The downtown Raleigh meeting -- which was also broadcasted in four states -- was an attempt to calm the storm surrounding the new CEO and the surprise announcement that three top executives abruptly resigned.
"We can certainly appreciate people are upset as to what happened and why it happened," Thomas Williams with Duke Energy said. "I can't really comment on the whole circumstances surrounding the management change."
Rogers has taken heat for the ousting of former Progress Energy CEO Bill Johnson -- who was expected to lead the new company.
The North Carolina Utilities Commission said they were caught off guard about the news and started an investigation.
"Have we as a commission been mislead or, as described by others, duped in this process to obtain approval for this merger," one commissioner said. "I strongly believe this commission has not been mislead," Rogers said.
Duke Energy Spokesman Thomas Williams said some employees were upset they weren't told about the resignations first.
"Regrettably, that could not have been done straight to employees before it was done in that environment and that was very unfortunate," he said.
The utilities commission can rescind their approval of the merger, but experts have said that is unlikely.
Meanwhile, the merger could mean more layoffs for employees in Raleigh and across the nation.
A spokesperson said Rogers talked about his management style with employees and told them he's committed to Raleigh going forward.
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