Breakthrough Energy

Breakthrough Energy

Senior Manager, Grid Modeling

Denver, CO · Senior

Sponsorship not specified$165k-$175kDetected 29 days ago
PythonGitAccessibilityProject ManagementElectrical EngineeringPower ElectronicsResearchLeadershipCommunicationCollaboration

About the role

  • Breakthrough Energy seeks a technically grounded and execution-oriented Senior Manager, Grid Modeling, to join our GRIDS program.
  • The Senior Manager will help advance the technical core of the GRIDS program, with a particular focus on power system modeling.
  • This role reports to the Director, Research and Analytics, GRIDS.

Responsibilities

  • Scope, monitor, and steward grants and contracts to partner organizations advancing solver, tool, and methods development-for example, solver performance improvements, open-source tool benchmarking, and AC power-flow-informed capacity expansion modeling.
  • Define scope and deliverables, track progress, manage funding, and report up internally and publicly.
  • The GRIDS team is small, so most technical execution will happen through partners; this role is a primary lever for ensuring that work is well-scoped and lands.
  • Lead targeted efforts to help anchor partners-utilities, grid operators, consultancies-move pilot or production planning workflows onto open-source tools, identifying what is missing for adoption and translating those findings back into the GRIDS investment roadmap.
  • Serve as a technical thought partner to the Director, Research and Analytics in vetting external proposals and ongoing partner work, bringing a planner's perspective on whether proposed tools, data products, and methods would be genuinely useful to practitioners at utilities and grid operators.
  • Build collaboration across the broader Breakthrough Energy network to leverage shared expertise and ensure GRIDS' technical work informs and is informed by adjacent BE activities.
  • Deliver technical thought leadership on behalf of GRIDS in industry forums, working groups, and convenings related to grid modeling, benchmarking, and open-source development-helping build awareness of GRIDS' work and expanding the program's technical influence in the field.

Requirements

  • At least 5 years of transmission and/or distribution planning and power systems modeling experience at a utility, ISO/RTO, or consulting firm supporting system operators.
  • Experience with electric reliability and resource adequacy studies.
  • Working knowledge of transmission, distribution, and utility interconnection processes and electrical infrastructure.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a proven ability to translate complex technical findings into clear, actionable insights for both technical and non-technical audiences.
  • Ability to travel domestically and internationally as required.
  • At least 5 years of transmission and/or distribution planning and power systems modeling experience at a utility, ISO/RTO, or consulting firm supporting system operators. This should include hands-on experience building, developing, and maintaining planning models-including the underlying network, generator, and dynamic models-and conducting the full range of planning studies: steady-state power flow, transient stability, short-circuit, and electromagnetic transient (EMT) analysis.
  • Strong track record of building productive relationships across diverse internal and external stakeholder groups, particularly in the climate, energy, or grid modeling space.
  • PowerFactory and/or PSS®E experience required; familiarity with adjacent industry tools (e.g., TARA, PowerWorld, PSCAD) and open-source equivalents (e.g., PowSyBl) is a plus.
  • Deep understanding of data requirements for transmission and distribution models, including data sources, data pipelining, data validation, data interoperability challenges across datasets, and the handling of Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII) data.
  • Demonstrated project management skills and the ability to manage multiple projects concurrently, including coordinating external consultants and grantees in the execution of scoped work.
  • Entrepreneurial orientation, with experience thriving through ambiguity and change in fast-paced, mission-driven environments.

Nice to have

  • Bachelor's or advanced degree in Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, Applied Mathematics, or a related field.
  • Equivalent practical experience and demonstrated expertise will also be considered.
  • Knowledge of NERC Reliability Standards and familiarity with transmission planning forums and standards, including internationally.
  • Experience using and/or contributing to collaborative open-source software projects.
  • Working understanding of the optimization solver landscape relevant to power systems, including the commercial-vs-open-source trade-offs.
  • Experience with interconnection studies for inverter-based resources (IBRs), including variable wind and solar resources and utility-scale battery systems.
  • Demonstrated ability to learn and integrate AI tools into work.
  • The GRIDS team is concentrated in Mountain and Pacific time zones

Compensation

  • The starting salary range for this position is $165,000 - $175,000 annually.
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