(This event is by invite only and only available to students)
Request a seat at the table for this unique Energy Week networking opportunity. We’ve gathered a group of high-level energy professionals ready to chat with students interested in energy careers. Groups of up to six students share questions and conversation with our distinguished Penn alumni. These same alumni will also present career insights in a public panel following the coffee chats.
Students should submit a proposed question in advance to be addressed. Elected students will receive confirmation emails with further details, with up to six students will be selected for each Coffee Chat Host. Forms will be reviewed in the order in which they are received.
Following these invite-only coffee chats, the alumni will be joining for an alumni career panel at 5:00, which is open to all attendees.
Alumni Panelists:
- Scott Kleinman, Co-President, Apollo Global Management (FULL)
- Aseem Kapur, Head of Products, General Motors Energy (FULL)
- Jacob Susman, CEO & Co-FounderCEO & Co-Founder, Ambient Fuels, LLC (*** Please note, this coffee chat will be happening from 1:30 to 2:30 PM) (FULL)
- Rob Ritchie, Director of Energy Storage, Nexamp
- Rishika Ghosh, Senior Associate, Philadelphia Green Capital Corp. (PGCC)
- Dominic McGraw, Deputy Director of Energy Services & Operations, City of Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability
Scott Kleinman
Co-President
Apollo Global Management, Inc
Scott Kleinman (C’94, W’94) is Co-President of Apollo Global Management, Inc., co-leading Apollo’s day-to-day operations including all of Apollo’s revenue-generating businesses and enterprise solutions across its integrated alternative investment platform. Mr. Kleinman joined Apollo six years after its inception in 1996 was named Lead Partner for Private Equity in 2009 prior to being named Co-President in 2018. Mr. Kleinman serves on Apollo’s Management and Executive Committees.
Prior to joining Apollo, Mr. Kleinman was a member of the Investment Banking division at Smith Barney Inc. He serves on the board of directors of Apollo Global Management Inc., Athene Holding Ltd. and Athora Holding Ltd, and certain other affiliated public vehicles.
In 2014, Mr. Kleinman founded the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Board of Advisors at the University of Pennsylvania Stuart Weitzman School of Design and the Board of Directors at the White Plains Hospital, where he co-chaired the COVID-19 Relief Campaign. Mr. Kleinman received a BA and BS from the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton School of Business, respectively, graduating magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa.
Aseem Kapur
Head of Products
General Motors Energy
Aseem Kapur leads GM Energy’s product portfolio which includes hardware, software, and services for EV charging and energy management. Kapur’s teams help to drive the product line strategy across retail, fleet, and utility energy management, an effort which includes identifying new product offerings with strategic partners, to market positioning and launching products with customers.
Aseem’s previous roles at General Motors have included Director of Digital Business Technology, where he was responsible for the development and execution of the digital product roadmap for GM’s Energy Cloud, as well as the overall growth of the GM Energy business. This included creating strategic partnerships with energy companies and large commercial fleet customers and providing seamless and integrated energy management solutions designed to drive adoption of EV’s and improve grid resiliency.
Prior to joining GM, Aseem was the Director of Distribution Planning for Con Edison where he was responsible for integration of renewables and electric storage, developing marketplace for clean energy resources, and long-term planning for New York City’s electric grid.
Aseem has over two decades of leadership experience in the clean energy industry leading strategic initiatives across smart grid deployment, solar and storage distributed generation, and grid edge technology. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Rutgers University and has an MBA in Strategy from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Jacob Susman
CEO & Co-Founder
Ambient Fuels, LLC
Jacob Susman is a clean economy business builder, investor, and thought leader who has been developing and originating renewable energy projects for over 20 years. He is the CEO and co-founder of Ambient Fuels, a green hydrogen developer guiding heavy industry through the great green upgrade.
With Jigar Shah, Jacob co-founded CleanTech Leaders Roundtable, a private community of business leaders working to scale their collective efforts to combat climate change and build a thriving clean economy. He currently serves as CTLR’s Board President. Jacob is also a board member of REpowering Schools, an organization working to educate K12 and college students and their communities about renewable energy.
Jacob has decades of experience as a finance professional and project developer with a global power sector network. After studying business at Wharton, Jacob joined Goldman Sachs as a principal investor, where he was instrumental in its successful investment in Horizon Wind Energy. He then left Goldman to found OwnEnergy, where he led the business through the full venture cycle, leading the company's board and managing its successful sale to the global leader in renewable energy, EDF Renewables.
While at EDF, Jacob served as its executive leader of customer-facing activities in its US Grid Scale Power business, with a primary focus on originating long-term power contracts with corporate and utility customers. After leaving EDF, he co-founded Mission Driven Capital Partners, a growth capital fund targeting investments in corporate sustainability, an effort that is being continued within Goldman Sachs today.
Jacob served for five years on the Board of the American Wind Energy Association, including two years on its Executive Committee. He also served on the boards of the Renewable Energy Buyers Alliance and of the American Council on Renewable Energy.
In 2010, Jacob was named to Crain's New York “40 Under 40,” and in 2012, he was an E&Y Entrepreneur Of The Year Finalist. In 2013, Greentech Media named Jacob one of New York’s Top 10 Cleantech Leaders.
Jacob holds an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He serves on several community boards. An avid skier, Jacob lives with his wife, Jodi, and two daughters in Brooklyn, New York.
Rob Ritchie
Director of Energy Storage
Nexamp
Rob Ritchie is the Director of Energy Storage at Nexamp, where he leads energy storage strategy, technology evaluation, and project analysis. In this role, he works closely with internal and external stakeholders on strategic planning to build and grow Nexamp’s energy storage business. In prior roles at Nexamp, he developed over two dozen energy storage projects across the northeast ranging from behind the meter and microgrid to front of the meter applications. Prior to joining Nexamp, Rob was a Program Manager of Distributed Generation at National Grid, managing interconnection upgrade projects across New England. Rob holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics (MEAM) with a concentration in Energy Science and Engineering, a Master’s Certificate in Energy Management and Policy, and Bachelor’s degree in MEAM, all from the University of Pennsylvania.
Rishika Ghosh
Senior Associate
Philadelphia Green Capital Corp. (PGCC)
Rishika Ghosh is a Senior Associate at the Philadelphia Green Capital Corp. (PGCC), the green bank affiliate of the Philadelphia Energy Authority (PEA). She joined PGCC in 2021, and is focused on partnerships and program development. Rishika has 10+ years of academic and professional experience in renewable energy, wind engineering, program management, and sustainable development. She holds an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.S. and an M.Eng in Chemical Engineering from Cornell University. She is a Board Member of the Clean Air Council, an environmental health advocacy nonprofit fighting for equitable access to clean air, and the Co-President of Young Professionals in Energy Greater Philadelphia Chapter (YPE Philly).
Dominic McGraw
Deputy Director of Energy Services & Operations
City of Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability
Dominic McGraw is the Deputy Director of Energy Services & Operations for the City of Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability. In his role, he manages the Municipal Energy Office team which is responsible for tracking City government energy use, developing and implementing energy conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for facilities, and providing strategic procurement of City government’s energy supply. Dom and his team work to implement the City's Municipal Energy Master Plan (MEMP), a roadmap for increased energy efficiency, renewable energy generation, and energy resilience and the Municipal Clean Fleet Plan, which provides guidance and recommendations on how the City can transition its vehicle fleet to electric and other clean technologies in an efficient and cost-effective manner. He has a Master's Degree in Envronmental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania.