Director Business Transformation Analytics and Automation - Business Transformation - Akron FirstEnergy Headquarters

FirstEnergy•Akron, OH

13h•$181,000 - $242,000•Hybrid

About The Position

FirstEnergy Service Company is hiring a full-time Director, Business Transformation Analytics & Automation for its Business Transformation function. The role may be based at an office within FirstEnergy’s service territory and has a hybrid schedule anchored at FirstEnergy Headquarters in Akron, Ohio, with four days per week on-site. Travel to work locations across the territory is required as needed. Reporting to the Vice President of Business Transformation, the Director leads individual contributors in Data & Analytics and Automation & AI. The Data & Analytics team provides the analytical foundation for organizational decisions and evaluation; the Automation & AI team identifies where technology can perform work currently done manually. Business Transformation identifies, assesses, and designs solutions, while implementation and long-term ownership reside with the relevant business unit. The Director partners with IT on tooling, platform decisions, and build delivery, and works with stakeholders on enterprise AI standards. The role is accountable for setting methods, standards, and quality expectations; ensuring value estimates and realized benefits are analytically defensible; managing specialist capacity and the IT relationship; and advancing the enterprise’s automation and AI opportunity pipeline. It also contributes to transformation strategy and governance, develops business-unit literacy, manages third-party partners, and works with IT, Risk, Legal, and Compliance on responsible AI, model risk, and data governance. Participation in storm restoration or emergency response duties may be required as assigned. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in data science, analytics, engineering, information systems, business, or a related discipline.
At least 10 years of leadership experience and 8 years of relevant functional or technical work experience leading data, analytics, automation, or technology delivery work.
Working knowledge of best-in-class analytics practices and automation and AI capabilities, with the ability to set direction and evaluate quality in each.
Demonstrated experience establishing methods, standards, or quality controls that others apply consistently, particularly for data and AI controls.
Experience leading and developing a team of technical individual contributors.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including translating technical work into business and financial terms for senior leaders.
Ability to manage concurrent initiatives across multiple business units and deliver quality work within established deadlines.
Legal authorization to work in the United States without sponsorship.
Ability to travel to work locations across the service territory as needed.
Participation in storm restoration or emergency response duties as assigned may be required.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree.
Experience establishing or scaling analytics, automation, or digital capability from an early stage.
Experience developing AI governance, responsible AI standards, model risk controls, or comparable frameworks.
Hands-on practitioner background in data or automation, including the ability to review models and code.
Familiarity with next-generation AI development tooling and enterprise automation platforms.
Prior experience in the electric utility industry or another regulated operating environment.
Experience partnering with an IT organization across the boundary between business-led design and IT-governed build.

Responsibilities

Lead and develop individual contributors across Data & Analytics and Automation & AI.
Set methods, standards, and quality expectations for both disciplines, and review work before it reaches business units.
Allocate specialist capacity across business units based on portfolio priorities and resolve competing demand with business unit Portfolio Managers.
Confirm the analytical basis for value sizing at intake and realized benefits at close.
Own the relationship with IT on tooling evaluation, data platform decisions, build delivery, handoff of scoped automation specifications, and related activities.
Represent both disciplines to executive leadership and steering committees, and defend methodology and recommendations.
Identify and diagnose enterprise data gaps, quality defects, and architecture constraints that limit decision-making, and make the case for resolving them.
Maintain a forward-looking view of enterprise automation and AI opportunities, assessing feasibility, sequencing, and cost-to-achieve.
Partner with IT, Risk, Legal, and Compliance on responsible AI standards, model risk controls, and data governance.
Build analytics and automation literacy across the business so business units can consume and eventually own delivered solutions.
Manage third-party analytics, automation, and platform partners, including scope, deliverable quality, and value relative to spend.
Contribute to Business Transformation strategy, portfolio governance, and capability planning as a member of the leadership team.
Select or develop, implement, and continuously improve Data & Analytics and Automation & AI tools and templates.
Participate in storm restoration or emergency response duties as assigned.