Distribution Line Design Supervisor

Purpose

Provide guidance, management, and accountability for distribution line design to ensure safe, efficient, cost effective, and high-quality electric services for SMUD customers.

Nature and Scope

Supervise, direct, plan, organize, and document design activities for SMUD’s electric distribution system assets including repair, modification, additions, planning and overseeing customer requests to ensure a technically sound and cost-effective design and construction program that provides high workforce productivity and work quality. Manages staff, contractors and contracts; and performs recruitment, performance management and development activities.

Duties and Responsibilities

Work may include, but is not limited to, the following: (NOTE: While in general all the functions and requirements listed are essential, individual positions and/or locations may not require all duties be performed.)

• Supervises, plans, and coordinates work activities, including preparing and issuing work packages for completion of distribution line work including repairs, modifications, and additions; prepares technical documents; provides detailed work instructions to address defined problems and related work scope.
• Ensures the safety of SMUD employees, contractor staff, and customers through adherence to established SMUD policies, rules and regulations, electric service requirements, and goals.
• Oversees, schedules, and coordinates distribution design work by assessing SMUD personnel resources and workload requirements; identifies need for staff augmentation, and contractor support to complete required work; verifies material and equipment availability and access; develops alternative approaches to work, including providing guidance to designers; creates, verifies, and issues work orders; issues contracts to external contractors as needed.
• Conducts reviews, performs post-job audits to identify performance variances and to ensure that work performed was done as planned, and develops improvements.
• Develops and maintains working relationships with internal clients, including managers, supervisors, project managers and others, and external partners such as developers, customers, outside agencies, and local governments to minimize risk and protect SMUD, optimize efficiency, improve relationships, and achieve objectives.
• Provides staff training and mentoring; promotes staff safety and a safe work environment; participates in selecting and orienting new personnel; evaluates work performance results; directs teams to accomplish objectives; performs performance management and development efforts of represented personnel as assigned.
• Manages customer expectations by providing realistic feedback and communication to the customer on work in progress; manages customer expectations including contracts and contractors as assigned; handles customer issues to resolution and implement process improvements and training to minimize future issues.
• Assists in developing and administering department’s budget by monitoring expenditures in area of responsibility against plan, participating in identifying and reconciling budget outliers, reviewing quarterly and end-of-year budget results, and participating in the review of preliminary budget planning recommendations.
• Represents SMUD on governmental, industry and professional organizations and committees pertinent to the work processes assigned.
• Performs other related duties as needed to include working outside of typical business hours when necessary.

Required Education

High School diploma or equivalency.

Required Experience

Ten (10) or more years of progressively responsible work experience in design, construction, modification, maintenance or operation of electric distribution systems. Three (3) years in a lead and/or supervisory role.

Required Licenses/Certificates

Knowledge Of

Fundamentals and practices of electric distribution and customer service design, construction, maintenance and operations, and federal and state codes and regulations; electric industry rate structure, rules and regulations; fundamentals of best practice customer service; metrics and unit costing fundamentals; essentials of supervision, represented employee MOUs, policies and special agreements; contracting essentials including proposal development and negotiations; standards and practices for taking disciplinary action and conducting investigations; project management essentials; budget development and administration.

Skills To

Provide direction and effective supervision of a work group; translate measurements into effective performance measurements and accountabilities associated with specific work and individuals; communicate with upper management a clear understanding of the status of work alternative scenarios and investment strategies; conduct risk/benefit assessments; develop and motivate employees working in a team environment; resolve operational and personnel conflicts when they occur; measure, diagnose, and design work process changes and make a business case for the change; represent SMUD in a technical and professional manner; handle customer complaints to a successful conclusion; readily adapt to changing situations; express ideas effectively both in written and oral communications; be an effective member of the SMUD leadership team.

Desirable Qualifications

• Knowledge and current use of California General Order 95, 128 and 165.
• Knowledge and current use of National Electric Code (NEC).
• Knowledge and understanding of joint pole ownership such as Northern California Joint Pole Association (NCJPA).
• Budget and resource planning experience.
• Project Management experience.

Physical Requirements