Senior Distribution Planning Engineer

GridCARE • Redwood City, CA

5h • $140,000 - $210,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

GridCARE is hiring a Senior Distribution Planning Engineer to own the company’s distribution planning workstreams. The engineer will perform distribution power system analyses, including power flow studies using CYME and equivalent tools, and build the planning workflows that support those analyses. The role aligns distribution results with GridCARE’s analyses and platform and owns the discipline’s methodology, standards, and execution for utility engagements, with engineering support. There is potential to build a team of distribution engineers as the company and its engagements grow.

The position is based in Redwood City, California, with a hybrid schedule of three days per week in the office and two days remote. Travel is required several times a year for in-person utility engagements and conferences. The stated salary range is $140,000–$210,000 total, including base salary and bonus.

Requirements

• 6–8+ years of work experience, including distribution or subtransmission planning.
• Experience inside a utility distribution planning department.
• Hands-on ownership of distribution planning studies, including power flow, capacity and load forecasting, contingency and reconfiguration analysis, hosting capacity, voltage and protection studies, and capital planning justification.
• Strong working fluency in CYME or Synergi.
• Working knowledge of DER interconnection standards and state interconnection rules, such as IEEE 1547 and CA Rule 21 or equivalent.
• Familiarity with Python and comfort working directly with large, imperfect datasets using power system tool APIs and scientific computing packages such as pandas and numpy.
• Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering.
• Professional Engineer (PE) license.
• Experience with large-load or data center interconnection at distribution or subtransmission voltages.
• Experience with multiple distribution modeling tools, such as CYME, Synergi, WindMill, OpenDSS, and ETAP, and GIS-based network models.
• Experience working across multiple utility territories and regulatory environments.
• Demonstrated use of AI tools in technical engineering work, with sound judgment about their limits.
• Familiarity with machine-learning approaches to power system analysis and how to validate them.
• Experience building planning methodology or standards from scratch.

Responsibilities

• Perform distribution and subtransmission power system analyses, including power flow, hosting capacity and load-serving studies, contingency and reconfiguration analysis, voltage and thermal limits, and protection considerations.
• Build end-to-end distribution planning workflows, including model setup, data intake standards, study criteria, quality assurance, and deliverables.
• Align distribution analyses with GridCARE’s tools, analyses, and platform, including connecting distribution findings with transmission-level work.
• Assess which flexibility resources can be credited as distribution-level capacity, including batteries, on-site generation, volt/VAR control, and feeder reconfiguration.
• Establish planning criteria, documentation, and validation practices aligned with utility distribution planning processes.
• Partner with Product and AI/ML teams to translate distribution planning methodology into repeatable, scalable platform capabilities.
• Lead technical review sessions with utility planners and address concerns about data, criteria, and methodology.
• Travel several times a year for in-person utility engagements and conferences.

Benefits

• Competitive salary, performance bonus, and equity.
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage.
• Lunch provided three days a week in the office.
• Hybrid schedule with three days in the office and two days remote.
• Access to leading academic, industry, and government partners in the AI-energy ecosystem.
• Mission-driven team focused on shaping the future of the energy transition.

What This Job Offers

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