The climate change crisis requires innovative, laser-focused programs to make a difference. That difference requires partnership between private and public entities.
Enter the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund (PCEF). Established by voters in 2018, PCEF is charged with funding clean energy projects that prioritize frontline populations, including low-income communities, people of color, and those living with disabilities. The fund is housed within the City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.
Due to a windfall of funds generated from a special tax on billion-dollar businesses operating in Portland, there was a lot of pressure to get it right. They brought together an incredible team, including people from different backgrounds with expertise in support of this mission.
The Challenge: Unify and grow a successful startup staffed by people with policy and public sector experience serving the public and operating within the bureaucracy of government.
Pregame was brought in based on our successful engagement with Portland Fire & Rescue. In its third year, the team was dealing with growth, rapid deadlines, media attention, and a team that was scrambling in different directions to keep everything moving – building the proverbial electric vehicle while they were driving it.
Pregame knew that the solution was training and coaching in entrepreneurial thinking and approach. We designed a custom curriculum for the entire team to go through together so that everyone would be on the same page, using the same techniques and language to power their work.
The six-month series was a highly interactive mix of executive coaching, leadership workshops, and process improvement, augmented by group accountability and individual coaching sessions.
“Pregame was instrumental in helping align our roles and strengthen our team culture so that we could all row together effectively from our places of strength,” says PCEF Program Manager Sam Baraso. “By working with Pregame, we were able to build on the team’s raw talents to begin proactively navigating our competing demands.”
Flash forward: six months later, we were brought back to assist with strategic planning as the fund grew and faced its first startup pivot. As we started working with the team again, it was clear that they were more cohesive, efficient, and confident. Team members who had received just one individual coaching session were showing notable strides in their leadership and management skills.
Stay tuned on our next PCEF chapter: one year of creating our most community-led strategic plan yet.
