Executive Leadership Team

Austin Energy is part of the City of Austin, with budget and policy oversight by the Austin City Council. Our utility has nationally-recognized energy efficiency and renewables programs, excellent reliability, and competitive rates. The City Manager selects the General Manager, who hires the executive team. The team leads our public power utility in its mission to safely deliver clean, affordable, reliable energy, and excellent customer service. 

  • Stuart Reilly portrait

    Stuart Reilly

    Interim General Manager and Chief Operating Officer

    Stuart Reilly serves as Interim General Manager of Austin Energy as well as Chief Operating Officer. As COO, he leads operational functions, including Power Production, Electric System Field Operations, Electric System Engineering & Technical Services, and Energy Market Operations and Resource Planning. With an emphasis on diversity and inclusion, Reilly focuses on providing a safe workplace and a positive employee experience.

    Reilly started with the City of Austin as an Assistant City Attorney in 2007. After working as a litigator, Reilly transitioned to an in-house counsel role, providing legal advice and support to Austin Energy executives and management on a wide range of electric utility matters. He specialized in utility regulations, operations, transactions, customer programs, and renewable energy.

    Reilly became Austin Energy Chief of Staff in January 2019. In that role, he focused on the utility's broad organizational policies and strategic initiatives, including coordinating projects, supporting process improvements, and managing the activities of the General Manager's office. He also worked closely with the City Manager’s Office, the Mayor and City Council, and other City departments.

    Stuart Reilly holds a Bachelor of Arts in Government from the University of Texas at Austin and a Juris Doctor degree from George Washington University Law School.

  • Mark Dombroski

    Mark Dombroski

    Deputy General Manager and Chief Financial & Administrative Officer

    Mark Dombroski is responsible for the financial management, risk management, information technology, and corporate services at Austin Energy.

    Dombroski’s experience includes public accounting and Director of Finance for Seattle City Light.

    Dombroski holds a bachelor’s degree from The University of Texas at Dallas and a Master of Public Administration from Seattle University.

  • Kerry Overton

    Kerry Overton

    Deputy General Manager and Chief Customer Officer

    Deputy General Manager Kerry Overton joined Austin Energy in 2000 and oversees the utility’s Customer Care Services and Customer Account Management. On Oct. 31, 2016, Overton took the expanded role of Chief Customer and Compliance Officer with responsibilities including Internal Audit, Reliability Compliance and Environmental Services.

    Overton provides executive oversight to Austin 3-1-1 and the utility’s customer contact center, which handles 2.84 million customer interactions annually. Prior to his current role, Overton served as vice president of Customer Care and was a senior business process consultant. Customer billing operations generate more than $1.3 billion in revenues for the City of Austin each year. He previously served as deputy land commissioner in the Texas General Land Office, where he oversaw energy resources.

    Overton has a Bachelor of Arts in managerial studies and political science from Rice University, a Master of Business Administration from The University of Texas McCombs School of Business, and a Master of Public Affairs from The University of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs. He also attended the University of Idaho Utility Executive Course.

  • Tammy Cooper

    Tammy Cooper

    Senior Vice President, Regulatory, Communications & Compliance

    Tammy Cooper joined Austin Energy in June 2020 and serves as Senior Vice President, Regulatory, Communications & Compliance. In this role, she oversees Regulatory Affairs, Corporate Communications, Corporate Compliance Programs, Environmental, and Health & Safety.

    Cooper has extensive experience in the electric industry, most recently serving as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Texas Reliability Entity (Texas RE) where she led the Legal, Communications, and Training departments.

    Before joining Texas RE, Cooper worked in private law practice representing clients in state and federal electric regulatory proceedings and advising clients on a broad range of energy-related issues. She began her legal career at the Public Utility Commission of Texas, where she held several positions, including the Director of Commission Advising. In that role, Cooper supervised a team of lawyers and policy analysts that counseled the Commissioners on electric and telecommunications matters.

    Cooper holds a Bachelor of Science in radio-television-film and a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin.

  • Erika Bierschbach

    Erika Bierschbach

    Vice President, Energy Market Operations & Resource Planning

    Erika Bierschbach was appointed Vice President of Energy Market Operations and Resource Planning in April 2019.

