Distributed Energy Resources Services Manager

Recruitment notice: Platte River Power Authority does not accept unsolicited resumes from headhunters, recruitment agencies or fee-based placement services. No agency emails, calls, or solicitations to staff are accepted without a valid agreement. Any unsolicited resume submitted to staff will be considered property of Platte River Power Authority and with no obligation to pay any referral fees.

Job summary

The Distributed Energy Resources Services Manager is responsible for developing distributed energy resources (DERs) and DER integration solutions through collaboration and coordination between the organization and its owner communities to provide benefits to all customers and to support achievement of Resource Diversification Policy and strategic initiatives. The Distributed Energy Resources Services Manager leads in the research, development, recommendation, procurement and implementation of DERs and DER integration solutions—which may include DERs; interconnection policies; enabling communication and control technologies; data management and analytics, programs or electric rates—in consultation with a cross functional team of Platte River and owner community utility staff to develop DERs and to make them visible, predictable, reliable and responsive to electric system operators.

This posting closes no later than October 31, 2025 at 5:00 pm MT.

Work environment and schedule

This position works a typical workweek schedule in a general office environment and may be eligible for hybrid workdays. The successful candidate should reside within a commutable distance of the Fort Collins area. Due to the collaborative nature of the work performed in this role, travel within Platte River’s owner communities is occasionally required.

Performing this work requires occasional physical effort to lift and carry light objects and is primarily sedentary; minimal walking or standing is required on an as-needed basis.

Essential duties and responsibilities

- Researches, develops, recommends, procures and implements approved distributed energy resource projects and integration solutions that develop DERs and make them visible, predictable, reliable and responsive to electric system operators. DER refers to technologies that can be deployed on the distribution system or within customer premises that can provide benefits to the electric system or to customer, such as electric efficiency, beneficial electrification, demand response, distributed storage and distributed generation. Electric system operators include those operating the owner communities’ distribution systems and the organization’s transmission, generation and distributed energy resources.

- Leads in the planning, development, procurement implementation, operation and optimization of one or more of the components comprising a distributed resource management system (DERMS), which is a “system of systems” capable of providing dispatchable capacity for Platte River and the owner communities in the form of a vitual power plant (VPP).

- Collaborates with a cross-functional team of Platte River and its owner communities’ utility staff to develop DER projects and integration solutions that consider the perspectives of power supply and marketing, power delivery (transmission and distribution), planning, information/operation technology, cyber security, finance and customer energy solutions

- Works closely with the organization and its owner communities’ planning and operations staff to support their planning efforts. Works to ensure DERs provide reliability and financial benefits commensurate with costs

- Develops and implements strategies to integrate, manage, analyze and use data from diverse sources for use in DER management and VPP operation. This may include DER interconnection or enrollment data, DER operational data, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) data

- Serves as a technical lead/liaison between Platte River and the owner communities in areas where distribution systems and policies intersect with DERMS and VPP operation (e.g., advanced distribution management systems and interconnection standards).

- Collaborates closely with the organization’s and its owner communities’ finance and rates staff to ensure coordination between programmatic and ratemaking approaches to distributed energy resources integration

- Provides technical support to organization’s and its owner communities’ energy solutions, customer services and marketing and communications staff to ensure distributed energy resources integration solutions are well received and supported by the owner communities’ customers

- Maintains awareness of individual owner community planning and solution development and implementation. Serves as a technical resource to the organization’s owner communities in DER project and integration solution development. Tracks DER adoption within the owner communities

- Hires and manages consultants, vendors and trade allies as required to develop and implement projects and integration solutions

- Works as part of cross-functional teams to ensure compliance with relevant regulatory and reliability requirements governing the integration of DER into the grid

- Works collaboratively with key stakeholders to understand their interests and to gain support for the organization’s DER initiatives

- Develops and manages budgets necessary to complete assigned work

- Maintains current with local, state and federal regulations and potential impacts

- Maintains awareness of technology development and utility integration approaches

- Works under the general supervision of distributed energy resources manager to ensure alignment with department goals, to communicate successes and to seek support when challenges are encountered

- Performs other duties as assigned

Knowledge, skills, and abilities

- Effective written and verbal communication skills

- Ability to research, develop, recommend and coordinate the implementation of distributed energy resources solutions

- Extensive knowledge of at least one distributed energy resources type or technology, such as distributed storage, demand response, electric vehicle charge management

- Extensive knowledge of one or more distributed energy resources integration solutions, programs or systems (VPP, DERMS, DER data management)

- Ability to effectively manage multiple projects and programs

- Ability to think analytically and solve complex problems

- Excellent relationship building ability, teamwork and team leadership ability

- Ability to work with, engage and gain support of diverse internal and external stakeholders through open dialog and an enthusiastic and inquisitive approach

- Excellent customer service skills

Qualified candidates

Required criteria

- Bachelor’s degree in engineering, technology, business or related field

- 3+ years of experience in:

- Researching, developing, and implementing DER projects and integration solutions in a utility environment, with a focus on solutions that improve visibility, predictability, reliability, and responsiveness to system needs

- Working in and leading a cross-functional team committed to providing excellent customer service

- Current valid driver’s license and ability to remain insurable under the vehicle liability policy

Preferred certification and experience

- Work experience in:

- DER data acquisition, integration, and management

- DER operation in an organized wholesale market environment such as SPP, MISO, CAISO, NYISO

- Certification as a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) or Project Management Professional (PMP)

Pay

This is an exempt role; salaries are paid bi-weekly and are annualized below for reference. Factors that may be used to determine actual salary include specific skills, years of experience, education, and certifications.

- Full range: $134,328 to $194,851

- Hiring range: $134,328 to $164,643