Manager Utility Standards

Portland General Electric Company • Portland, OR

1d • Onsite

About The Position

This leadership role manages PGE’s Utility Standards organization within the Standards, System Health & Maintenance organization. Based at the Portland Operations Center in Portland, Oregon, the manager leads a multidisciplinary team of engineers and technical specialists responsible for transmission, distribution, and substation standards programs. The role establishes, maintains, and governs design, construction, equipment, and work-practice standards supporting the safe, reliable, compliant, and cost-effective operation of PGE’s transmission and distribution system.

The manager provides strategic direction and day-to-day leadership for standards development, technical governance, specification management, and implementation support. The role partners with Power Delivery Operations, Design Engineering, the Project Management Office, Supply Chain, Wildfire Mitigation, and System Planning to align standards with operational needs, regulatory requirements, industry practices, and long-term asset strategies. It advances standardization, asset performance and lifecycle management, risk reduction, reliability and resilience, emerging technologies, and grid modernization. The manager also develops technical talent, drives continuous improvement, and promotes safety and operational excellence.

The position manages standards engineering work and team performance, oversees financial targets and resource planning, partners with HR on staffing processes, and supports employee learning, development, coaching, mentoring, and performance reviews. The role may involve long or variable hours, shift and on-call schedules, work during severe weather, frequent travel within and outside the service territory, and work in office, plant, and field environments. Assisting with storms or other company emergencies is part of all positions at PGE.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering.
• Eight or more years of engineering experience preferred.
• Expert knowledge of engineering and economic principles and concepts.
• Advanced knowledge of other engineering disciplines and ability to interpret engineering deliverable content.
• Expert understanding and application of engineering processes and procedures.
• Advanced knowledge of industry and technology trends, company QA/QC processes, project controls and estimates, and transmission and distribution electrical improvements and corrective actions, including network and smart grid technology.
• Advanced knowledge of physical electrical, control, and protection design for transmission and distribution.
• Ability to review, evaluate, and analyze technical information, policies, and reports.
• Advanced analytical thinking, decision-making, organization and prioritization, risk management, and written and oral communication skills.
• Intermediate organization management, resource management, construction feasibility, procurement, and contract administration knowledge.
• 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 or commute within and outside the service territory, including overnight travel, as described in the posting.
• Ability to use a computer regularly throughout the work shift and work in office, plant, and field environments.
• Ability to work around elevated areas, confined spaces, uneven or rough surfaces, stairs, and ladders.
• Ability to meet the cognitive, communication, collaboration, adaptability, accuracy, deadline, and decision-making demands described in the posting.

Nice To Haves

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

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage a team of standards engineering professionals responsible for transmission and distribution standards, including overhead and underground distribution design, construction practices and materials, transmission line design and construction, construction tools, smart grid standards, and equipment specifications.
• Establish, maintain, govern, and provide strategic direction for utility design, construction, equipment, and work-practice standards.
• Provide technical management to ensure team objectives are met, applicable standards and procedures are followed, operational problems are identified and resolved, and procedures and working practices remain current and fit for purpose.
• Manage transmission, distribution, and substation standards, equipment specifications, and technical requirements.
• Develop maintenance engineering standards and support maintenance strategy.
• Support materials standardization and technical alignment with Supply Chain.
• Ensure alignment with regulatory and code requirements, including NESC, OSHA, FERC, NERC, and applicable state requirements.
• Support asset lifecycle management, asset health initiatives, risk reduction, reliability improvement, resilience programs, and grid modernization.
• Manage technical review and approval processes and support standards implementation across the utility.
• Collaborate with operations, engineering, project management, supply chain, wildfire mitigation, system planning, and other stakeholders.
• Monitor and manage expenditures, meet financial targets, investigate budget variances, and support effective financial controls and decision-making.
• Oversee team resourcing and planning; partner with HR on job definition, recruitment, evaluation, and selection processes.
• Assess organizational development and training needs, guide development plans, monitor progress, coach and mentor employees, provide feedback, and complete annual performance reviews.
• Drive continuous improvement and promote safety, reliability, resiliency, and operational excellence.
• Assist with storms or other company emergencies.

Benefits

• Total rewards package intended to reward contributions and support employee well-being and professional development.
• Performance-based incentive bonus; actual total compensation is commensurate with experience, skills, qualifications, education, training, and internal equity.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager