Jim Ferrell – chief executive officer, Jackson Energy Authority – has announced he is retiring. Grace Media Group, NEWS/TALK 101.5 FM & 93.1 FM, visited with Jim for a question & answer session.

Question: First, a little background information. Where are you originally from, family and education?

Answer: I was born and raised in Jackson, and graduated from Jackson Central-Merry High School. I currently live in Jackson with my wife, Jennifer, and we have three children – Anna, Seaton, and Carter.

I received my B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and later obtained my M.B.A. from the University of Tennessee at Martin.

Question: What was the deciding factor in your decision to find employment at Jackson Energy Authority; when did you first go to work at JEA and in what capacity?

Answer: After my freshman year of college, I was looking for an intern position to help pay for college and gain working experience.

JEA has been involved in the cooperative engineering program (co-op) with several colleges for many years (Previous CEO, Joe Exum was one of the first 2 co-op students at JEA).

Back then, the co-op program allowed engineering students to work for companies part of the year and go to school for part of the year. I was able to co-op with JEA during my time at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

I really enjoyed the work and the people while I was at JEA and decided I would try to find a position with a utility company. During my final semester at Tennessee, one of the project engineers at JEA left the company to work for a consultant. I was hired for the position and started the week after my graduation.

Question: When did you become CEO of JEA, and can you describe the feeling you had after you had been (hired, appointed) for the position?

Answer: I became the fifth CEO of JEA on April 1, 2011. I was pretty excited about being offered the position, but also very surprised. I had worked in various positions throughout the company, but had only been working at the senior level for a short period of time.

Question: We can imagine technology is one of the biggest changes you have seen in your time at JEA. Would you describe how technology has changed the utility industry and what are some of the noticeable changes that have taken place in your time as CEO?

Answer: I came to work at JEA in 1986 while I was still in college. At that time, we had a computer for our billing system and a computer for the systems operations. Each of these computers were housed in their own specific rooms.

These rooms had special cooling systems and the machines were about the size of several large refrigerators. Today, those same machines are just about the size of a toaster and probably have a hundred times the computing power.

I think the advancement of technology has made the utility industry more efficient. Our field personnel have more advanced equipment and tools available to them today and most of them have some type of computer in the field with them to provide needed information on the job site.

Also, the information that is accessible to us regarding our utility infrastructure is more accurate and there is a greater amount of data available on previous repairs. This allows the field personnel to be safer and more efficient every day.

Our IT (information technology) staff has done a great job of providing the proper tools to improve the efficiency of our office personnel, too. We have worked very hard to eliminate paper processes and replaced them with electronic processes. This has increased workflow in several areas, as well as improved efficiency. The pandemic also presented the need for remote work capabilities. Luckily, we had already moved to mobile devices for most of the workforce, so we had a much shorter transition curve than most businesses.

The development of the internet during the last decade has completely reshaped how companies conduct business. Internet service now is just as critical to most households as the traditional utility services. We are now seeing businesses that have more revenue coming in from electronic commerce than traditional walk-in business, and so companies are trying to adapt as the technology and trends change.

Question: What have been some of the major challenges you have faced as CEO of JEA?

Answer: Jackson experienced a tremendous amount of growth during the 1990’s and 2000’s, but we saw a drastic change during the 2010 decade.

When the economy slowed after 2009, we had to make several difficult changes due to the lack of growth and slower revenue growth.

Also, I think the pandemic created unique challenges for all businesses and changed how customers expect to interact with businesses.

For the 2020 decade, we will see a new set of challenges. With the addition of Blue Oval City, Great Wolf Lodge and other industries, I expect we will see an even different set of challenges in the near future.

Question: What are a few of the requirements for someone applying for the position of CEO at JEA; how long do you expect the process to take and do you have a target date for retiring?

Answer: The board will be looking for someone with experience in a multi-utility organization at a senior leadership level. They will need someone that is involved in our community and wants to be a leader for Jackson and Madison County.

I would expect them to have someone hired by the end of the summer to allow for some transition time before my retirement in January.

Question: What plans does Jim Ferrell have for retirement?

Answer: I plan to take several months off to just relax and do some traveling. I hope to spend more time with family and friends.

(PHOTO: Jim Ferrell)