Shift Engineer - I, II, Senior

Southwest Power Pool (SPP) is about more than power. We’re about the power of relationships. Our employees have the opportunity to work together to ensure electricity is delivered reliably and affordably to the millions of people living in our service territory. We have been voted one of Arkansas’ Best Places to Work by Arkansas Business and we are looking for a member of our team who is passionate about our mission to keep the lights on!

About the role

The Engineer in the Real-Time Technical Analysis & Support group is responsible for engineering analysis and real-time engineering support of engineering applications, processes, and services associated with the performance of all Coordinated Operations responsibilities assigned to SPP Staff with primary focus on engineering support of Real Time Market Operations and Real Time system reliability. The proper performance of these responsibilities prevents power outages and maintains reliable and economical electric service in the SPP region. As such, accurate and effective engineering decision making, sometimes in stressful situations, is required. The incumbent may assist in the development of other personnel in engineering positions. Minimal travel is required. Working on a shift rotation is required.

The Engineer in the Real-Time Technical Analysis & Support group reports to the Supervisor, Real-Time Engineering. The Engineer is expected to work with minimal supervision.

Responsibilities

• Monitoring, supporting, and improving the applications used by Reliability, Tariff, Scheduling, Balancing, and Market Operators.
• Ensure all systems and processes use correct input data and produce correct and accurate results for Operators to base their decisions.
• Identify needed ICCP data to maintain superior real-time monitoring and state estimator results.
• Work with Members to obtain all necessary Reliability and Market related changes as they pertain to the operational models used in EMS.
• Assist in testing and implementing necessary software changes as requested or applicable for Operations based applications such as EMS, ICCP, and MOS.
• Support in analyzing any normal/abnormal events and make recommended changes to processes/software.
• Support, develop, and improve Operations applications such as Real Time Contingency Analysis, Load Forecast application, Market Flow calculator, Market System, Constraint Manager.
• Research, document and report issues reported by SPP Staff, SPP Members, non-Members, and Market Participants related to results of any of the systems used by the Reliability, Tariff, Market and Scheduling desks.
• Request and collect information, prepare and validate data, execute computer runs for current, next-day, and other operational assessments of the transmission network including, but not limited to, reliability analysis and market feasibility analysis.
• Collect information, prepare and validate data, execute computer runs for coordination and approval of generation and transmission maintenance outage requests, especially emergency and forced outage requests.
• Continuously monitor both market and reliability systems (e.g., State Estimator, RTCA, RTGEN, MFC, STLF/MTLF, RTBM, RUC) and take actions as necessary to maintain accuracy of results and maintain reliability.
• Respond quickly and accurately to unexpected events such as sudden Transmission System loading, suspect real time data feeds from Members, interruption of data exchange between systems, partial failures of one or more of the systems.
• Develop and periodically update SPP network model data as necessary for near-real time analysis.
• Make recommendations to management on long-range coordinated operations goals and objectives.
• Adhere to and enforce SPP Policies and Procedures.
• Communicate with SPP members, non-members, consultants, and other various participants concerning applicable and appropriate activities occurring in the SPP Coordination Center.
• Assist the Manager, Operations Engineering and other Operations Engineers with any special projects.
• Coach other Engineers in the Real-Time Technical Analysis and Support group helping them understand all responsibilities of that function and helping them develop their skills and expertise.
• Coordinate with Operations Quality Assurance group in developing training scenarios and documentation for operations personnel.
• Develop and test of existing and new Operation Situational Awareness tools.
• Apprise appropriate Training and Operations personnel of process and procedure changes as they occur and coordinate with Training personnel to ensure appropriate training is administered in a timely fashion.
• Serve as a SME for the processes and procedures related to the shift engineer position.
• Serve as a mentor and provide leadership to other operations engineers.
• Demonstrate ability to make technical and project management level decisions with leadership.
• Make recommendations to management on long-range coordinated operations goals and objectives.
• Exercise strong decision-making skills for technical studies and services to adapt between standard and non-standard techniques.
• Incorporate a fundamental working understanding of the SPP Culture Drivers, Mission and Core Values and apply this directly to all engineering assignments and any SPP related effort, not necessarily limited to engineering.

Requirements

• Bachelor of Science in Engineering from a university that meets the requirements to sit for the Professional Engineering exam (in Arkansas, typically a degree from an ABET accredited university or a graduate degree from a college with ABET accreditation). Degree should be in a calculus-based engineering field; preferred degree programs are Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or Systems Engineering.
• NERC Reliability Coordinator Certification and NERC PER-005 desk qualified, or the ability to secure such certification and qualification within six (6) months of employment.
• Ability to work rotating shifts.
• Competent with administrative and communication tools for word processing, spreadsheet development, and timekeeping, as a minimum.
• Strong knowledge of several power systems analysis tools applicable to power system steady state, dynamic, short circuit, or database management systems.
• Strong interpersonal and teamwork skills along with good written and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent working skills with communication and data handling software such as Microsoft Office© Word, Excel, Access.
• Understanding and compliance with SPP Policies and Procedures.

Qualifications

• Shift Engineer I: No experience necessary.
• Shift Engineer II: Two (2) years of job-related work experience.
• Senior Shift Engineer: Five (5) years of relevant Engineering experience; Professional Engineer License may satisfy one year of experience requirement.

Preferred Qualifications

• A Professional Engineer License.
• Advanced degree in related field of study.
• Electric Utility Industry experience.
• Proficient with most SPP power systems analysis tools with a solid command of several SPP tools and/or processes.
• Sound understanding of the SPP Open Access Transmission Tariff, FERC & NERC governing documents, SPP By-Laws, SPP Criteria, and the SPP Committee structure.

Benefits

• Competitive pay with bonus opportunities.
• Excellent insurance package including three great medical plans to choose from, employer-paid short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance.
• Relocation assistance.
• Fantastic contributions to your retirement through a 401(k) savings plan with employer-match benefits and a defined benefit plan fully funded by SPP.

Pay

• Sr. Engineer Pay Range: $108,000 - $125,000
• Engineer II Pay Range: $90,000 - $99,000
• Engineer I Pay Range: $80,000 - $87,000

SPP is not able to sponsor employment visas or student-work authorizations (STEM OPT) for this position. Please ensure you are eligible to work in the U.S. without sponsorship prior to applying.