Title: Director Distribution Planning And Operations
Sacramento, CA, US, 95817-1899
Minimum Pay Rate: $215,384.00
Maximum Pay Rate: $299,936.00
Civil Service Status: Non-Civil Service
Apply by Date:
Posting Type: Open
This posting will remain open until a sufficient quantity of qualified applicants have been received but may close at any time without notice after 1/24/2025. Applicants are encouraged to apply early to ensure they are considered.
This position is a non-Civil Service (at-will) position. By accepting this non-civil service classification, you are releasing civil service rights and becoming an at-will employee with no return rights to your prior position.
SMUD is pleased to announce the pursuit of our next Director, Distribution Planning & Operations. We are seeking a strong leader who has a proven track record of delivering results, collaborating within the organization, and building strong partnerships with stakeholders. This position is responsible for exercising leadership and direction and sits on the Senior Leadership Team within the Energy Delivery & Operations business unit. As a senior leader, the successful candidate is responsible for ensuring SMUD values, strategic initiatives, and desired culture are integrated into the Distribution & Planning Operations work, group functions, operations, and services. Your success in this position translates to the success of our goals by promoting a culture of innovation, partnership, and agility.
Purpose
Under the direction of the Chief Operating Officer, has management responsibility of the Distribution Planning, Distribution System Operations, Distribution Operations Engineering, Transmission and Distribution Standards and Maintenance Planning, and Geographical Information System. Provides management leadership and technical expertise/oversight in the development of the following: SMUD’s short- and long-term distribution system plans and asset strategy for a safe, reliable and cost-effective electric grid; compliance efforts and planning SMUD’s distribution systems in a manner consistent with mandatory safety and reliability standards; leadership and technical expertise with real-time operations platforms including Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS), Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS), and Outage Management System (OMS).
Nature and Scope
This position provides leadership for the development and management of the Distribution Planning and Operations Department. The incumbent must be a strong leader and visionary providing direction in strategic imperatives, operations, services, and enterprise-wide projects.
Duties and Responsibilities
- Manages, organizes, oversees, and coordinates a united approach for the development of a comprehensive long-term and short-term distribution system plan that will safely and reliably maintain SMUD’s electric system, and identify future improvements to meet load serving needs and regulatory requirements.
- Oversees all asset management planning activities and develops an asset strategy for SMUD’s substation and distribution infrastructure to optimize asset life; develops a prioritized multi-year asset maintenance and replacement plan, and partners with internal departments for the safe and efficient execution of these plans.
- Promotes the safety of SMUD employees, contract staff, and customers through adherence to established SMUD policies and goals, and development of specific goals for the process segment, monitoring, and responding to safety concerns.
- Oversees generation, distributed generation, and other electric system interconnection studies to identify operational issues and cost-effective solutions; ensures management of coordination with all planning activities.
- Provides technical oversight in the assessment of existing reliability metrics and recommends future targets for SMUD’s key system reliability metrics; oversees the development of strategies and projects to align system performance with reliability targets, including assessment of outages for cause, trends, duration, and frequency.
- Employs prudent utility practices and provides leadership to interpret, implement and comply with CPUC safety and reliability general orders, and with mandated FERC, NERC, Peak Reliability, and WECC Reliability Standards.
- Coordinates the active participation of the appropriate work units in the NERC, Peak Reliability, and WECC Reliability Standards Development Process.
- Develops and manages applicable work segment budgets, costs, contracts, and projects related to department and SMUD strategic directives and requirements.
- Anticipates and resolves multiple, diverse, and complex problems and challenges; evaluates and delivers effective decisions and solutions regarding system planning issues, often without entirely established or defined answers to critical criteria
- Supports and leads operation and restoration efforts during storms and emergencies.
- Performs other related duties as needed to include working outside of typical business hours when necessary.
Required Education
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
Required Experience Qualifications
- At least seven (7+) years of progressively responsible relevant combined work experience in distribution planning, distribution operations, and maintenance of electric utility systems; at least five (5+) years of supervisory and/or managerial experience over professional engineering and represented personnel; and progressively increasing knowledge and experience in managing an O&M and Capital budget greater than $15M.
