Manager, Demand Response

Requisition ID # 165612 

Job Category: Project / Program Management 

Job Level: Manager/Principal

Business Unit: Engineering, Planning & Strategy

Work Type: Hybrid

Job Location: Oakland

Department Overview

In Utility Partnerships and Solutions, we drive innovations, further electrification, and operate programs to achieve California’s 7000 MW load flexibility goal while lowering rates for customers.   These products and services span a range of rapidly evolving demand-side technologies, including energy efficiency, demand response, self-generation, and electric vehicles.

Specifically in Clean Energy Programs (CEP) develops and implements customer programs that contribute to PG&E and California's goals for load flexibility while achieving climate and clean air goals.  We do this by shaping a beneficial load shape and managing event days/grid emergencies by dropping load during the most critical times.  This is done through voluntary curtailment with customer-side programs.

The DR teams in CEP develop, manage, and operate PG&E’s 350-megawatt DR portfolio and are responsible for monitoring and responding to local and system emergencies.  The portfolio contains a number of retail and wholesale DR programs that are integrated into California’s wholesale markets and grid operations. Current strategic priorities include optimizing the customer experience associated with its DR programs, supporting the development of regulatory policies, as well as the development of additional DR resources that support the reliable, cost-effective operation of the electric grid.  We work closely with the CAISO and PG&E’s own grid control centers.  Our department members take turn to staff an on-call 24/7 rotation to make sure we are ready to dispatch at any time. The DR teams also work closely with other Load Management departments that involve demand side management (DSM) policies and programs, with PG&E’s Energy Policy and Procurement department, and with PG&E’s Customer Service and Customer Operations teams. 

Position Summary

The Manager, Demand Response position, is responsible to operate PG&E’s demand respond portfolio, including during grid emergencies.  This position leads several teams of program managers and operations analysts to deliver the Demand Response portfolio, which includes the DR programs and event operations for critical peak pricing programs.  Responsibilities include driving enrollment and participation strategies, measuring performance, customer relationship management, the dispatching of DR resources and other operational tasks, and engaging in regulatory processes related to program compliance and enhancements.

The team has two supervisor teams and a number of high-level individual contributors. 

This position is also responsible for the implementation and operations of new systems and processes, and will and inform policy discussions with data and operational expertise.  This work is cross-functional and will require proactive engagement across a complex set of internal and external stakeholders on demand response issues, including wholesale market operations and initiatives, and transmission and distribution planning and operations.  Internal stakeholders include, but are not limited to, DR Programs, Pricing Products, Information Technology, Energy Procurement, Transmission and Distribution Planning, Operations Engineering, System Dispatch, Grid Integration and Innovation, among others.  In addition, the Manager must develop a strong relationship with the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) to ensure success for PG&E’s DR supply resources.

This position is hybrid, working from your remote office and your assigned work location based on business need. The work location is Oakland, CA.

PG&E is providing the salary range that the company in good faith believes it might pay for this position at the time of the job posting. This compensation range is specific to the locality of the job. The actual salary paid to an individual will be based on multiple factors, including, but not limited to, specific skills, education, licenses or certifications, experience, market value, geographic location, and internal equity. Although we estimate the successful candidate hired into this role will be placed between the entry point and the middle of the range, the decision will be made on a case-by-case basis related to these factors.​ This job is also eligible to participate in PG&E’s discretionary incentive compensation programs. 

A reasonable salary range is:

