Welcome to our Germany-USA Solar Industry Blog!

This blog is published by the Germany-USA Career Center, which assists companies in the solar and photovoltaic industry with recruiting sales / engineering, administrative, accounting and C-level management talent in North America and Germany.

The Germany-USA Career Center is
the leading recruiting source for U.S.-German and German-American markets. Since 1997, it provides employment, career and search services for companies in the US and in Germany.

On this blog, our team will keep you posted about ongoings in the transatlantic solar / photovoltaic / renewable energy business:

(German) Solar Industry News Overview:

Showing posts with label pv. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pv. Show all posts

USA: Top 10 Solar States


Where in the U.S. are the best chances for German solar companies to find a skilled workforce as an employer in the solar / PV industry? Where would you have to look as a German-trained, US state certified electrician / installer, engineer or planner seeking employment with a solar company?

Last year, the U.S. solar industry installed 3.3 GW of solar capacity, growing 76% over 2011's total. Check the infographic below to find out where the solar industry has been booming recently.

5 Questions Foreign Solar Companies Should Ask When Recruiting in the U.S.

In cross-border business, particularly in relatively new markets, there is no shortage of "You want it? We can do it!", Jack-of-all-trades business consultancies and organziations, who offer their service when companies from abroad are looking to recruit employees in the US.

PV companies from abroad who have recently arrived in the US have most likely encountered the type. Using a boutique "business development" services provider for everything on the shopping list may seem tempting, but it can backfire.

Why? If you are in charge of recruitment German-speaking, German-trained PV sales engineers, project planners or back-office staff for your solar company in the U.S., you may want to read these examples from the Germany-USA Career Center blog:

5 Questions to Ask Recruiters and Search Consultants

Did you notice that recruiting agencies and job boards keep playing bait-and-switch with their clients, constantly changing their focus, service and fee structure? Theirs has turned into a buyer’s market, thanks to a miserable economy. And it definitely hurts.

Good for you, the buyer – IF you know to ask the right questions, and how to compare apples to apples (without getting distracted by the occasional orange or lemon the other side throws in, just to make their offer look extra yummy).

In my experience, the following five questions should serve American and German companies in Germany and in the U.S. well, when evaluating organizations, recruiting agencies or job boards for helping them find and hire bilingual or multilingual, highly qualified employees:

Read more…

Solar-Markt USA: Nicht nur Florida ist Sonnenstaat

Wer sich von Deutschland aus mit der Solar-Branche in den USA befasst, sei es für den US-Markteinstieg des eigenen Unternehmens oder sei es, um interessante Stellenangebote bei Solar-Firmen in den USA zu finden, stellt schnell fest: was die Photovoltaik- und Solar-Branche in den USA betrifft, so bieten die Vereinigten Staaten kein einheitliches Bild.


Gleichzeitig wird deutlich, dass nicht nur Florida - laut KFZ-Nummernschild der "Sunshine State" - den Titel "Sonnenstaat" für sich beanspruchen kann. Arizona, Kalifornien, Connecticut, Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York und Wisconsin sind die US-Bundesstaaten, in denen der Ausbau des Solar-Markts bisher am weitesten fortgeschritten ist.

Das geht aus dem "PV Market Mapper" hervor, einer Solar-Markt-Karte des amerikanischen National Renewable Energy Laboratory NREL, die vom Open PV Project erstellt wurde. Einen schnellen Überblick über die Entwicklung der Solar-Branche in den USA erlaubt die dynamische OpenPV Projekt-Karte, auf der die PV-Installationsdichte in den einzelnen Staaten abgebildet wird. Für Solar-Firmen aus Deutschland und Jobsucher bedeutet das: je mehr Installationen, desto entwickelter der Solar-Markt in dem betreffenden US-Staat.

Weitere wichtige Quellen, die sich beim Erstellen von Marktstudien und bei der Vorbereitung des Markteinstiegs in den USA als nützlich erweisen:


Die letztgenannte Quelle eignet sich besonders für Mitarbeiter deutscher Solar-und PV-Unternehmen, die den Einstieg ihrer Firma in den US-Markt vorbereiten.

