A few reflections on building National Car Charging, betting on an industry, and the people who made it all possible.
By Jim Burness, CEO & Founder, National Car Charging
Fifteen years ago, I started National Car Charging with an idea, a healthy dose of optimism, and a pretty strong conviction that electric vehicles were going to change the world.
What I didn't have was much of a roadmap.
I had a basement office, a tiny company, and an industry that barely existed. Oh, and one other minor detail: I hadn't actually told my wife I was starting a business.
Looking back, I'm not sure which was the bigger gamble: betting Americans would embrace electric vehicles, believing I could build a successful business around charging them, or assuming my wife would appreciate the surprise.
Fortunately, the first two bets paid off. And I'm still married to my amazing wife, so I guess all three worked out.
But the road from 2011 to 2026 has been anything but a straight line.
We Were Early. Really Early.
When I founded NCC in 2011, electric vehicles were still a curiosity. Most people had never driven one, charging infrastructure was practically nonexistent, and convincing organizations to invest in unfamiliar technology wasn't exactly an easy sell.
But I'd spent much of my career in the automotive industry, and I could see where transportation was headed.
I also believed something that still guides me today: You can build a successful business and do something genuinely good for the world at the same time.
Cleaner air. Less dependence on fossil fuels. Better communities. A healthier planet for our kids. Those weren't marketing talking points. They were why I wanted to do this.
Of course, believing in the future and building a business that survives long enough to see it arrive are two very different things.
We've navigated tough decisions, unexpected detours, manufacturers changing direction, technologies evolving, and public policy swinging back and forth.
Sometimes we've adapted quickly. Sometimes painfully. But we've kept going because the underlying need hasn't changed. People need transportation. Increasingly, that transportation is electric. And making it work requires infrastructure people can depend on.
That's where we come in.
Jim with some of his Denver Team.
Somewhere Along the Way, We Built Something Pretty Special.
Today, NCC supports more than 1,300 customers and 14,000 charging ports across 48 states. That's a long way from my basement.
We've helped communities, universities, fleets, businesses, and public agencies turn electric transportation from an interesting idea into working infrastructure.
Along the way, we've grown from primarily selling chargers into a national partner that helps customers plan, procure, deploy, operate, and maintain complete charging programs.
And we've become something I always hoped we could be: a company customers call not because we're selling a particular product, but because they trust us to help them make the right decisions.
That distinction matters to me.
Our job isn't simply to sell somebody a charger. It's to understand what they're trying to accomplish, help them avoid expensive mistakes, and make sure the solution works long after installation.
It isn't always the easiest way to do business. But 15 years in, I'm more convinced than ever it's the right way.
“Along the way, we’ve grown from primarily selling chargers into a national partner that helps customers plan, procure, deploy, operate, and maintain complete charging programs.
... customers call not because we’re selling a particular product, but because they trust us to help them make the right decisions.”
And Then Came 2026.
I have to admit, this has been one heck of a year.
Two big awards in on year!
NCC was named a 2026 Colorado Companies to Watch winner and ColoradoBiz's 2026 Top Company in Energy. We've earned national recognition from partners like ChargePoint and Kempower, expanded our technologies and services, and strengthened our position in public-sector electrification.
We were also selected through a competitive process to maintain Austin Energy's extensive public charging network, a responsibility that reflects how far our capabilities have come.
And we're investing more heavily in what happens after chargers are installed, helping customers keep increasingly complex charging networks operating reliably.
What I find most gratifying is that these aren't just wins for NCC. They're signs that the company we've spent 15 years building is becoming exactly what the industry needs.
Experience. Reliability. Accountability. And people who know how to make charging work.
Jim Rio, CEO of NCC subsidiary Alliance Electric Solutions, and NCC Founder and CEO Jim Burness share a moment at last year’s company holiday party.
The Part I'm Most Proud of Isn't on an Awards Plaque.
Nobody fully prepares you for how personal starting a company becomes.
You invest your time, energy, ideas, and occasionally your sanity. But eventually, it becomes about something much bigger than you: the people who believe in what you're building.
Our team has navigated extraordinary change, tackled difficult projects, solved problems without instruction manuals, and supported customers through some pretty challenging situations.
They care. They take ownership. They show up. And they remind me that a company's strength isn't its product lineup, contracts, or even its balance sheet. It's the people who stand behind its promises.
I'm equally grateful for our customers. Many took a chance on us when EV charging was unfamiliar. Others have trusted us with increasingly complex projects. That trust has been hard-earned, and I'll never take it for granted.
To our partners, colleagues, friends, and families who've stood by us through the ups and downs: thank you.
Building a business takes a village. Building one in a constantly changing industry might take a small and mighty army. We've been fortunate to have both.
Fifteen Years Changes Your Perspective.
Jim and his daughter.
When you're starting out, success is measured by the next customer, contract, or sale. Those still matter, but I've learned to appreciate the longer view.
A charging station that helps a city electrify its fleet. A university making its campus more sustainable. A community gaining infrastructure it didn't have before. A customer calling us back years later because the first project worked. Those are the things that stay with me.
And there's a personal side to this, too. My daughter has grown up in a family that drives electric. For her, EVs aren't futuristic technology. They're simply cars. That's a remarkable shift in one generation.
It's also a reminder of why I started NCC. I wanted to help build a cleaner, better future and not just talk about one. Fifteen years later, I can see tangible evidence that we've moved things forward. And that means more to me than any award.
So, What's Next?
If I've learned anything, it's that this industry doesn't stand still. Technology is improving. Customer expectations are rising. And reliable, scalable charging infrastructure matters more than ever. And we're evolving right along with it—expanding technology partnerships, investing in service and operations, and helping customers think beyond individual chargers to complete charging programs.
Our goal is to make electrification easier to plan, purchase, deploy, and most importantly, operate. And we'll keep doing it with integrity, curiosity, accountability, and a willingness to roll up our sleeves and figure things out.
Fifteen years ago, I believed electric transportation could change the world. Today, I know it already has. I'm proud of what we've built, grateful to everyone who's helped us get here, and every bit as excited about what's ahead as I was when this adventure began. Maybe even more.
Here's to the next 15!
Jim Burness
CEO & Founder
National Car Charging