Bay Area Minimum: $144,000.00

Bay Area Maximum: $244,000.00

Job Responsibilities

• Manage a team of supervisors, program managers and analysts, who operate PG&E’s Demand Response portfolio.  This role will also lead systems and process implementation resulting from new policies or internal drivers such as legacy systems retirement; support day-to-day operations of a wide array of customer programs and the 24/7 demand response emergency team.
• Provide strategic and regulatory context for the team as it delivers the core DR portfolio and implement changes to it while working with Load Management’s Strategy and Policy group to stay coordinated.  This will include leading our team to author the next 4-year application because DR has its own CPUC proceeding and funding source.
• Ensure real-time view of customer needs, business and technology system impacts, risks and opportunities to influence current and future regulatory and wholesale market direction and priorities.
• Manage interactions between DR programs team and key internal business partners that are essential to accomplishing our mission and drive/promote DR program growth and customer satisfaction. These partners including Business Energy Solutions, Sourcing, Measurement & Evaluation, Rule 24, IT, Business Finance and Marketing.
• Oversee key monthly business processes, including KPI reporting, cost-monitoring (e.g. Forecast and Budgeting, Invoicing,  Accruals), contracting/vendor management, and other recurring activities in support of DR programs.
• Ensures required California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) reporting on the DR programs is completed and delivered to the appropriate parties in a timely manner.
• Participate in researching, writing, or developing information for various regulatory filings, including the 2024-2027 Mid-Cycle Review and 2028-2032 Application. May develop and/or provide expert witness testimony or other information to CPUC or other external agency.

• Partner with the DR Programs team to provide subject matter expertise on system operations or technical support for customers and/or BES representatives.
• Support the Pricing Products team for activities related to Peak Day Pricing, SmartRate event operations, and other dynamic pricing programs.
• Coordinate with Transmission Planning, Operations Engineering, and System Dispatch to ensure alignment on maintaining grid reliability.  This includes support for the Electric Emergency Plan (EEP) such as reviewing and updating documentation for annual EEP submission to CPUC, participating in PG&E drills, participating in end-to-end testing of reliability DR in the CAISO market, supporting engineering analysis and updates to Operating Procedures, etc. 
• Coordinate with Energy Procurement to ensure alignment on maintaining economic transactions, market operations, market initiative implementation, and other activities that support DR supply resource operations.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders, including but not limited to the Distribution organization, strategy/policy teams, Information Technology, among others, to ensure alignment.
• Manage external relationships and partnerships with other utilities and stakeholders such as the CAISO to ensure successful implementation and market operations for DR.
• Participate in stakeholder forums to provide an operational perspective in driving policy or new rules. Forums may include, but are not limited to, CPUC workshops, CAISO initiatives, and internal alignment discussions. Develop, monitor, analyze, and manage operating budgets and balancing accounts for the team.  Determine performance metrics to monitor and report on business performance results.
• Foster a collaborative working relationship with regulatory agencies in order to ensure successful outcomes for PG&E.
• Establish clear expectations and goals to achieve results through effective recruitment and selection, training and development, performance management and coaching, change management, and rewards and recognition. 

Qualifications

Minimum:

• Bachelor degree or equivalent work experience
• 8 years of job-related experience

Desired

• MBA, M.S., or similar graduate degree in related discipline
• Ability to create, promote and manage a safe work environment
• Experience in operating emergency programs or programs that respond to energy market needs.
• Experience including overall IT/technology experience, project/program management or implementation, wholesale market operations, business or strategic analysis, and/or other relevant experience (or combination of experience).
• Experience supervising teams or managing a work unit representing multiple disciplines
• Experience developing and managing department budgets, expenses, and variances
• Experience developing operating policies and procedures, and identifying and implementing metrics
• Experience managing work within a complex regulatory requirement, including prior experience in or adjacent to the utility industry
• Experience with and knowledge of demand response portfolio and associated policy and regulatory issues
• Experience with and knowledge of wholesale market operations and new initiatives
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate and support company and organization policies, procedures, and goals
• Leadership presence, including the ability to convey credibility, confidence, and a sense of authority; to convey messages simply, concisely and at right pace and tone for audience; and to influence leadership and senior executives, both internally and at external partners
• Ability to develop highly productive working relationships with internal and external partners to ensure that work plans are coordinated, aligned and support shared goals and objectives
• Knowledge and skills necessary to develop and implement short, medium and long-term strategy in support of company and organizational objectives
• Skill in conceptualizing creative solutions, as well as documenting them and presenting/selling them to senior management