    Bierschbach is responsible for the utility’s physical and financial power portfolio in the ERCOT wholesale electric market, including Austin Energy’s Real Time, Day Ahead and Forward market desks. She oversees the origination of the utility’s renewable power purchase agreements and manages the Qualified Scheduling Entity (QSE) operations for Austin Energy’s owned and contracted resources. Bierschbach is also responsible for resource planning at Austin Energy which includes achieving the climate protection and affordability goals established by the Austin City Council and Austin Energy.

    Bierschbach has more than 25 years of experience in energy markets, including positions in energy risk management at Enron Capital and Trade and Duke Energy Trading and Marketing. She joined Austin Energy in 2001 to develop, implement and later manage the utility’s energy hedging program. Bierschbach’s prior positions at Austin Energy include Manager of Energy Supply and Risk Management as well as both Manager and Director of Energy Market Operations. She has established more than 2,250 Megawatts of renewable energy contracts during her tenure at Austin Energy.

    Bierschbach holds bachelor’s degrees in Economics and French from Texas A&M University in College Station and is fluent in French and Spanish.

  • Greg Flay

    Greg Flay

    Vice President, Technology and Data

    Greg Flay oversees the Information Technology, Strategic Planning & Technology, Enterprise Information Security (Cybersecurity), and Data Analytics & Business Intelligence organizations. Flay joined Austin Energy in October 2016 as Chief Technology Officer.

    In his role as Chief Technology Officer, Flay oversaw corporate strategic planning, technology roadmap management, enterprise architecture, technology selection and research and development functions — including oversight of Austin Energy’s relationship with the Electric Power Research Institute. His focus is on transparency, operations, and the speed and strategic alignment of technology acquisition.

    Flay has more than 20 years of leadership and management experience in the power industry and related fields. His diverse leadership roles include information technology; mergers and acquisitions; business operations; business analysis; strategy; technology process controls; program and project management; technology portfolio management; and enterprise architecture. Flay has vast experience in the wholesale power generation and competitive retail segments of the power industry. He also has experience in residential solar and home services markets, including smart home, HVAC, and electrical and plumbing services.

    Flay holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Science degrees in geography from Penn State University as well as a Ph.D. in geography from the University of Minnesota with a focus on spatial analytics.

  • Gerardo (Jerry) Galvan

    Gerardo (Jerry) Galvan

    Vice President, Customer Care Services

    Gerardo “Jerry” Galvan started at Austin Energy in July 2016 as the Vice President of Customer Care. Galvan has more than 15 years of experience directing and leading high-volume call centers.

    At Austin Energy, Galvan is responsible for the City of Austin’s Utility Contact Center, Austin 3-1-1 — the City’s 24-hour information center — and customer service management, including customer escalations and the Customer Assistance Program.

    Prior to joining the Austin Energy team, Galvan spent more than eight years at a large Midwest electric & natural gas utility with more than 2 million customers. Before that, he worked here in central Texas at Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation.

    At Austin Energy, Galvan has asked his teams to focus on improving our customers’ experience. This is what our brand promise is all about — Customer Driven. Community Focused.

    Galvan has a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from The University of Texas at Austin. He joined the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board in 2018, and also serves on the chamber’s foundation, helping to raise resources to support community initiatives.

  • Richard Génecé

    Richard Génecé

    Vice President, Customer Energy Solutions

    Richard Génecé joined Austin Energy in August 2021. He guides programs that interact directly with Austin Energy customers, including Green Building, Electric Vehicles and Emerging Technologies, Energy Efficiency Services, Commercial and Key Accounts, and Customer Renewable Solutions.

    Génecé's career spans more than 20 years in the utility industry, in both the public and private sectors. Prior to joining Austin Energy, he held executive positions at some of the largest public utilities in the country. He was Vice President of Energy Efficiency at Bonneville Power Administration in Portland, Oregon and provided oversight for stakeholder engagement and the development of community programs. Génecé also worked at Southern California Edison (SCE), a utility that provides service to more than 13 million customers. Génecé's private sector experience includes his role as Senior Vice President of West Operations for CLEAResult, with leadership responsibilities across the U.S. and Canada, in program sectors including residential, commercial, agricultural, industrial, low-income, and federal/government accounts.

    Génecé earned his bachelor’s degree in Information & Decision Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University and an MBA at Indiana University. He served as a board member to the Consortium for Energy Efficiency and has earned Six Sigma Quality Process Improvement Certification (Green Belt).

  • Russell (Rusty) Maenius

    Russell (Rusty) Maenius

    Vice President, Finance

    Rusty Maenius oversees the four finance functions of the utility — Financial Planning & Budget, Corporate Accounting, Financial Risk Management and Rates & Financial Support Regulated Operations.