Solar-Unternehmer aus Deutschland, die den Sprung bereits gemacht haben, können bestätigen: die besten Quellen bei der Vorbeitung des Markteinstiegs in den USA sind nicht die Webseiten und Hochglanzbroschüren von staatlicher Wirtschaftsförderung und Ansiedlungsexperten, und auch nicht die Solar-Messen in den USA oder irgendeine Handelskammer.

Die nützlichsten Kontakte, so zeigt sich immer wieder auch in diesem noch jungen Markt, sind diejenigen zu Repräsentanten von Unternehmen der Solar-Branche, die sich bereits in dem betreffenden US-Staat angesiedelt haben. (Es muss ja nicht gleich der direkte Mitbewerber sein.)

Tipp: Regelmäßig stellt beispielsweise Solar-Jobs.com, der Branchendienst des Germany-USA Career Center für Solar- und Photovoltaik-Firmen in den USA, Führungskräfte und Ansprechpartner der deutsch-amerikanischen Solar-Branche in den USA vor.

Gute Einstiegsfrage: Was waren die drei größten Überraschungen, die sie seit ihrer Standort-Wahl im Staat XZY erlebt haben? Wer unliebsame Überraschungen beim Einrichten einer Niederlassung in Nordamerika vermeiden möchte, kann auf diese Weise wertvolle Tipps erhalten - zum Preis eines Telefongesprächs oder einer Einladung für den Gesprächspartner zum Mittagessen in dessen "favorite lunch spot".

German Solar Companies: Ready to Take on U.S. Market

On March 22nd-23rd, 2010 almost 400 energy industry executives, researchers and policy makers from both countries met in Berlin for the 2nd German American Energy Conference. A wrap-up.

(from left): Viktor Elbling (International Energy Policy Adviser, German Fed. Foreign Office), Dr. Axel Nitschke (Dep. General Manager DIHK), Josef Eichhammer (CEO Solar Millennium), Klaudia Martini (panel host), Michael Eckhart (Pres. ACORE), Jochen Homann (German Fed. Ministry f. Economics and Technology), Richard L. Morningstar (U.S. Special Envoy)

German solar / photovoltaics companies are well positioned to tackle the lucrative U.S. market for renewable energies and energy efficiency. That was the message American visitors took home from their two-day meetings in Berlin. The event was organized by the German Energy Agency (dena) and the German American Chambers of Commerce (AHK USA).

For German solar firm who have yet to enter the U.S. market, the conference provided ample opportunity to learn about current trends and support frameworks within the U.S. energy market, and how German companies and their American partners can benefit from them. The German energy industry looks across the Atlantic," said Andreas Jung, the Managing Director of the German Energy Agency. “Energy efficiency and renewable energy are key industries for the 21st century. German companies have much to offer in these fields and therefore have good chances in the U.S. market. "

Mr. Jung's optimistic outlook was backed up by the results of a recent survey of roughly 300 German and American companies in the renewable energy and energy efficiency fields in the U.S, conducted by the German American Chambers of Commerce in cooperation with Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. Almost 40% of the responding U.S. companies indicated interest in working with German partners.

The 2nd German American Energy Conference was funded by the Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology (BMWi), and supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety (BMU), the Federation of German Industries (BDI), and Germany Trade and Invest.

U.S. speakers included Philip D. Murphy, United States Ambassador to Germany, Dr. Peter Ammon, State Secretary of the Federal Foreign Office, Richard L. Morningstar, Special Envoy for Eurasian Affairs for U.S. President Barack Obama at the U.S. Department of State, and Scott Gregory Minos, Senior Policy & Communications Specialist at the U.S. Department of Energy.

Participants who had traveled all the way from the U.S. were able to return home with a clean conscience. This being a German-engineered conference, the organizers had thought it through all the way: the environmental impact of the 2nd German American Engery Conference was offset, or at least compensated for, through a cooperation with atmosfair.

Resources:
German Energy Agency - Deutsche Energie-Agentur (DENA)
U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) - Solar
Germany-USA Career Center
Der Markt für deutsche Solar-Firmen in Florida (Florida-Stellenmarkt - in German)
Destination Silicon Valley (blog for Silicon Valley companies from abroad)