POWER PLAYERS: The Women Supercharging Avangrid’s Forbes-Worthy Workplace
Avangrid’s inclusion on the 2025 Forbes list of America’s Best Employers for Women is more than another line on our trophy shelf; it is independent confirmation that the company’s promises around equal opportunity translate into real-world experience for employees. The ranking—built exclusively on anonymous feedback from working women—arrives on the heels of recognitions from JUST Capital, Ethisphere, TIME and Fast Company, underscoring Avangrid’s standing as an employer that balances ethics, wellness and performance.
Central to that success is a team of women steering some of our most complex businesses. At the corporate helm, Deputy CEO Kim Harriman brings two decades of public-policy and regulatory expertise to Avangrid’s strategic decisions. Before joining the company, Harriman was Senior Vice President and Chief of Staff at the New York Power Authority, where she helped shape statewide energy-transition legislation. A Siena College graduate with a J.D. from Albany Law, before becoming the Deputy CEO she led Avangrid’s government-relations, regulatory-affairs and communications functions, ensuring that our growth strategy aligns with community needs and climate goals.
In New York, CEO Trish Nilsen guides both NYSEG and RG&E through an era of unprecedented growth with electrification and evolution. Nilsen started her 30-plus year career at NYSEG, and has since held leadership roles at NYSEG, RG&E and Avangrid, spanning training, customer service, communications and emergency management. She is leading the organization through grid enhancements for interconnection of new generation sources, new or expanding businesses and housing. Trish received a Bachelor of Science from Alfred University, and Master of Arts from Syracuse University and from Elmira College.
Leading Avangrid’s flagship Maine utility, Central Maine Power, is President and CEO Linda Ball. Over her 30 years with the company, Ball has managed everything from customer service operations to smart-meter rollouts. With a B.S. in Business and an MBA from Iberdrola’s global program through Comillas University and the University of Strathclyde, Ball now oversees CMP’s $1 billion grid-modernization portfolio, coordinating thousands of employees across the field, customer service and other functions to deliver safe, reliable and resilient service to nearly 670,000 customers.
Rounding out the leadership roster is Charlotte Ancel, President of Berkshire Gas in western Massachusetts. Ancel—a Boston College graduate with a J.D. from the University of New Hampshire—previously headed Avangrid’s regulatory and investor relations functions. At Berkshire, she is charting a path toward low-carbon fuels while maintaining industry-leading safety metrics. Her ability to knit together policy, finance, operations and community engagement exemplifies the type of inclusive leadership celebrated by Forbes.
Together, Harriman, Nilsen, Ball and Ancel embody the commitment that earned Avangrid its place on the Forbes list: empower women at every level and performance will follow. As the company scales up grid investments and power generation—10.5 GW and counting—these leaders are proof that diversity in the C-suite is not a metric; it is a competitive advantage that benefits employees, customers and communities alike.