    Maenius joined Austin Energy in 2000, serving in several analytical and managerial positions in the Finance business unit, including Chief Financial & Risk Officer. He also did a stint as Interim Deputy General Manager. Since 2011, Maenius has been responsible for establishing retail and transmission rates, financial and load forecasting, and financial modeling. Prior to joining Austin Energy, Maenius was with Pedernales Electric Corporative in Johnson City, the largest electric cooperative in the United States. Before his career in public power, he worked in the banking industry.

    Maenius earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics from Texas Tech University.  

  • Lisa Martin

    Lisa Martin

    Vice President, Electric System Engineering & Technical Services

    Lisa Martin took the role of Vice President of Electric System Engineering & Technical Services in August 2022. She is responsible for leading Transmission and Distribution (T&D) Planning, T&D Engineering, System Operations & Advanced Technologies, Emergency Management, and Electric Service Delivery Shared Services to ensure the safe and reliable delivery of electric service and associated information to our customers.

    Martin joined Austin Energy in 2010 and has served in several Compliance and Engineering positions, including roles as Generation Compliance Analyst; Critical Infrastructure Protection Analyst; Transmission Service Compliance Program Manager; Project Manager of the Technology Strategy & Roadmap Project; Program Manager of Advanced Technology working on distributed energy resource integration and the Austin SHINES project; and Director of Austin Energy Corporate Compliance Programs.

    Prior to joining Austin Energy, Martin worked in power and gas origination and energy markets for Southern California Edison. During her college years, she worked for companies including Shell Exploration & Production Company, UPS, and the American Transmission Company. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and a Masters of Business Administration in Operations Management. Martin is a licensed professional engineer and attended the University of Idaho Energy Executive Course.

  • Elton Richards

    Elton Richards

    Vice President, Electric System Field Operations

    Elton Richards joined Austin Energy in 2019 and serves as the Vice President of Electric System Field Operations. He is responsible for leading the utility’s Distribution, Transmission, Substation and Metering operations. These areas are responsible for system construction and maintenance to ensure safe, reliable and efficient power to the community.

    Richards is well versed in all aspects of leadership and utility operations. He is a retired first sergeant with the United States Army and has more than 20 years of experience. Richards was the Director of Site Maintenance at the Byron Nuclear Plant with Commonwealth Edison and he served as Regional Transmission and Distribution Manager in Northern Illinois.

    Prior to coming to Austin Energy, Richards was at the Tennessee Valley Authority as a General Manager in Transmission and Senior Compliance Manager for North American Electric Reliability Corporation.

    Richards holds a Master of Business Administration with a focus in Leadership from Aurora University where he was an adjunct professor in Strategy and Leadership.

  • Pat Sweeney

    Pat Sweeney

    Vice President, Power Production

    Vice President of Power Production Pat Sweeney is responsible for Austin Energy’s nuclear, coal and natural gas power generation as well as On-Site Energy Resources.

    Sweeney joined Austin Energy in 1991 and has extensive knowledge and experience in wholesale energy markets. He previously served as Director of Energy & Market Operations where he led the build-up of Austin’s renewable energy portfolio, resource planning and Austin’s transition to the ERCOT nodal market. 

    Sweeney holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Texas at Austin and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Houston at Clear Lake.

     

  • Elaine Veselka

    Elaine Veselka

    Vice President, Customer Account Management

    Elaine Veselka leads a division encompassing Revenue Measurement, Billing Services, Payment Services, and Quality Management and Training. Her oversight includes meter reading, maintenance, current diversion, collections, payment processing, branch services, quality, training, and bill production and support.

    Veselka has more than 25 years of experience in customer account management, including 15 years in senior leadership positions at regulated and deregulated electric and water utilities. While at Austin Energy, she has served as Director for Electric Service Delivery’s Support Services section, responsible for operations for real estate and public involvement, line clearance, GIS and OneCall, infrastructure asset management, quality, and business continuity and emergency coordination. Prior to that she was Director for Customer Services Management, overseeing key functions including customer escalation resolution, the City of Austin Customer Assistance Programs, and credit and collections operations.

    Veselka joined Austin Energy in 2008. She has a Bachelor of Science from the University of Texas at Austin and completed her Master of Public Administration at the University of Phoenix.

     

Date last reviewed or modified: 03/31/2023