, require advance registration online at: http://www.tagonline.org/SmartGrid.php. 

Maiello concluded, “Advancing the Smart Grid in Georgia will result in economic growth, job creation, and capital expansion. As the TAG Smart Grid Society develops programs to engage additional stakeholders within the state and takes its message nationwide, we are confident that Georgia has a unique set of advantages that will result in continued leadership in the global market.”