MY WORK
The Kind of PROBLEMS I LIKE...
I like problems that are complicated, consequential, and just a little bit annoying.
The kind where the technology is there, the value is there, the need is obvious — and yet the system still has not figured out how to let the thing happen.
That is often a regulatory problem.
Or a communication problem.
Or a market design problem.
Or, more often, all three.
I am especially interested in the places where:
• public and private actors need to work together
• regulators are trying to maintain the current grid while building the future grid
• innovation is real, but the institutions around it are lagging
• everyone is technically talking about the same thing, but not in a way the others can hear
That is usually where the useful work is.
POLICY as a Business Development Tool
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POLICY as a Business Development Tool 〰️
I currently serve as Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and Wholesale Markets at Sparkfund, where I focus on utility-managed resources and Distributed Capacity Procurement, including how those resources integrate with wholesale markets.
Within my consulting practice, I focus on the regulatory issues needed to secure and modernize the electric grid, including advanced grid technology, DERs, VPPs, and resiliency.
If I had to summarize what I do in one sentence, it would probably be this:
I connect regulatory developments to real business and market strategy, and I like figuring out how to move good ideas through complicated systems.
DER Task Force
ALLISON CAPTIONS / TEXT ADD HERE
ALLISON CAPTIONS / TEXT ADD HERE
ALLISON CAPTIONS / TEXT ADD HERE
ALLISON CAPTIONS / TEXT ADD HERE
ALLISON CAPTIONS / TEXT ADD HERE
ALLISON CAPTIONS / TEXT ADD HERE
ON THE RECORD
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ON THE RECORD —
DER Task Force
Featured as DERTF’s policy lead, Allison Bates Wannop discusses her path into energy policy and the evolution of distributed energy resources (DERs). The conversation covers the role of DERs in grid reliability, market design, and extreme weather response, as well as the growing importance of load flexibility and virtual power plants. She also shares insights on regulatory complexity across different market structures, the role of community-driven policy, and how collaboration across utilities, advocates, and organizations is shaping the next phase of the energy system.
All Things DER
In this episode of All Things DER, Allison Bates Wannop, Director of Legal & Regulatory Affairs at Voltus, discusses the structural and communication challenges across transmission, distribution, and aggregator sectors. The conversation explores how proven tools like demand response fit into today’s grid, where regulatory barriers still limit innovation, and what it takes for stakeholders to work more collaboratively. At its core, it’s a look at how better alignment across the system can unlock more effective, forward-looking outcomes for the power industry.
The MOTHERS with Sarah Brown
In this episode of The Mothers, Allison shares how she walked away from a high-status legal career – not toward a perfectly mapped plan, but toward her inner knowing. What followed was a purpose-driven life and career built around alignment instead of achievement, and a redefinition of ambition that leaves space for five kids, deep work, and meaning.
Now a leader in energy policy and VP at Sparkfund, Allison reflects on the seductive pull of shiny paths, the moment you realize old definitions of success no longer fit, and why so many high achievers confuse external validation with worth.
NARUC Webinar
Allison Bates Wannop joined a panel on emerging utility models, exploring how states are moving beyond the traditional “deregulation vs. monopoly” framework toward more flexible, hybrid approaches. The discussion focused on how evolving rate design, advanced technologies, and community-driven solutions are expanding customer choice—while raising new questions about how utilities, markets, and policy need to adapt to support a more dynamic energy system.
DERVOS '24: Policy Panel
Allison moderated a policy panel at DERVOS 2024 in New York City, bringing together leading regulators and advocates to discuss how emerging energy technologies move from innovation to scale. The conversation focused on the critical role of regulatory policy in determining whether new technologies succeed, and what it takes—from both policy and market perspectives—to actually get them onto the grid.ER policy giants discuss how to get new tech on the grid.
The Cooler Interview
Working at the intersection of regulation, markets, and emerging technologies, this work focuses on turning proven energy solutions into real-world deployment. It challenges traditional policy-making by making complex systems more accessible, collaborative, and actionable—using storytelling, multimedia, and unconventional formats to engage a broader set of stakeholders and move ideas into action.
At its core, it’s about bridging gaps between utilities, regulators, and technology companies—helping systems move faster, align more effectively, and scale what already works.