What are the building blocks for such an unlikely alliance? There are many, but for me, these are the three most important ones
- Trust: as a company that “runs on trust” we look for other companies that share this value across their business.
- Win-win situations: finding projects and solutions that bring wins back for both our companies is essential in building a lasting relationship.
- Aligned goals: the excess heat recovery project was successful due to both Microsoft’s and Fortum’s shared interest and company goals in carbon neutral solutions.
For me, this project was also a learning experience. As an American, I didn’t know much about district heating systems as it is not how we primarily heat our homes. I initially learned about Stanford's own district heating and cooling system, SESI, when I was there getting my Master’s degree and it really sparked my interest in interconnected and efficient energy systems. Working on this project has been an amazing experience, and it's been so rewarding to see all that I've learned come to life.
And at the end of the day, it’s always about the people. Projects like this typically take years to complete and you need a lot of expertise from people with diverse backgrounds. In my opinion, building the dream team is not just about getting the business deal done, it is also about remembering the human behind the company. Finding team members that value diversity in people, thought, and experiences.
Overall, my key takeaways from the datacenter heat recovery project were
- Understanding the local culture is crucial: Fortum was incredibly helpful in ensuring we were able to incorporate the Finnish mindset of transparency, perseverance, and social and environmental awareness into the projects.
- Despite the nitty gritty, concentrating on the shared goal ahead: figuring out the things our businesses align on was just as important, if not more important, than working out the things we disagreed on. Through this journey we made sure to take a step-back from the nitty gritty details of negotiations and focus on what we were trying to achieve and figure out a way to get there.
- A solid business case can make things happen: Fortum created a solid business case that had Microsoft saying yes to the investment decision. This initiative demonstrates a mutual goal for environmental sustainability and a more energy-efficient future. As the first excess heat recovery project in our portfolio, we also learned a lot on how to enable this solution across our data centers.
In short, I feel this cooperation has been a tremendous success, transcending boundaries between the two companies and uniting us in our shared goal to drive positive change and make a meaningful impact.
