An energy management system is provided for an appliance comprising: an interface to receive a schedule having an off-peak time segment and an on-peak time segment; a control to determine an operation to be performed by the appliance; a mode selecting device to select between an energy management mode and an immediate start mode. A controller includes a memory for storing the schedule and firmware to determine whether there is any off-peak time segments and other time sub-segments between a current time and a deadline for completing the operation. Upon selection of the energy management mode, the controller is arranged to initiate the operation, including a reduction in power consumption to complete the operation, when an amount of time required to complete the operation maximizes the off-peak time segment and sub-segments between the current time and the deadline.