Distribution System Supervisor

Position Summary

The Distribution System Supervisor provides leadership, direction, and oversight for crews responsible for the operation, maintenance, construction, and repair of the water distribution system. The Supervisor ensures safe, reliable, and regulatory-compliant operations while developing employees, fostering a culture of accountability, employee engagement, and continuous improvement, and achieving operational, customer service, and financial objectives.

Supervisor Responsibilities

• Directly supervises field employees, including Crew Leaders, Senior Utility Workers, Utility Workers, and/or contractors.
• Follows all safety rules and regulations and holds self and employees to highest standards with regards to safety.
• Coaches, mentors, and develops employees to build technical proficiency and leadership capability.
• Creates development plans and succession opportunities for employees.
• Counsels and guides employees through regular one-on-one meetings to provide feedback, recognition, and guidance.
• Promotes employee engagement and fosters a respectful, inclusive, and accountable work environment.
• Implements corrective action plans when performance or conduct expectations are not met.
• Ensures maintenance work, including preventative and corrective, is completed as scheduled and to quality expectations while monitoring compliance to standards and specifications.
• Regularly visits work sites to monitor operations and records in accordance with company policy.
• Identifies and reacts to complex field decisions, utilizing technical knowledge and experience to move forward quickly, considering cost, risk, safety, quality, and system impact.
• Effectively utilizes resources by monitoring crew and individual productivity.
• Ensures time is charged appropriately for each maintenance task while monitoring unit cost and productivity.
• Leads continuous improvement initiatives focused on safety, customer service, productivity, and operating efficiency, encouraging employee participation in process improvement initiatives.
• Responsible for investigations related to safety incidents or work procedure errors within the department.
• Facilitates or leads weekly team meetings.
• Conducts training as needed.
• Takes action on Notice of Violation (NOV), and environmental compliance.
• Ensures compliance with all regulatory agency requirements.
• Creates or updates Standard Operating Procedures (SOP).
• Ensures asset data is accurately captured and maintained to support regulatory reporting, capital planning, lifecycle management, and operational decision-making.
• Proactively prepares for emergencies, supports company efforts during emergencies, communicates deficiencies in emergency response/preparedness, and resolves issues quickly and efficiently using the correct resources.
• Ensures customer concerns are addressed professionally, promptly, and in accordance with company standards.
• Balances operational priorities with customer service expectations and community impact.
• Process invoices weekly and on time in the month received.
• Prepare written reports, budgets, and analyses as required.
• On-call responsibilities as outlined in Standard Operating Procedures.
• Able to support on-site emergency response as needed including after hours, holidays and weekends.

Leadership Competencies

• Leadership and team development.
• Conflict resolution.
• Coaching and mentoring.
• Employee engagement.
• Employee accountability.
• Decision making.
• Change management.
• Effective communication.
• Collaboration and relationship building.
• Emotional intelligence.
• Labor relations.

Required Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Good leadership ability.
• Understands how to motivate, develop, and direct teams as they work.
• Ability to understand, interpret, and communicate work procedures, work methods, standards, policies, and guidelines.
• Capabilities and limitations of various types of light and heavy construction equipment.
• Use and care of tools and equipment used in maintenance work and safety precautions pertaining to the work.
• Demonstrates the ability to perform effectively under deadlines and in emergencies.
• Demonstrates skill in achieving cooperation from others to achieve a goal.
• Ability to analyze costs and develop and implement improved work procedures.
• Read and interpret plans, drawings and specifications.
• Analyze service and maintenance problems and develop and implement effective solutions.
• Use resourcefulness, initiative, and independent judgment, particularly in emergency situations.
• Organize and prioritize work to meet varied and changing operational needs.
• Utilize technology and current applications software programs.
• Good written and oral communication skills.
• Proactively works to develop collaborative relationship with union leadership.

Required Education And Experience

• An associate or bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience directing the work of union employees engaged in construction and maintenance activities, operation of transmission and distribution facilities and experience in water system inspection, field investigation, or construction of pipeline projects.
• Must possess a California D1 Distribution Operator’s License upon appointment, make satisfactory progress towards a California D2 Distribution Operator’s License within 6 months, and obtain a D2 within one year of appointment.