Manager Distribution Operations Engineering

Portland General Electric Company•Beaverton, OR

8d•Onsite

About The Position

The Manager, Distribution Operations Engineering leads PGE’s Distribution Operations Engineering organization and provides strategic and technical leadership for engineering programs supporting safe, reliable, resilient, and efficient operation of the electric distribution system. Reporting within the Standards, System Health & Maintenance organization, the position leads engineers responsible for power system analysis, reliability and resiliency improvements, outage restoration, system planning, power quality, industrial customers, and continuous improvement of electric system operations. The role supports operations centers west of Portland’s West Hills and south past Salem and may be based in Beaverton, Hillsboro, or other operations centers in that region. The manager provides direction and oversight for engineering activities that support control center and field operations, planned and emergent system work, outage coordination, switching strategies, operational technology systems, and emergency response. The organization supplies technical solutions and operating strategies to maintain reliability, support customer service, reduce operational risk, and improve situational awareness. The role partners with internal teams and external reliability organizations to coordinate operational decisions, grid technologies, engineering analyses, and obligations. It advances operational excellence through engineering analysis, outage readiness, restoration planning, grid modernization, and reliability improvement, while developing technical capability and providing leadership during emergencies and abnormal operating conditions.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering required.
Eight or more years of engineering experience preferred.
Must be able to obtain NERC Reliability Coordinator Certification.
Advanced knowledge of engineering and economic principles and concepts.
Advanced understanding and application of engineering processes and procedures, and working knowledge of related departments and functions.
Advanced industry knowledge and awareness of technology trends.
Advanced knowledge of company QA/QC processes and procedures.
Intermediate knowledge of construction feasibility, procurement, and contract administration.
Advanced knowledge of project controls and estimates processes and procedures.
Advanced knowledge of system protection design practices and application, applicable codes and standards for electrical distribution system design and operation, and distribution protection schemes and device coordination.
Advanced skill designing overhead and underground distribution facilities, including relevant civil and electrical subsystems.
Advanced knowledge of real-time and offline power-flow and power-system analysis software applications.
Advanced knowledge of work management, asset management, GIS, and outage management software applications.
Advanced analytical thinking, decision-making, organization, prioritization, risk management, written and oral communication, and stakeholder management skills.
Intermediate organization-management and resource-management skills.
Ability to work long hours, a variable schedule, shift schedules, and on-call schedules; report to work during severe inclement weather; and meet regular, reliable, predictable full-time attendance standards.
Ability to travel daily within the service territory and occasionally overnight inside or outside the service territory.
Ability to use a computer regularly throughout the work shift and lift and carry up to 10 pounds.

Nice To Haves

ABET-accredited engineering program or a program accredited by an equivalent agency preferred.
Professional Engineering (PE) license strongly preferred; may be required based on the role.

Responsibilities

Lead the Distribution Operations Engineering organization and manage a team of operations engineering professionals.
Provide strategic, technical, and operational leadership for engineering programs supporting the electric distribution system.
Perform system analyses and provide real-time engineering support for reliable transmission and distribution system operation.
Ensure team objectives are met, standards and procedures are followed, operational problems are resolved, and operating procedures remain current and fit for purpose.
Manage distribution engineering support for capital and maintenance activities; recommend improvements to distribution facility design and construction, standards, operations, materials, and technology.
Support control center operations, field operations, planned and emergent work, outage coordination, switching strategies, and emergency response.
Develop and coordinate engineering solutions and operating strategies that maintain reliability, improve customer service, reduce operational risk, and improve power-system situational awareness.
Support power system analysis, distribution reliability and resiliency improvements, outage restoration, system planning, power quality, industrial customers, and system operations improvement.
Coordinate with the System Control Center, Power Delivery Operations, System Planning, Maintenance Engineering, Project Management Office, Customer Service, Local Government Affairs, Key Customer Managers, and external reliability organizations.
Advance outage readiness, system restoration planning, grid modernization, and reliability performance improvement programs.
Provide leadership during system emergencies and abnormal operating conditions.
Manage expenditures, monitor financial targets, investigate budget variances, and support effective financial controls and decisions.
Oversee team resourcing and planning; partner with HR on job definitions, recruitment, evaluation, and selection.
Assess organizational development and training needs, guide development plans, coach and mentor team members, monitor progress, provide feedback, and complete annual performance reviews.
Support field operations, customer account management, OPUC liaisons, and key stakeholder groups.
Promote safety, reliability, resiliency, operational excellence, talent development, technical mentoring, and succession planning.