POWERGRAMS

11 BLACK HISTORY MONTH Holmes, Faush, Grooms, Knight While most of his college friends headed North to work at megacompanies like IBM and Goodyear Atomic, Robert Holmes opted to stay in Birmingham where he was close to home and family. That's why he took a job at Alabama Power – a move he never regreed throughout his 43-year career. "A lot of African-Americans back then were not looking at Alabama Power because it was not sexy," said Holmes, retired senior vice president of Ethics and Corporate Concerns. "But I was proud because my parents were proud of me for having gone to school and for geing a job at one of the most significant companies in the state." Holmes' parents weren't the only ones who were proud of him and saw his potential. Company leaders recognized it. They tapped Holmes as Human Resources vice president in 1992, making him the first African-American to rise to that position of leadership at Alabama Power. Holmes joined the company in 1970 as a draer aer graduating from Alabama A&M University. A year later, he moved to Miscellaneous Design. There, he began gaining experience in designing everything from air-conditioning systems to retaining walls and transformer foundations. Holmes, encouraged by his manager, George Howard, returned to college, earning an engineering degree at UAB in 1976. Holmes began moving up the engineering ladder and later took on leadership roles as Plant Barry technical superintendent and assistant plant manager. It was while he was working as district manager of West Mobile that he accepted the call as Human Resources vice president. "As a person of color, being in a position of leadership was uniquely different because I have a different background and different experiences," Holmes said. "I had to earn the respect and trust of the people I led, and I did that leading with the philosophy of being a servant leader. Those were tough times, but it made me more faithful and helped me understand that man is not in control of my destiny." Holmes said when he was asked to serve as vice president, he was proud to accept the baton. "I have a heart for people," said Holmes, who retired in 2010. "Your career is defined by the people you manage. It's about seing the tone and the vision for the organization and trusting the people to be the best they can be." With the significant changes in civil rights and employment laws in the 1960s and 1970s, Alabama Power and other companies began developing minority and women leaders. Gary Grooms was selected to head the company's affirmative action program in the early 1970s. "At that time, there was quite a bit of external pressure from government agencies calling for companies to increase the hiring and promotion of minorities," said Grooms, who retired as assistant to the Birmingham Division vice president in 2010. "But from a business standpoint, it just made sense to move in that direction." As they climbed the leadership ladder, Brenda Faush and Bobbie Knight broke through two barriers: as women and as African-Americans. Faush came to Alabama Power in 1973 as a clerk in Human Resources. Taking classes at night, she finished her degree and graduated from UAB in 1979. Faush then received her master's degree at Birmingham-Southern College in 1995. Faush said in those early days, her biggest supporters were the friends she made through an informal social group, which they called BAPCO (Black Alabama Power Company Employees). "It was new ground for people of color in the Corporate Office," said Faush. "It was nice to get together with people who were in a similar position." Faush rose to leadership as supervisor of Employee Information Systems in Human Resources. She went on to serve as assistant to two Birmingham Division vice presidents. In the mid-1990s, Faush was manager of Birmingham Division Residential Marketing and then served as Communications Services manager in Public Relations until her retirement in 2001. "When you make that transition from being one of the guys to the supervisor, that isn't always comfortable," Faush said. "I think one thing that helped was I was just me. I wasn't trying to be somebody's idea of what a leader should be. I was just myself, and I think other employees felt comfortable around me." Aer graduating from the University of Alabama in 1978, Knight came to the company as a customer service representative in the Call Center. She said that experience was the best preparation for every job she held from that point forward. Knight especially took to heart some advice she received from her supervisor. "She said, 'Bobbie, put your grandmother's face on the people who call, and that helps you understand them and empathize with them,'" Knight said. "I always used that throughout my

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