Maria co-founded SEM in 2001 and serves as our chief visionary and director of cultural development. She also plays a key role in our team resources, marketing and business development efforts across all offices.

Prior to starting the company with Bob, Maria served as retail operations manager for Burt’s Bees, where she helped create a business framework that led to increasing the availability of Burt’s Bees products across the state and country, and opened the company’s first retail store in Carrboro, NC. She also has sales and marketing experience in the commercial printing and business products industries.

Understanding that people are SEM’s greatest asset, Maria is dedicated to bringing in the best. Not only is she responsible for building our top-notch team of sustainable energy professionals, but she also works hard at creating a balanced work environment where people are challenged to grow and develop to their full potential, personally as well as professionally. Last year, for example, she created a “Mind, Body and Soul” gift to the team at our Morrisville headquarters that included a lending library, a basketball goal in the parking lot, and a quiet meditation room where team members can go when they need to take a break from the high energy atmosphere that surrounds our fast-growing company.  Check out her contributions to The Smart Energy Exchange, SEM’s blog, by clicking here.

Besides working to help Bob build SEM and do their part to make the world a better place for their grandchildren, Maria’s favorite activities are cooking, reading, and traveling with Bob and their nine-year-old son, Zachary.

Maria graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BA in English Literature from NC State University.