Growing up on the shores of Liberty Lake, back when it was unincorporated and lightly populated, Kris Mikkelsen says she rode horses and enjoyed the quiet lifestyle there.


Now, as CEO of Spokane-based Inland Power & Light Co., she draws no particular connection between that upbringing and the strong affinity she feels for Inlands customers, many of whom are rural.


She says, though, that the electric cooperativeWashington states largesthas been a good fit for her because of its muted corporate feel and a collaborative employee mindset thats focused on providing reliable power at a low cost to even its most remote patrons.


Its not just words. It really is a culture that the whole work force embraces, Mikkelsen says.


The fit has been good for Inland Power, as well. Mikkelsen became interim general manager and then general manager in 2000, replacing Richard Heitman, and her title was changed to CEO about a year later.


During her tenure, the co-ops annual net margins, what for-profit companies call net income, have remained well above $3 million, and its total revenues have climbed steadily, rising 7 percent last year to a record $37.4 million. Figures through April of this year show that growth rate continuing.


No doubt a more important performance indicator to Mikkelsen and to Inland Powers board, though, is that the co-ops electricity rates are lower today than they were a decade ago and are among the lowest of the nations more than 800 electric cooperatives.


She has done an excellent job, says board member Gale F. Rettkowski, of Wilbur, Wash. We really didnt know what we had until we put her in as interim manager, and she just flourished.


Now, he says, I think she is one of the most respected managers (in the electric cooperative industry). Just everything she does, she does very well. The board is really pleased with her.


Rettkowski adds, One of her very best qualities is how she gets along with people. She really has empathy. She gets a lot out of those employees, and they enjoy working for her. Thats probably her greatest strength.


Linda Habel, Inland Powers personnel manager, says, I think one of the things Ive appreciated most from her is she believes very strongly in getting the good news about Inland out. We have become a more visible company in the community. People know who we are now.


She says, We have had good conservative leadership for a number of years, which is why we are doing well, and she has continued that. Internally, Mikkelsen has proven adept at communicating with and relating to employees, she says.


If youre loyal to the company, shes loyal to you. She rewards loyalty with loyalty, Habel adds.


Inland Power, which operates from a modest, older headquarters building at 320 E. Second, employs only about 100 people, but staying in close touch with its scattered field personnel can be tough. The company provides power to more than 33,000 commercial, residential, and agricultural customers spread over 13 counties in Eastern Washington and North Idaho.


Mikkelsen says shes pleased with the way things have gone since she took over as Inlands top executive. It was a strong company when I became CEO, she says, and I think its even stronger today.


She began working for Inland Power as an accounting supervisor in 1981, then was promoted to controller in 1989 and assistant manager for finance and administrationone of two assistant manager positions at the co-opin 1996.


She had attended Central Valley High School, and says she thought about pursuing a career as a librarian or teacher, but wanted to get a degree in something I could actually get a job in. That led her into accounting, which she enjoyed.


She attended the University of Idaho initially, where she met her husband, Chris Mikkelsen, and both of them transferred to Eastern Washington University to complete their studies.


After obtaining her degree, she worked briefly for her husband at an accounting firm, now called McDirmid, Mikkelsen & Secrest PS, that he and Jim McDirmid were forming here at the time. She then was hired for the accounting supervisor position at Inland Power, despite having no supervisory experience, she says, and was given oversight responsibilities for employees who were older than her.


That was a real learning experience, she says. It was a good way to get your feet wet on how to get along with a variety of people.


The cooperativeowned by its customershas grown sharply since her arrival there, boosting the number of electric meters it bills by nearly two-thirds. It also has endured its share of controversy, including the 1990 conviction of former general manager Arnold Brauff on criminal racketeering, conspiracy, and mail-fraud charges. The charges stemmed from Inlands extensive dealings during the 1980s with a construction company that Brauff and his wife partly owned, unbeknownst to Inland.


In a lot of ways, I kind of feel like Ive seen it all, Mikkelsen says.


She was named manager after Heitman resigned and moved to Hawaii in early 2000 to head a new cooperative.


Mikkelsen says she had a pretty steep learning curve the first couple of years, due partly to her lack of knowledge about engineering and operations. You just have to rely on the expertise of those people who understand that side of the business, she says. Weve got great engineering and operations people, and I leaned on them heavily.


Also, she says, the timing of her promotion was perfect, because she and her husbands only child, Heidi, now 29, was no longer at home, which allowed Mikkelsen to devote more time to work.


One of the challenges, Mikkelsen says, was gaining the trust of employees in what traditionally has been a male-dominated industry. You dont see a lot of female linemen. The makeup of the work force tends to be male, she says. She adds, though, that, What I have found, almost from Day One, is they were willing to give me the benefit of the doubt.


Mikkelsen is one of relatively few female general managers of electric cooperatives. She speculates that fewer than 50 of the nations cooperatives are headed by women, but says that gender disparity is shrinking.


I dont feel like Ive been a pioneer, she says. Ive never felt discriminated against. Ive had every opportunity, and people make their own opportunities. I feel like its been a very even playing field.


The steep learning curve has eased, and Mikkelsen estimates she now puts in mostly 10-hour days, but tries to avoid working weekends.


She says her leisure activities include golf, some skiing, and spending time with the couples two large Newfoundland dogs, Bosco and Callie.


Theres probably nothing that takes my mind off work more than golf because it takes all the concentration I can muster to make good contact between club and ball, she says, laughingly describing herself as a lousy golfer.


Her main focuses, though, clearly continue to be the work she does at Inland Power, where she expects to remain until she retires, and her other professional and community activities.


Mikkelsen is president of Northwest Requirements Utilities, which represents the interests of utilities that rely on the Bonneville Power Administration for wholesale power supply and transmission services.


Locally, she serves on the EWU board of trustees, which she says she has enjoyed greatly, and also on the boards of the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce, Spokane Area Economic Development Council, and Spokane Neighborhood Action Programs.


Inland Power faces some big challenges in a few years, when its current long-term contract with BPA expires, and its rates likely will spike upward, but Mikkelsen says, The stars are aligned right now, and its been a great time to be involved with the company.