Home Energy Rewards

Home Energy Rewards is a members reward program that combines compelling guidance with free money from some of Americas top retailers, top brands and thousands of government programs to save energy in your home, save money and save the planet today and in the future.

Our members get paid to save energy in two ways: they get rebates on all purchases from 1000+ national and local merchants; and they get access to the more than 2,500 generous federal, state, utility, manufacturer and non-profit rebates, incentives and free services that will pay them to make their homes more energy efficient.

Here's how it works:

1.  Get Paid!  Free money from America’s best retailers and from thousands of government and utility energy efficiency programs. 

2.  Get Smart!  Free impartial advice and guidance on the right work to get done for your home, how best to identify and leverage rebate dollars and ideas on new ways to save energy and make your home more comfortable.

3.  Get It Done!  Use Reward dollars to make your home more energy efficient by purchasing recommended products and services.  And get free access to a trusted local expert who can make it happen and cut your home energy bills by 25% to 75%.

Harold Simansky, Chief Executive Officer, Co-Founder

Harold Simansky is one of the three co-founders of Green Guild of MA, LLC, a full-service energy audit and home weatherization company that has helped some 1000 MA home owners make their homes more energy efficient.  Prior to that, Harold was the developer of one of the first green, LEED-certified residential buildings in the Boston-area.  Harold also has experience in the world of finance and as a consultant with Bain & Company.  He is a graduate of the MIT Sloan School of Management and Brandeis University.

Andrew Belt, President/Chief Financial Officer, Co-Founder

 Andrew Belt is one of the three co-founders of Green Guild of MA, LLC.  A serial entrepreneur, Andy was one of the original founders of the highly successful New Covent Garden Soup Company in London where he served as operations director and helped to craft the business strategy and raise angel and venture capital funds.  After that, Andy was one of the co-founders of strategy consulting firm, Adventis, which he led for 17 years.  Andy has also worked as a consultant with Bain & Company and The Monitor Group.  He is a graduate of the Harvard Business School and Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK.

Jonathan Karush, Chief Technology Officer

Jonathan Karush is the Founder and President of Liberty Concepts Inc., a leading provider of web sites, software, and online strategy to progressive organizations and businesses.  Jonathan started Liberty Concepts while an undergraduate at Penn, where he was a winner of a National Collegiate Entrepreneurship Award.  Jonathan is a frequent speaker, author, and International expert on the role of the Internet in civic life.  Jonathan has also served as Chief Technology Officer to Citylife, a franchised online regional television network.  Jonathan has a B.A. cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania with distinction in political science and a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University.

Simon Neale, Chief Product Officer

Simon has taken on the role of Chief Product Officer and drives the internet and e-commerce strategy for the company.  Simon was most recently the Chief Technology Officer of MountainWarehouse, one of the largest purveyors of outdoor clothing and gear in Europe with some 125 stores in the UK and ~$80M in revenue.  In this role, Simon recently relaunched the company’s website which now generates in excess of $1.5M in online sales per month.  A former consultant with the Monitor Group, Simon is a graduate of Brunel University (UK).

Indran Ratnathicam, VP of Business Development

Indy will be leading our efforts to secure partnership agreements with a wide range of “dark green” and “light green” retail companies.  As a former principal in the Energy & Technology practice of the Boston Consulting Group, Indy has over five years of experience working closely with Fortune 1000 companies on a wide range of issues.  Previous experience includes working for a number of start-ups and in the venture capital industry.   He is a graduate of MIT and the Harvard Business School.

Kate Bernhardt, Editorial Director

Kate Bernhardt is a media professional with more than 25 years of experience in the production and business sides of film, TV, multimedia, and the Internet.  An award-winning producer/director/writer of many nationally and internationally recognized projects; Kate served as Editorial Director for Green Building Blocks, an online resource for green residential design and building professionals and homeowners committed to environmentally-sustainable best practices.  Kate is a member of the Writer’s Guild of America, East, and a former president of the New England chapter of Women in Film and Video, a national organization of media professionals.  She is also a part-time Master's Certificate student in Sustainable Design at Boston Architectural College.

Jim Lockwood, Co-Founder & Board Member

Jim Lockwood is a co-founder of Green Guild of MA, LLC.  Jim is a licensed General Contractor, holds a Mass Construction Supervisors License and holds the State Home Improvement Contractors license.  He is accredited by BPI as a Building Analyst Professional and is also a trained ground source heat pump installer and a certified solar professional. He is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design.  He has been a general contractor and property developer based in Brookline, working in Greater Boston for 25 years.  He is a certified weatherization professional from all the major utilities.  His professional focus on green building and conservation began approximately twenty years ago. He is an active member of Climate Change Action Brookline.

Craig Underwood, Advisor

Currently of Underwood Partners; Founder and CEO of The Loyalty Group/Air Miles Canada; CEO of Sports Loyalty Systems; Partner, Bain & Co.

We make money in the following ways:

Receiving a share of the rewards members receive

Selling leads to trusted local service providers in the world of residential energy efficiency

Directing members to qualified products for which we receive a commission

Other additional revenue opportunities in the future could include things like advertising, group sales and data mining.

There are several small scale “green rewards” programs, but nothing with our strong focus on residential energy efficiency or our mechanism for immediate rewards through the 2500+ energy efficiency rebates and incentives that already exist. Larger scale programs include a rewards program for specific actions, like recycling.  There are also hundreds of websites of highly variable quality with some focus on residential energy efficiency: none of these appears to be on a path to being a “go to” trusted resource.

A review of three companies highlights key differentiators: RecycleBank, Earth Aid and Tree Hugger.  Both Recycle Bank and Earth Aid are reward programs, but in both cases they only deliver moderate levels of rewards to the average user ($50 to $100 per year) and members have to take action and track performance in order to qualify.

In contrast, Home Energy Rewards begins by rewarding members for their intentions.  As soon as a member joins they begin accumulating reward dollars from our more than 1000 retail partners. These dollars are then “super-charged” by the 2,500+ rebates, tax credits and other incentives that pay homeowners real dollars to make energy efficiency choices in their homes.  For the average homeowner, the rewards, rebates and other incentives can add up to thousands of dollars per year.

TreeHugger and many other content-centric sites promote generalized “green” lifestyles with environmental concerns being seen as the key driver for the consumer. Home Energy Rewards believes dollars are the key driver and that dollars will lead to action: “Get Paid to Save Energy”. In addition, Home Energy Rewards will be sharply focused on residential energy efficiency.  Home Energy Rewards will help the homeowner choose the right and most cost effective projects for their home.