The utility sector, usually a staid and slow-moving business, is undergoing major changes. We're taking at look at six players – five new to their jobs – who will play key roles in this transformation. We'll be watching to see how these six help steer their organizations over the next year.

1. Paul Caudill, President, NV Energy

Caudill was named president of NV Energy in December on the day MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. merged with the utility. NV Energy's current CEO, Michael Yackira, is scheduled to retire in June when Caudill will take over leadership of the Las Vegas-based utility company.

We're intrigued because of Caudill's background in renewables. He comes to NV Energy from MidAmerican Solar and before that he ran Phoenix Solar U.S. and worked for SunPower Corp. He's shown that he can get major solar projects built.

After it was clear MidAmerican would buy NV Energy, the utility company decided to join the energy imbalance market being created by the California Independent System Operator and PacifiCorp, also owned by MidAmerican. The market will help integrate renewables onto the grid.

At the same time, Nevada officials and NV Energy have wanted to see renewable generation in Nevada get sold into the California market. Maybe with Caudill on board, NV Energy's plan to build power lines to export renewables will be revived.

2. Lynn Good, CEO, Duke Energy

In July, Good became president and CEO of Duke, the largest utility company in the U.S. with about 7 million customers in the Southeast and Midwest. She's one of the few women running utility companies.

Good has had her hands full. One of Duke's coal ash ponds in North Carolina has had two spills this month, triggering a widening federal criminal investigation. Solar advocates think she's backtracking on the company's progressive attitudes towards distributed solar. And the company just decided to sell its unregulated power plant fleet in the Midwest. We'll be watching to see how Duke navigates these issues while trying to evolve its business model.

3. Elliot Mainzer, Administrator, Bonneville Power Administration

Mainzer was named BPA administrator in January following a hiring scandal that led to the ouster of the federal power marketer's top two executives. BPA, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is the largest power generator in the Northwest, selling electricity from 31 federal dams and a nuclear plant. It also operates much of the transmission system in the region.

Mainzer has worked at BPA for 12 years. Before that he worked for Enron, the company that helped trigger the Western energy crisis in 2000.

Besides getting BPA's leadership team back in shape, Mainzer will be focused on how the federal agency can help integrate wind onto the grid, build out new transmission and decide what role the agency should have in a regional energy imbalance market. BPA is also a key player in possibly renegotiating the Columbia River Treaty with Canada. Changes to the treaty could have a big effect on power generation in the Northwest.

4. John McAvoy, CEO, Consolidated Edison

After more than three decades with the company, McAvoy took over as president and CEO of Con Edison in January. He was welcomed to the job with a two-year rate freeze just approved by state regulators. But as part of the broad rate case agreement, Con Edison will study issues like increased grid hardening, microgrids, distributed energy and innovative rate structures.

After more than a million customers lost power in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, Con Edison plans to spend $1 billion beefing up its system. This puts Con Edison at the forefront of key issues facing utilities across the country. We'll be watching to see how McAvoy steers Con Edison through the evolving utility landscape.

5. Michael Picker, Commissioner, California Public Utilities Commission

Picker, just named to the PUC – maybe the most influential utility commission in the country – is bullish on renewables. He expects that the Golden State will get 80% of its power from renewables by 2050.

Of anyone, Picker should know what he's talking about: starting in 2009 he helped coordinate California's efforts to expand its renewable energy production as senior advisor for renewable energy facilities to former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. His buddy, current Gov. Jerry Brown, kept him on in the same position. Picker first worked for Brown in 1975 when he had a job in the governor's mail room. Picker has utility experience as well. He was on the Sacramento Municipal Utility District board, but stepped down after being named to the PUC.

6. Lyndon Rive, CEO, SolarCity

When he's not playing underwater hockey for the U.S. national team, Rive runs a company that is giving utility executives the jitters. SolarCity is installing rooftop solar panels on growing numbers of buildings, in growing markets around the U.S., and his goal is to have a million customers by mid-2018. We don't know if he'll get there (SolarCity had 82,235 customers by last count), but there will be a lot of disruption if he gets halfway close.

SolarCity's innovative financing gives the company, and the solar sector, a major boost in its efforts. Investors think Rive is onto something. SolarCity's stock has jumped to about $75 a share from around $30 a share six months ago (Rive's cousin, Elon Musk, isn't doing badly either; Tesla shares have quadrupled in less than a year).