Mike Mazur: Alumnus Recycles Engineering and Corporate Expertise to Establish Green Energy Company

When Mike Mazur (Class of ’99, MBA) wanted to establish his own energy company, he relied upon ambition, drive, 10 years of experience at Raytheon, and an M.B.A. he earned after work hours and weekends from California State University, Dominguez Hills. As the founder and principal of 3 Phases Renewables in Manhattan Beach, Mazur underscores the importance of education in his view that “industry should create its own leaders and champions. Education plays a big role in that.”

“I don’t remember formulas from when I was in school and I probably never will,but my foundation allows me to get answers to questions,” says Mazur, who earned his undergradate degree in engineering from Ivanovo State Power University in Russia.

Mazur saw a unique opportunity in the 1990s when deregulation opened the California energy market to entrepreneurs and customers looking for alternative energy solutions. With funding from his 401K at Raytheon and two partners, in 1994 Mazur established 3 Phases Electrical Consulting, which offered renewable power options from resources such as wind, solar and methane generated by landfills.

“Our niche was different and we have pretty much stayed in that niche,” he says. “It was an opportunity to offer green power at a cheaper price. The state was giving money for residential customers and small businesses to buy green power as an incentive, so my business model revolved around that opportunity.”

3 Phases picked up a diverse set of environmentally minded clients, such as Whole Foods Market, Wells Fargo, UPS, and Fetzer Vineyards, whose administrative facilities run on 100 percent renewable energy. Although deregulation got a bad rap and was blamed for the rolling blackouts in California during the mid-2000s, Mazur remained positive that a more independent energy market would benefit both the customer and the industry. In 2007, the company was renamed 3 Phases Renewables, with a focus on providing clean energy as well as connecting green generators to the power grid.

“Big monopolies are very vulnerable in this environment because they cannot change,” Mazur says. “We want people to exercise their choices. When we deliver to customers, more players come into the marketplace. We probably have to consider creating a new environment where major companies are not that people-heavy, like regulated [utility companies] are.”

Conservation is second nature to Mazur, who grew up in communist Russia and says that green living starts at a more personal level.

“When you come from a world where there’s a scarcity, where every single pencil is saved and every piece of clothing is passed from brother to another brother, it’s a cultural issue,” he says. “We can blame Exxon and BP all we want, but we need to change our behavior and culture from thinking our [energy] resources are unlimited.”

“You cannot survive if you are not up to speed with what’s going on today,” Mazur says of the industry-wide challenge to stay on top of trends. “Everyday, there is a change. When people dream of creativity, that’s unlimited.”

- Joanie Harmon