Protection and Controls Engineer

Located in Lincoln, Nebraska, LES is customer-owned and is one of the nation’s leading utility companies. We are recognized for low costs, unmatched reliability, financial stability, cutting-edge innovation, environmental stewardship, and community engagement. We pride ourselves on delivering exceptional customer service while fostering a culture that celebrates passion, talent, and high standards. If you're not just looking for a job but a fulfilling career in a workplace that values excellence, the environment, and the community we call home, LES might just be the perfect fit for you. Join us and power a brighter future!

- LES is interested in every qualified candidate who is eligible to work in the United States.

- LES is unable to sponsor employment-based immigrant or non-immigrant visas.

- This is not a remote position and requires residency within a reasonable commuting distance to LES in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Job Title

Engineer, Protection and Controls

Status

Starting Pay Range

Posting Date

Full-time

$81,166.00 - $134,178.00

12/12/2025

Employment Classification

Division

Closing Date

Regular

Energy Delivery

01/02/2026

We’re looking for a skilled Protection & Controls Engineer to join our high-performance team and help ensure the safety, reliability, and efficiency of our power systems. In this role, you’ll design, implement, and maintain protective relaying schemes, SCADA/automation systems, and control solutions that keep critical infrastructure running smoothly. You’ll collaborate with cross-functional teams, analyze system data, support commissioning and field testing, and contribute to innovative improvements in grid resiliency. If you thrive in a technical environment and want to make a meaningful impact on modern energy systems, we’d love to hear from you.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

- Engineer – ($81,166 - $101,458) Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field from an ABET accredited institution, or an equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job.

- Engineer III – ($93,342 - $116,678) Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field from an ABET accredited institution, and at least three years of progressively responsible engineering experience in area of assignment, or an equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job.

- Senior Engineer – ($107,342 - $134,178) Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field from an ABET accredited institution, and at least six years of progressively responsible engineering experience in area of assignment, or an equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & CORE COMPETENCIES

Provides engineering support including analysis, design, implementation, operation, and maintenance of protection systems, controls systems, SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition), and technical services. Also included is the material selection, bid evaluations, supervision of consulting services, preparation of feasibility studies, and creating/updating specifications for associated substation equipment. Leads small to medium projects with minimal guidance. Acts as on-call engineer as assigned outside normal working hours. Consistent and reliable attendance is an essential function of this position.

- Performs the planning, design, analysis, construction, commissioning, integration, installation, operation, and optimization of protection, controls, alarm monitoring and other critical operational systems and applications.

- Designs protection schemes for industrial, balance of plant, and utility substation applications including one-lines, three-lines, DC schematics, and relay settings.

- Evaluates the interoperability, control features, and communication/protocol aspects of protective relays, communication processors, and remote terminal units.

- Performs tasks and develops programs, processes, and documentation to comply with NERC regulatory standards and other applicable Federal, State, and local codes, laws, and standards.

- Revises and evaluates new protection and control schemes and evaluates proposed system changes to determine their effect on existing protection and controls schemes.

- Assists with researching activities pertaining to failure analysis, engineering, and construction practices.

Adaptability – The successful candidate maintains a positive attitude in the face of change; appropriately adjusts behavior and activities to changing conditions.

Initiative – Seeking a candidate that takes action on their own without being prompted; handles problems independently; able to resolve issues without relying on extensive help from others; does more than is expected or asked.

Quality Orientation – The ideal candidate holds self and others to being attentive to detail and accuracy, maintains high quality work, looks for improvements continuously, monitors quality levels, finds root cause of quality problems, owns/acts on quality problems while encouraging a quality focus in others.

Accountability - The individual holds self and others responsible for goals, outcomes, deadlines, and objectives and follows through on commitments. Takes accountability for delivering on commitments; owns mistakes and uses them as opportunities for learning and development.

Job Technical Skills - A person in this role keeps their technical skills current; effectively applies specialized knowledge and skills to perform work tasks; understands and masters the technical skills, knowledge, and tasks associated with his/her job; shares technical expertise with others.

REQUIRED CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

- Valid driver’s license

LES BENEFITS - Click the link below to explore the outstanding benefits available to LES employees!

LES Benefits Overview

EEO Minorities/Women/Disabled/Veterans