Before joining Florida Power & Light Company in 1999, Pamela Rauch was an attorney at two prominent Palm Beach County law firms: Jones, Foster, Johnston & Stubbs and Gunster, Yoakley & Stewart. She later served as an Assistant City Attorney for the City of West Palm Beach, where she played a significant role in the city's redevelopment activities, including the development of City Place.

Rauch, a resident of Jupiter Inlet Colony, started at FPL as a senior attorney overseeing the real estate, land use and environmental legal groups at the company. She rose to the position of associate general counsel and lead attorney for the company on siting new generation projects, such as solar energy, wind power, and clean, efficient nuclear energy.

So it was a natural progression to move into her new role as Vice President of External Affairs in January of 2008. FPL currently has 11 new generation projects on the drawing board and Rauch, with a 30-member team, provides information about FPL to government leaders and to FPL customers in the 35 counties served by the utility.

"There is a big link from my legal practice to my new role in External Affairs, since I was working with local governments every day," Rauch said. "It was a natural progression -- interfacing FPL with local governments, understanding the perspective of local governments and seeing how FPL can help impact and improve our local communities as a caring corporate citizen."

Married to Ted Rauch and the mother of two boys, Bronson and Canyon, Pamela Rauch, 44, said the key to large companies becoming civic leaders is to advance a mission that is important to society.

"And FPL has that," she said. "It is our commitment to addressing climate change for this generation and future generations, taking responsible and prudent actions to develop and provide electricity to our customers."

And Rauch says it is a commitment she personally embraces.

"It's a big challenge for us at FPL but it comes naturally to us," Rauch said. "I don't think you can do your job effectively unless it's something you really believe in. I believe what FPL is doing is the right thing for our customers. We are looking toward the future. That is the bottom line."