Knowledge Of
Fundamentals of electric utility distribution system capacity and reliability planning, design, construction, maintenance, and operations; practices related to managing the electric system to contractual agreements; fundamentals of load growth, peak demand forecasts, and system utilization; electrical equipment ratings and limitations; equipment maintenance concepts, practices and techniques; operating procedures, concepts and techniques; load flow and stability calculations; electrical theory; fundamentals of economic analysis; safety and construction practices, standards and applicable codes including CPUC General Orders 95, 128, 131D, 165, and 174; fundamentals of strategic/business planning; fundamentals and practices related to root cause analysis; current utility industry practices and policies; procedures for interacting with local, state and federal authorities, agencies and regulatory bodies; the Western United States transmission and generation system; fundamentals of effective management and leadership; fundamentals and practices of work process design, project development and planning, budget development, administration and forecasting, and contract management.
Skills To
Oversee, plan, manage, and review the work of a multi-disciplinary professional technical and represented personnel in the performance of complex planning, engineering and operating assignments under significant time constraints; interpret and apply SMUD policies, procedures, applicable IBEW and OSE MOUs and/or other special agreements; apply relevant personnel laws, codes and regulations; initiate, maintain and oversee adherence to safety policies and procedures; interview, select, evaluate, coach, mentor, motivate, influence, challenge, and develop staff; identify training needs for staff; align expected outcomes and related processes with corporate strategy and enterprise planning and risk; ensure business segment processes are transparent, measurable and consistent with best practice for cost, quality and cycle time; effectively resolve customer concerns to a successful conclusion; establish and maintain effective working relationships internally/externally; effectively communicate highly technical information and recommendations to a variety of audiences and explain complex or controversial policies, regulations, procedures, and activities, both internally and externally and orally or in writing; compile and prepare technical, statistical and/or analytical reports and presentations; establish and manage an O&M and Capital budget; effectively oversee the development, planning and prioritization of projects, and negotiate with internal and external management on projects; provide technical evaluation and support in the reliable integration of intermittent resources into SMUD’s distribution systems; respond quickly and effectively to changing priorities; proactively anticipate problems and apply innovative, creative and logical techniques in resolution.
Desirable Qualifications
- Professional Engineering License in Electrical Engineering with the State of California.
- Experience with Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS), Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS), Outage Management System (OMS), Geographic Information System (GIS), and Load Study platforms.
Physical Requirements
Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) - Who We Are
As the nation's sixth-largest community-owned electric service provider, we're proud of our reputation as one of the best places to work in Sacramento. Our employees tell us in our engagement surveys they're "Happy, satisfied and engaged" which helps create a workplace that best serves our customers. Sacramento was named as the 2nd happiest place to work in America by Forbes Magazine. Lake Tahoe, San Francisco and the world-renowned Napa Valley are within easy driving distance of our locations.
Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
SMUD celebrates diversity, and inspires an inclusive culture based on trust and respect to create belonging and connection among our employees, customers, and communities. By working together, we are powering positive, equitable opportunities for all. We aspire to be a workplace where you can be yourself, achieve your best, and thrive together.
An example of our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging is when SMUD signed the California Equal Pay Pledge in 2020. This requires equal pay for employees who perform “substantially similar work,” when viewed as a composite of skill, effort, and responsibility at the time those employees started within that classification. As such, initial hiring salary range is not subject to negotiation and salaries will vary over time based on performance.
SMUD is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, gender (including pregnancy), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, veteran status, or any other applicable legally protected characteristic. All employment decisions are made on the basis of individual qualifications, merit, and business needs and interests.
Why Sacramento, California?
The capitol of California, Sacramento is the state's sixth-largest city, and the 35th largest in the U.S. Local universities include California State University, University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law, and the University of California, Davis and several competitive community colleges. The UC Davis Medical Center, a world-renowned research hospital, is one of more than a dozen hospitals and shared services centers in the Sacramento region. Part of the agriculturally-rich Central Valley, Sacramento is at the forefront of the farm-to-fork food movement. Northern California is home to some of the country's top technology companies, including Google and LinkedIn, and a multitude of startups in many industries. Sacramento is home to the NBA Kings, the River Cats (AAA baseball), the Republic FC (soccer) and the San Francisco Giants, NBA Warriors and NFL 49er's aren't far away. Sacramento offers an affluent liberal arts community with Broadway, Mondavi Center, Crocker Museum and summer musical theater to name a few.
Hybrid Work
This position may be eligible for SMUD's hybrid (office/home) work employee benefit, the schedule of which will be determined by the successful candidate and the Hiring Manager. SMUD takes pride in powering the Sacramento region community where we live and work. We value the strong working relationships we develop with our colleagues. Our approach to hybrid work will continue to evolve. Please be aware that should SMUD’s business needs change, emergencies occur, or various other reasons arise, you may be required to report onsite on a part-time or full-time basis.