Breaking Silos & Becoming a Force Multiplier for Change

Ripple Effect

Author: Vanessa Edmonds, CEO, Utility 2030 Collaborative

The phrase “being a force multiplier for change” hooked me at the CanREA Hub Summit on February 4-5, 2025. As I co-facilitated the Around the Meter track on power generation and storage alongside my colleague Chris Hilborn, CanREA’s Executive Director, Phil McKay, introduced the concept, and it rooted itself in my brain somewhere between deep discussions and coffee breaks.

Force multiplication—a term borrowed from military science—refers to a factor (or combination of factors) that dramatically enhances a group’s effectiveness. An example is a skilled team of soldiers equipped with night vision, stealth drones, and a killer playlist. Suddenly, they’re not just good—they’re unstoppable.

That idea got me thinking about the Utility 2030 Leadership Collaborative (U2030). Since day one, our mission has been to serve as a force multiplier for change by helping utility leaders become force multipliers themselves. Yes, I meant to say force multiplier twice because what we’re talking about is the ripple effect. This is the idea that one action triggers a chain reaction, just like a pebble dropped into a pond.

At U2030, we harness Learning Experience Design (LXD) innovations to turn ideas into actions that spread outward, influencing leaders, teams, organizations, and entire systems. These ripples drive momentum, spark innovation, and ultimately accelerate industry-wide change.

Silos: The Great Enemy of Collaboration

As someone obsessed with continuous improvement, I couldn’t help but ask: What stands in the way of the ripple effect? The answer came to me—silos.

Business folks love borrowing words from farmers, and silos are one of them. On a farm, silos are massive steel containers that keep grain separate and uncontaminated. Useful in agriculture? Absolutely. In business? Not so much.

Business silos isolate teams, stifling communication and blocking the knowledge-sharing that fuels the ripple effect. Ironically, in business, the kind of contamination we actually want is the cross-pollination of ideas.

Many of us cling to silos because they feel safe—offering control, familiarity, and predictability. But in reality, silos limit us:

• Your view? Just walls.

• Your perspective? Narrowed.

• Your impact? Minimal.

If you're lucky (and your silo has no roof), you might catch a glimpse of an airplane or a shooting star—but without context, they’re just meaningless flashes in the sky.

At U2030, being a force multiplier for change means handing utility leaders rock-climbing gear—so they can climb out of their silos, see the bigger picture, and recognize its vast possibilities with awe and wonder.

Speaking of Wonder…

On day two of the CanREA Hub Summit, Chris and I kicked things off with an icebreaker designed to challenge siloed thinking. We asked attendees:

“What is one pervasive problem slowing down the energy transition that your company could solve if you pulled together a small, cross-functional team of high performers?”

The answers were enlightening, revealing not only barriers to progress but also the art of the possible when we break down silos and collaborate.

The First Ripple Starts with You

Being a force multiplier for change doesn’t have to be overwhelming. It starts with one problem (think low-hanging fruit), one cross-functional team, and one step forward.

So, I challenge you to ask yourself the same question we posed to the summit attendees. The moment you step out of your silo, you set things in motion—and become a force multiplier for change.

And that first step?

The pebble in the pond is the first ripple in a chain reaction that will advance the energy transition and your other innovation and transformation goals.

Are you ready to drop it?