SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Liberty Plugins, Inc. (“Liberty”), a leading innovator of electric vehicle charge station management solutions, announces the expansion of its leadership team with the addition of four new executives. The company that innovated the managed charger market with its Hydra™ and CCM and has deployed more than 3,500 public and private EV charge stations in North America since its founding in 2009, welcomes Kristen Helsel as Chief Executive Officer; Kate Lam as Chief Capital Officer and Head of Investor Relations; Jeremy Niles as Vice President of Marketing and Channel Strategy; and Alex Pine as Vice President of Technical Support. The leadership team brings decades of relevant industry experience and will accelerate Liberty’s growth in the EVSE market, expand product development, and amplify brand recognition.
Kristen Helsel, Chief Executive Officer, is a seasoned C-suite executive known for developing dynamic revenue growth strategies, managing execution, and scaling for both established and start-up companies leading to successful exits. Helsel’s expertise in the clean tech, solar, energy storage, robotics, drones, aerospace, and battery industries stems from her passion for developing innovative, sustainable, and industry-leading disruptive technologies. Prior to joining Liberty, Helsel served as Chief Revenue Officer at Ideanomics, facilitating the global EV company’s pivot expansion strategy through organic and inorganic growth. Helsel was also previously Vice President and General Manager of Electric Vehicle Solutions at AeroVironment, where she was directly responsible for raising the company’s profile as one of the leading EV product and services providers in the marketplace. She also served in executive roles at Lionano, Generac Power Systems, and Pika Energy.
Kate Lam, Chief Capital Officer and Head of Investor Relations, has worked more than 25 years developing international business opportunities in financial markets, energy assets and disruptive technology. Throughout her career as a finance executive Lam has executed over $1 billion worth of financing deals; effectively led cross-cultural high-performing sales teams; and maintained senior-level relationships with global institutions. Before joining Liberty, Lam served as Managing Director and Head of Capital Markets at Ideanomics, with previous roles including CEO of Propellr Securities; Managing Director and Head of Financial Market Sales at Standard Chartered Bank; and Director, Head of HK FIG Sales at Deutsche Bank.
Jeremy Niles, Vice President of Marketing and Channel Strategy, has over 10 years of experience scaling companies in the electric vehicle, solar, energy storage, and commercial IoT industries. Prior to joining Liberty, Niles led B2B and B2C marketing strategy and execution at Pika Energy, leading up to the company’s acquisition by Generac Power systems. At Generac,
he played a key role in the company's successful entry into the residential solar and storage market by helping to build a national network of installers and dealers. Later he served as Senior Marketing Manager, overseeing launch strategy for new products and dealer programs.
Alex Pine, Vice President of Technical Support, brings expertise in the electric vehicle, electrification, energy storage, and energy management fields. For over a decade, Pine has worked hands-on investigating and managing new clean energy and EV technologies, processes, and products, both as a community outreach advocate and technical support lead. Before joining Liberty, Pine was a decarbonization consultant at VEIC; a Technical Manager at Generac Power Systems; Technical Customer Service at Pika Energy; Director of Outreach and Technology at Maine Standard Biofuels; and EV Program Manager at College of the Atlantic.
“This year is both exciting and pivotal for Liberty, as we’ve embarked on a rapid revitalization journey of our solutions and customer offerings. With decades of combined experience and a commitment to driving company growth in this vibrant industry, Kate, Jeremy, Alex, and I are thrilled to be part of Liberty’s dedicated and passionate team,” said Kristen Helsel, CEO.
Liberty is known for its pioneering technology, having launched the first charge station management platform available to the market in 2009. The Liberty Access Platform (LAP) is an Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) compliant charge station management system (CSMS) that manages all types of charging systems, from fast chargers to 40A chargers (Level-2 and DCFC), for commercial, institutional, municipal, and multi-family EV applications.
Helsel continued: “I joined Liberty, along with this amazing team, because scaling and managing chargers is so important to our future. Liberty’s offering is both unique in the industry and designed to provide our customers and partners a differentiated service at highly competitive prices. Since we’ve come on board, Liberty has surpassed quarter-over-quarter revenue goals, completed hundreds of new installations, and we are developing product updates that will enhance the user experience across the board from our mobile app to our portal. The EV industry is surging as more states and organizations move forward with EV adoption initiatives, and we’re responding as an established and proven provider of cost-effective, user-friendly EV charging solutions. There’s even more in store for Liberty, and we’re just getting started.”
The incoming team joins longtime Liberty Plugins officers Richard Grossi, CFO, a financial executive with decades of industry leadership experience; and Michael Keane, CTO, who has led Liberty’s technical operations, engineering, and product strategy for more than 10 years.
About Liberty Plugins
Established in 2009, Liberty Plugins offers innovative charge station management technology solutions tailored for apartments, condos, workplaces, fleets, and municipalities. The company delivers versatile products that empower facilities teams, building managers, and fleet managers to meticulously manage costs, power, permissions, and users within their charging networks. With a 15-year track record and commitment to simplifying electric vehicle charging, the company has installed over 3,500 customer-owned Level-2 and DC Fast Charging ports throughout North America. Learn more at www.libertyplugins.com.
About Liberty Access Platform
The Liberty Access Platform is a universal CSMS that empowers operators to mix, control, meter, and monetize Level-2 and DC-fast chargers from top manufacturers, and to add new chargers or manage new sites at any time. Notable features include a transparent and flexible fee structure; intuitive user management; OCPP and OpenADR compliance; and multiple access and payment options.
Contact:
Eugene Hunt
Trevi Communications for Liberty Plugins
gene@trevicomm.com
