This article draws on lessons from the first triennium of PSE&G’s Energy Efficiency (EE) program and how those experiences have helped shape our approach as the program has progressed. Intended for energy companies, industry peers and others involved in shaping or advancing energy efficiency efforts, the article shares insights on program management and delivery, customer engagement, partnerships, workforce development and other considerations involved in implementing energy efficiency programs at scale.
New Jersey enacted the Clean Energy Act in 2018, followed by an Energy Master Plan in 2019 that set goals addressing the production, distribution, consumption and conservation of energy across the state. This policy set the stage for the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) to issue the Clean Energy Future—Energy Efficiency (CEF-EE) framework, which required all New Jersey utilities to submit filings for energy efficiency programs to help the state meet its goals.
COMMENTARY
Launched in 2020, PSE&G’s Clean Energy Future—Energy Efficiency I program represented one of the state’s most significant investments in energy efficiency, electric vehicle infrastructure, and clean energy workforce development. Over its first three years, the initiative offered a clear view into what large-scale clean energy implementation looks like in practice, and generated lessons that continue to inform the program as it evolves.
The program’s first triennium had measurable impact, reaching more than 440,000 customers whose participation collectively reduced electricity use by approximately 2.6 million megawatt-hours of electricity, enough to power nearly 380,000 homes. Natural gas customers are expected to continue saving more than 69 million therms per year, while overall customer savings were projected to reach $678 million annually. Those outcomes translate into avoided emissions of roughly 1.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year. Beyond the numbers, our program’s story is also about people. Through the sponsored Clean Energy Jobs Program, PSE&G and its partners supported the placement of more than 2,700 New Jersey residents into clean energy careers, reinforcing how workforce development can expand access to opportunity while building the talent needed to support the state’s skilled workforce.
PSE&G Clean Energy Future—Energy Efficiency program has played an important role in advancing energy efficiency across the state and supporting New Jersey’s position as a national leader in energy efficiency. The state is now ranked #8 in the country on the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) state scorecard, up from #14 in 2022. Building on these early results, the utility entered the second triennium of its energy efficiency program in January 2025, and lessons from the first triennium continue to inform how we approach program delivery and customer engagement today.
While the utility has always offered energy efficiency programs, the scale of the CEF-EE program was unprecedented. To achieve these outcomes during the first triennium, the program required significant organizational buildout. The utility established a Clean Energy Solutions group to develop the infrastructure, staffing, and processes needed to support the investment and meet state-mandated energy efficiency goals. This involved creating new specialized, customer-centric teams, designing strategies to engage and increase participation for both residential and business customers, and building the operational systems necessary to manage the program consistently and effectively across the utility as it scaled. Across these efforts, one principle became increasingly clear: successful program delivery depends on keeping the customer at the center as programs grow in scale and complexity.
Several lessons that emerged during the first triennium have continued to prove relevant as PSE&G’s energy efficiency portfolio has evolved, including the importance of building the organizational structure needed to manage programs at scale, engaging customers in ways that reflect their different needs and barriers, developing strong delivery and community partnerships, and investing in the capabilities needed to support continued growth. As the portfolio continues to evolve, these lessons remain central to how we approach program delivery and growth.
Building the Program Management Structure to Scale Energy Efficiency
Soon after the program launched and participation grew, PSE&G established a Project Management Organization (PMO) to support the scale and complexity of the portfolio. The PMO streamlined swim lanes for measurement, forecasting and reporting, allowing operational teams to focus on day-to-day program delivery. This structure strengthened oversight of program performance, improved tracking of investment expenses and energy savings, and enhanced coordination with contractors and vendors, including management of contractor relationships and oversight of vendor operations. Together, these changes positioned the portfolio to scale effectively.
We also learned that strong feedback loops and flexible processes are critical as programs grow in scale and complexity. This is especially important when engaging the wide range of internal and external stakeholders that are essential to successful program delivery.
Trade allies, implementation vendors, contractors, and suppliers are the customer-facing drivers of this work and essential to program execution. Early in the implementation phase, it became clear that the scale and complexity of the portfolio required stronger and more consistent quality oversight for partners across all program lines.
To support this, we strengthened our existing processes and assigned dedicated Quality Assurance / Quality Control (QAQC) resources to help manage the growing number of trade allies and vendors. This approach ensured that partners were screened against clear criteria and held accountable to program standards throughout their engagement. These improvements reinforced program integrity, supported a consistent customer experience, and positioned the portfolio for long-term growth.
As the program scaled, we refined our approach to working with implementation partners and recognized the importance of engaging stakeholders across the energy supply chain. Manufacturers, distributors, contractors and technology providers played important roles in driving adoption across both the residential and business portfolios. Our experience reinforced a broader lesson that remains relevant today: effective engagement across the supply chain requires clear messaging and incentives, including:
- Incentives for manufacturers to produce higher-efficiency equipment.
