Senior Vice President, Deployment

The Nuclear Company•Columbia, WA

5d•Onsite

About The Position

The Nuclear Company (TNC) is a rapidly growing AI tech-enabled startup in the nuclear and energy sector, focused on a fleet-scale approach to developing next-generation nuclear reactors. TNC utilizes an AI-first mindset, expecting all employees to leverage AI, technology, and the Nuclear Operating System (NOS) to enhance their work. The company values purpose-driven individuals who thrive in ambiguity and enjoy building innovative solutions. Team members are expected to be intellectually curious, possess high agency, embrace feedback, continuously learn, and maintain exceptional standards. TNC's core values—Transparency, Responsibility, Unity, Scrappiness, and Tenacity—guide their daily operations, hiring, collaboration, and decision-making. Their safety culture is built on TRUST, promoting intellectual honesty, accountability, and open communication, while also encouraging urgency, humility, resilience, and a strong commitment to the mission. The Senior Vice President, Deployment is TNC’s fleet-level owner responsible for nuclear project execution from FEL-3 through fuel load. This critical role oversees the company’s deployment methodology, EPC contractor relationships, construction execution, and commissioning capability for all TNC projects. The success of TNC’s Build-Own-Operate model hinges on a repeatable, credible, and continuously improving deployment capability. The SVP, Deployment is tasked with building this capability from the ground up, establishing the necessary systems, processes, standards, and team to execute nuclear construction projects at scale. This position is for an individual who aims to build the operational infrastructure for a world-class nuclear developer and operator, rather than manage a single project. TNC’s development-to-operations pipeline is structured in three sequential phases with defined handoff periods. The SVP, Deployment becomes involved during FEL-3, the final pre-Final Investment Decision (FID) development phase, collaborating with the SVP, Project Development during the transition. From FID through commissioning and fuel load, this role owns the project. At fuel load, accountability is transferred to the SVP, Operations through a defined handoff process. Effectively managing these transitions is as crucial as overseeing the construction work itself. As TNC matures and scales, reporting structures may evolve, but the scope and accountabilities of this role remain constant.

Requirements

15+ years of progressive leadership experience in nuclear construction, with direct accountability for large-scale nuclear plant construction or major construction restart at the project director, project executive, or equivalent level.
Direct experience managing EPC contractors as an owner’s representative on a nuclear construction project, including contract management, performance oversight, change order discipline, and schedule recovery.
Deep familiarity with NRC construction oversight, inspection programs, and the regulatory environment governing nuclear new build; direct NRC interface experience strongly preferred.
Demonstrated ability to build and lead large, multi-disciplinary project organizations, possessing both technical credibility and leadership capability to build a new organizational function.
Strong commercial judgment, with the ability to engage credibly with investors, lenders, and commercial partners on construction execution strategy, cost estimates, and schedule commitments.
Nuclear safety culture leadership, establishing and maintaining safety conscious work environment standards.

Nice To Haves

Experience with AP1000 or equivalent Generation III+ reactor technology construction strongly preferred; familiarity with Westinghouse’s design documentation, construction methodology, and regulatory interface is a structural advantage.

Responsibilities

Establish TNC’s deployment methodology, including standardized processes, playbooks, stage gate frameworks, and decision-making structures for executing nuclear construction projects.
Own the lessons learned function across deployment projects, ensuring experiences are captured, analyzed, and incorporated into future project execution plans.
Develop and maintain the deployment team’s organizational capability by recruiting, developing, and retaining necessary engineering, construction, and project management talent.
Establish TNC’s quality standards for deployment activities in coordination with the SVP, Regulatory Affairs, Quality & Training, ensuring NQA-1 compliance.
Engage during FEL-3 on active TNC projects to assess site readiness, construction strategy, EPC contractor selection, and the completeness of the technical and commercial package for FID.
Own EPC contractor selection and contracting strategy, managing the relationship at the fleet level.
Validate the FEL-3 package from a deployment perspective, confirming the credibility and executability of the project schedule, cost estimate, Division of Responsibilities, and construction execution strategy before FID.
Coordinate with the SVP, Project Development on the FEL-3 handoff, ensuring a complete transition of project accountability.
Own EPC contractor performance across all active construction projects, holding them accountable for schedule, cost, quality, and safety.
Maintain schedule and cost discipline across the deployment portfolio, providing accurate project status, risks, and required decisions to the President/CNO.
Own the construction quality program in coordination with the SVP, Regulatory Affairs, Quality & Training, ensuring TNC’s quality standards are implemented and enforced.
Manage regulatory interface during construction in coordination with the SVP, Regulatory Affairs, Quality & Training, ensuring NRC oversight, inspection readiness, and regulatory commitments are met.
Ensure safety conscious work environment standards are maintained across all TNC construction sites.
Own commissioning execution, managing the transition from construction completion to operational readiness in coordination with the SVP, Operations.
Manage the fuel load handoff to the SVP, Operations, ensuring a defined transition period with shared accountability.
Ensure all pre-operational testing, system walkdowns, and commissioning milestones are complete and documented before the fuel load handoff.
Support the President/CNO and President/CFO in investor, lender, and partner conversations requiring deployment expertise.
Support DOE LPO and other government financing engagements by coordinating technical inputs for financing applications.
Coordinate with the SVP, Project Development on project pipeline prioritization, considering deployment capacity constraints.