Alexander “Hap” Ellis III General Partner
Path to RockPort
Hap’s interest in energy took root during his first job out of college, when he went to work for US Senator Edward Brooke (R-MA) as a Legislative Assistant. In the ensuing four years, Middle East events changed forever both the politics and the economics of the global energy sector. Once in the private sector he formed a boutique insurance brokerage group to work with independent power companies. He was recruited away from the energy space by Knoll International to help re-invigorate this now well known furniture name. After the sale of Knoll to Westinghouse, he was recruited to Kenetech Corporation, the leading wind development and turbine manufacturer at the time, to help globally position this venture-backed company in anticipation of an IPO. After Kenetech and prior to joining RockPort, Hap and a partner developed, permitted and sold two 500+MW gas-fired power plants in the US, among other entrepreneurial ventures. Hap is a graduate of Colorado College with a BA in Political Science and earned an MBA from the Yale School of Management.
Other Passions & Pursuits
- Massachusetts Audubon Society, council member and member of the finance and administration committee.
QUICK FACTS
Corporate Boards serving on
- Catalytic Solutions
- Deerpath Energy
- Eka Systems
- ISE Corporation
- Powerspan Corp.
- Second Rotation
- Southwest Windpower
- Northern Power
Came aboard RockPort
1998
Education
Yale School of Management
Colorado College
PERSONAL INSIGHT
While Hap gets a kick out of the fact that many of RockPort’s companies are contributing to improving the environment, his main motivation is much simpler: "I just want to do my part to help the RockPort team deliver superior results to our LPs. It's a challenge I welcome and it drives me to hit every airport concourse with a smile (well, at least with resolve)."