- Awareness campaigns for distributors to stock high-efficiency products.
- Incentives for contractors to promote efficient solutions.
We also found that customer experience cannot be separated from program delivery. Integrating customer touchpoints, including technical service calls, meter installations and customer service interactions, creates opportunities to raise program awareness, make it easier for customers to connect with relevant offerings and deepen our role as a trusted energy advisor.
Managing program transitions and maintaining continuity also proved important. The first three-year cycle included two formal extensions that aligned the portfolio with the statewide regulatory cycle and supported planning for the next triennium. As we prepared to move from one program cycle to the next, changes to program requirements required updates across implementation, marketing and other areas of program delivery. During this transition, certain marketing and implementation activities were paused while those changes were incorporated into the next phase of the program, affecting the pacing of work across internal teams, vendors, delivery partners and the broader network.
The experience reinforced the importance of ongoing communication and coordination with regulatory stakeholders, internal teams and delivery partners throughout the transition. It also highlighted the need for sufficient time to translate program changes into implementation and ensure those involved in delivering and communicating the programs understand what is changing. Managing these transitions deliberately can help maintain as much consistency as possible for customers, partners and the broader market.
Fostering Trust with Residential Customers Through Partnerships and Targeted Outreach
One of the most persistent challenges in implementing energy efficiency programs is driving awareness and building trust, particularly in low- and moderate-income (LMI) communities. While a full suite of offerings, including energy-saving appliance rebates and discounts, on-bill-repayment, and home energy assessments was available to all customers within our service territory, we found that tailoring opportunities for specific customer groups, especially LMI households, was important to achieving broad participation and better addressing customers’ energy needs.
Many customers questioned why a utility would help reduce consumption of its own product, and offerings that included no-cost services or significant incentives were sometimes met with skepticism. To address this perception, we partnered with trusted organizations, such as state agencies, municipalities, community partners, and payment assistance programs that customers already interacted with. These partnerships increased credibility and improved participation.
Market segmentation also proved critical. Different communities faced unique barriers, so we implemented tailored engagement strategies and incentive structures for both low-income customers and moderate-income customers (250–400% of federal poverty level). Data-driven targeting, informed by marketing research and focus groups, revealed valuable insights about effective messaging and imagery, allowing us to deliver more resonant communications. And by analyzing usage patterns and demographics, we proactively engaged customers with relevant offerings rather than relying on broad awareness campaigns that proved less effective.
Employee ambassadorship was another important factor to program success. Staff across departments—from meter installers to customer service representatives—were trained to communicate program benefits using simple, consistent messaging. For multifamily properties, we developed streamlined processes to address challenges such as complex ownership structures and split incentives, removing common participation barriers.
Continuous improvement also shaped our residential offerings. We merged initial quick home energy checks with comprehensive home performance assessments to streamline the customer journey, making it easier for them to receive immediate energy-saving measures, along with evaluations for deeper energy efficiency improvements during a single home visit.
On-bill repayment (OBR) mechanisms at 0% interest over five-year repayment periods further reduced barriers, eliminating upfront costs and simplifying repayment through the utility bill. This experience reinforced the importance of accessible payment options in reducing barriers to participation.
As a result of these efforts, during the first triennium we completed nearly 90,000 home energy assessments, issued rebates for more than 124,000 energy-efficient appliances, enabled the recycling of over 23,000 appliances and the purchase of nearly 335,000 smart thermostats through our PSE&G Marketplace platform. By the end of the triennium, more than 440,000 customers had participated in our energy efficiency programs.
As implementation has continued, advanced technologies have expanded opportunities for customer engagement beyond traditional energy efficiency upgrades. Solutions such as smart thermostats, efficient heat pump systems and AI-driven energy management platforms offer new opportunities for savings and comfort across customer groups. These technologies are also expanding the ways customers can engage with and manage their energy use, reinforcing the broader lesson that effective programs must continue to adapt to changing customer needs and available technologies.
Driving Business Customer Engagement, Adoption and Impact
In large-scale energy efficiency programs, distinguishing between residential and business customers is not enough. Business customers themselves have different needs, barriers and decision-making processes that require more tailored approaches. Through our work, we learned that tailoring programs to specific business segments significantly improved participation compared to broad marketing efforts. A comprehensive “end-to-end” approach combining opportunity assessments, cost-benefit analysis, implementation support and payment options helped business customers better understand program benefits and move forward with participation.
For larger commercial customers, self-service web tools proved insufficient. So, we created a dedicated support model working with our key customer advisors and a newly developed business development team. This approach enabled our representatives to understand each business’s core operations, budget constraints, and strategic objectives before recommending tailored energy efficiency solutions.
Engagement timelines also varied dramatically by segment: large commercial projects often required three to five years from initial contact to completion, while small business projects could typically be completed in four to six months. This divergence reinforced the need for distinct engagement strategies. Our small business program employed a turnkey approach, providing assessments and connecting participants directly with trade allies to streamline implementation.
