Power Quality Engineer - Principal

American Electric Power•South Bend, IN

1d•$98,993 - $151,132

About The Position

Responsible to the assigned supervisor for providing advanced engineering expertise related to power quality, distribution system performance, customer reliability concerns, and electrical system troubleshooting. This role is a technical resource for investigating and resolving complex power quality issues, supporting customer needs, improving system performance, and collaborating across Engineering, Operations, Customer Service, and external customers to deliver safe, reliable, and cost-effective electric service. It requires sound engineering judgment, independent decision-making, and extensive knowledge of utility distribution systems and power quality principles. The position provides technical leadership and guidance to engineers, operations personnel, customer service representatives, and field employees. It manages concurrent investigations and improvement initiatives, develops project scopes, schedules, recommendations, and cost estimates, and communicates technical findings to customers, stakeholders, and company leadership. The role also considers customer expectations, regulatory requirements, operational constraints, economic considerations, emerging technologies, and the company's commitments to safe operations, environmental stewardship, customer satisfaction, and financial performance. The posting covers Engineer, Engineer Sr., and Engineer Principal grades. The final grade and compensation depend on the successful candidate's education, experience, and relevant skills. At the Principal level, the stated minimum is typically eight or more years of related engineering experience with an ABET-accredited bachelor's degree in engineering, or six years of related experience with an ABET-accredited master's or PhD in engineering. A Professional Engineer license is preferred at this level, subject to the stated waiver provisions.

Requirements

For Engineer Principal: typically eight or more years of related engineering experience with a bachelor's degree in engineering from an ABET-accredited program, or six years of related engineering experience with a master's degree or PhD in engineering from an ABET-accredited program.
For Engineer Principal, registration as a Professional Engineer in any U.S. state or Puerto Rico is preferred unless the organization's EVP approves a waiver.
A bachelor's degree in Engineering Technology may satisfy the degree requirement if the candidate obtains a certified Professional Engineer license.
An alternative degree pathway is a bachelor's degree in non-ABET engineering plus a master's degree or PhD in engineering from a university with an ABET-accredited bachelor's program; the posting also describes a possible waiver by a VP or above.
Confirmation is preferred for Puerto Rico PE credentials to ensure alignment with NCEES standards.
Advanced knowledge of electric distribution systems, power quality principles, system protection, voltage regulation, harmonics, flicker, voltage sags, transient events, and reliability performance.
Extensive knowledge of utility distribution systems and power quality principles.
Ability to exercise sound engineering judgment, make independent decisions, and work with a high degree of independence and accountability.
Ability to investigate complex electrical system and customer power quality concerns and develop practical, cost-effective solutions.
Ability to communicate complex technical information effectively to technical and non-technical audiences.
Ability to manage multiple investigations, initiatives, and customer requests simultaneously.

Nice To Haves

Professional Engineer registration in any U.S. state or Puerto Rico is preferred for the Engineer Principal position, unless waived by the organization's EVP.

Responsibilities

Independently conduct engineering analyses and technical investigations into customer power quality concerns and system performance issues.
Use monitoring equipment, outage data, SCADA systems, relay records, AMI data, and engineering models to identify root causes and develop solutions.
Apply industry standards, including IEEE, ANSI, NEC, and utility-specific practices, to power quality and service reliability matters.
Evaluate customer equipment interactions with the electric system and recommend ways to improve service performance and customer experience.
Provide technical leadership and guidance to engineering, operations, customer service, and field personnel.
Lead cross-functional initiatives to improve customer satisfaction, power quality performance, and operational efficiency.
Serve as a technical liaison with commercial, industrial, governmental, and critical infrastructure customers; explain findings and recommend mitigation strategies.
Plan and prioritize multiple investigations, system improvement initiatives, and customer requests.
Develop project scopes, schedules, engineering recommendations, and cost estimates for corrective actions and system enhancements.
Analyze data to identify trends and recurring issues and proactively recommend improvements to distribution system performance and customer reliability.
Lead investigations and resolution of complex issues involving voltage fluctuations, harmonics, interruptions, transient events, distributed energy resources, and customer equipment performance.
Evaluate alternatives, determine root causes, and develop practical, cost-effective solutions using advanced engineering judgment.
Seek improvements to processes, customer communication, monitoring capabilities, and engineering practices.
Prepare engineering reports, presentations, technical findings, and customer communications.
Communicate technical information to technical and non-technical audiences, including executive leadership, regulatory stakeholders, and customers.
Represent the company at customer meetings, technical discussions, and industry forums related to power quality and reliability.
Build working relationships and facilitate collaboration across Engineering, Operations, Customer Service, External Affairs, and customer organizations.
Make independent engineering decisions about investigative approaches, technical recommendations, mitigation strategies, and work prioritization.
Recommend capital improvements, operational changes, and customer-specific solutions based on engineering analysis and business considerations.
Balance customer expectations, regulatory requirements, operational constraints, and economic considerations while maintaining reliability and service quality.
Maintain awareness of emerging technologies, distributed energy resources, electric vehicles, and battery storage systems and their impacts on power quality and system performance.