Case studies and real-world success stories emerged as effective tools for building customer buy-in, particularly when they demonstrated benefits beyond energy savings, such as operational improvements, increased comfort and reduced maintenance costs. Implementation partners also proved critical, serving as trusted messengers in the small business community. Equipping these partners with clear tools, processes, and support materials significantly strengthened their ability to extend program outreach and drive adoption.
These efforts engaged more than 16,000 businesses across sectors ranging from small shops and manufacturing facilities to hospitals, corporate offices, schools and universities, including nearly 1,400 small businesses. They also led to the completion of more than 25,000 commercial and industrial projects statewide.
Investing in a Clean Energy Workforce to Meet Growing Demand
Implementing energy efficiency programs at scale requires not only strong program infrastructure and customer engagement, but also a skilled workforce to deliver the work. As demand for clean energy jobs grew, workforce development became an important component of PSE&G’s energy efficiency efforts. Established in 2020, the PSE&G-sponsored Clean Energy Jobs Program was designed to help build that pipeline while creating opportunities for New Jersey residents. During the first triennium alone, the program helped place 2,700 New Jersey residents into clean energy careers.
A steering committee made up of community organizations and strategic hiring and recruiting partners played an important role in the program’s approach. This public-private partnership helped connect candidates with job and career advancement opportunities while raising awareness of available employment and training through various outreach channels.
The program also addressed barriers to entering and succeeding in clean energy careers. On-the-job training provided a pathway into the sector, while wraparound services, such as childcare and transportation assistance, helped broaden the candidate pool and support training completion. Participants received interpersonal skills training, along with guidance and feedback from program leads and mentors. During the first triennium, the Clean Energy Jobs Program also provided access to Building Performance Institute (BPI) certification for 600 PSE&G job supplier and subcontractor employees already working in clean energy roles, strengthening the capabilities of the existing workforce.
Applying Early Lessons to Continued Progress
Our second triennium, launched in January 2025, built on the residential and business energy efficiency offerings established during the first triennium while expanding the portfolio to include building decarbonization and demand response.
The results since the program’s inception demonstrate the continued impact of these investments. Nearly 525,000 residential and business customers have participated in our energy efficiency programs, with that participation generating more than $1 billion in annual customer savings. We have also delivered approximately $1.1 billion in customer rebates and incentives to help make energy efficiency improvements more affordable. In addition, we have completed more than 111,000 home energy assessments and enrolled more than 37,600 customers in demand response programs.
Business customers have benefited from these investments as well. Approximately 22,500 businesses have participated in our energy efficiency programs, including more than 2,200 small businesses. Those small business participants are realizing approximately $31 million in annual energy savings. Additionally, nearly 36,000 commercial and industrial projects have been completed statewide through a network of more than 1,000 trade allies, including union partners who are helping delivery and implement energy efficiency improvement projects across our service territory.
Collectively, these programs have generated approximately 3.4 million megawatt-hours (MWh) of annual electricity savings, enough to power more than 497,000 homes for one year. Gas savings are delivering approximately 87 million therms annually, equal to taking more than 550,000 gasoline-powered cars off the road. Together, these savings are helping to avoid approximately 2.5 million metric tons of carbon emissions annually.
Our approach to customer experience has also evolved. Bringing our Customer Care and Clean Energy Solutions teams together under one leadership structure is helping streamline processes, improve efficiency and deepen customer relationships.
Workforce development has continued to support program delivery as well. As of June 2026, our Clean Energy Jobs Program had supported the placement of more than 11,000 New Jersey residents into clean energy careers. We are also strengthening the program through expanded contractor training for emerging technologies, including high-efficiency heat pumps.
Beyond these workforce efforts, we are exploring additional technologies and approaches through the broader energy efficiency portfolio, including pilots involving geothermal systems and virtual power plant models. As our programs grow and change, we remain focused on meeting customer needs and identifying new ways to deliver energy savings and value.
Recommendations for Success
Based on our experience implementing a large-scale utility energy efficiency portfolio, several factors have been important to successful program delivery:
- Build organizational structures that can support program growth, including dedicated measurement, forecasting and quality control functions.
- Keep the customer at the center of program design and delivery, with a focus on making programs easier to understand, access and navigate.
- Tailor engagement to different customer needs, using data and market insights, trusted community partnerships and relevant examples to reach residential and business customer segments more effectively.
- Build strong trade ally and implementation partner networks, with the training, support and quality standards needed for consistent program delivery.
- Maintain strong regulatory collaboration and manage program transitions deliberately, with ongoing communication and coordination among regulatory stakeholders, internal teams, vendors and delivery partners.
- Invest in workforce development, building both the talent pipeline and the skills needed to support program delivery and new technologies.
—Lauren Thomas is vice president, Clean Energy Solutions—Customer Solutions at PSE&G.
