Minimum Pay Rate: $223,995.20
Maximum Pay Rate: $311,937.60
Civil Service Status: Non-Civil Service
Apply by Date: 11/20/2026
Posting Type: Open
SMUD is seeking an accomplished, strategic, and forward-thinking Director of Power Generation to lead one of the region’s most diverse power generation portfolios, including hydro, thermal, renewable, gas pipeline, and Rancho Seco assets. As a member of the Senior Leadership Team within the Generation & Grid Operations business unit, this position provides executive leadership and direction for the safe, reliable, efficient, and compliant operation of critical generation resources.
In this key leadership role, the Director of Power Generation will help shape the future of SMUD’s power generation operations by advancing a strong safety culture, ensuring regulatory compliance, driving operational excellence, improving asset performance, and supporting strategic business objectives. This role requires close collaboration with senior leadership, cross-functional internal partners, external stakeholders, and policymakers to support complex decision-making and deliver reliable service to the customers and communities SMUD serves.
We are seeking a proven leader with a demonstrated ability to build strong partnerships, lead high-performing teams, manage complex utility operations, and make sound, timely, and high-quality decisions in a dynamic environment.
Application Supplemental Question
Applicants should be prepared to respond to the following question during the application process:
Given your understanding of the Director of Power Generation role, please provide a brief summary of your experience, education, training, and leadership accomplishments that best prepare you for this position. Please include relevant examples of your experience in power generation operations / maintenance, safety leadership, regulatory compliance, asset management, emergency response, and strategic decision-making.
Employee Benefits:
- Competitive Medical, Dental, and Vision coverage
- Retirement through Public Employees Retirement System
- 457 and 401(k) plans available
- Flexible Savings Account
- Short and Long-Term Disability
- Employee and Spouse Life Insurance
Purpose
The Director Power Generation has primary responsibility for the Hydro, Thermal, Renewable, Gas Pipeline, and Rancho Seco Assets. In collaboration with the Chief Generation and Grid Operations Officer and peer senior management team members, the Director designs and implements the processes necessary to ensure the safe, reliable, available, and efficient operation of generation assets, while maintaining compliance with applicable licenses and regulatory requirements.
Nature and Scope
This is a department level senior management position. It is distinguished from other director positions by its emphasis on the Power Generation Department. This position provides ongoing direction and management to ensure the safe, compliant, reliable, and efficient operations of the following functional areas: Hydro, Thermal, Renewable, Gas Pipeline, and Rancho Seco. The role is required to attend, present, and/or lead at Board, executive, team, customer, community, and one-on-one meetings; in person, as needed.
Duties and Responsibilities
- Provides leadership for the following work groups: Hydro Generation, Thermal Generation, Renewable Generation, Gas Pipeline Operations, Engineering, Regulatory Compliance, and Rancho Seco. Oversees business performance, resource planning, budget, and overall project portfolio.
- Ensures the safe operation of generation assets maximizing efficiency, reliability, availability, and full compliance with regulatory requirements.
- Instills a culture of zero safety incidents by developing and maintaining a safety culture that is accountable for actions and open to feedback. Promotes the safety of SMUD employees, contractors, and customers through adherence to established SMUD policies and goals.
- Creates, communicates and implements department vision in alignment with SMUD strategy and in collaboration with subordinate managers to drive alignment and engagement of Power Generation workgroups.
- Partners with Enterprise Strategy to develop Enterprise Performance Goals. Has accountability for execution and oversight of goal achievement.
- Presents to Chief Executive Officer/General Manager, Executive Team, and SMUD's Board of Directors on Power Generation business unit activities including asset condition and performance, FERC Licenses, regulatory conditions, budget and resource considerations.
- Provides timely information to executive management on significant events, major milestones, impacts to the public, matters that could have a potentially significant impact on SMUD's employees and/or customers’ safety, financial position, compliance, reputation, or relationships with SMUD's customers and/or other agencies.
- Represents SMUD's position before regulatory/legislative commissions in public meetings and hearings, and with other external stakeholder entities.
- Promotes a OneSMUD collaborative relationship with all SMUD work groups. Participates and collaborates with other leaders on cross-functional steering committees for the successful accomplishment of SMUD initiatives.
- Ensures Power Generation maintains open communication and harmonious relationships with represented employees and union officials and works collaboratively with Labor Relations.
- Perform other related duties as needed; schedules, hours and locations may fluctuate based on business needs.
Required Education
- Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline from an accredited college or university.
Required Experience Qualifications
- Seven or more (7+) years of experience in the design, construction, maintenance, and/or operations of utility assets with at least 5 of those years specific to power generation, including five or more (5+) years in a management role. Experience in modern electric utility business and management practices, managing and scheduling major projects, and interfacing with executive management, Board of Directors, regulatory agencies, and the public.
Knowledge Of
- Fundamentals and practices of complex planning, management, organizing, staffing, and monitoring at a department level;
- Business and political acumen;
- Budget development and administration;
- Project management;
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) and organizational culture change;
- Community engagement;
- Comprehension of applicable employment laws and practices
Specific to Director Power Generation
- Different types of generation such as hydro, thermal (combustion gas/steam), wind, photovoltaic and energy storage;
- Power plant construction, maintenance, and operation;
- Natural gas pipeline operations and maintenance;
- NRC regulated independent spent fuel storage;
- Commercially available and emerging power generation technologies;
- Asset and work management skills include lifecycle asset management, risk & reliability engineering, work order optimization, resource and labor scheduling, maintenance strategies, outage management, etc;
- Incident Command System
Skills To
- Oversee, influence, persuade, and motivate;
- Establish policies, set goals, and manage the implementation of strategic and operational plans for area(s) of responsibility;
- Direct activities through management staff;
- Manage and drive change across cross-functional teams;
- Demonstrate commitment to valuing diversity and contributing to an inclusive working and learning environment;
- Interface effectively with SMUD's executive team, the Board of Directors, regulatory and/or public agencies, customers, industry groups, and SMUD staffns and new business; deal with and implement changes; recognize sensitive issues and act accordingly; perform under pressure; and, recognize and admit when one is wrong.
Specific to Director Power Generation
- Lead, plan, manage, and review the work of multi-disciplinary professional, technical and represented personnel in the performance of complex engineering and operating assignments under significant time constraints;
- Effectively communicate highly technical information and recommendations to a variety of audiences and explain complex or controversial policies, regulations, procedures, and activities, both internally and externally orally or in writing;
- Interpret and apply SMUD policies, procedures, applicable IBEW MOUs, and/or other special agreements;
- Respond quickly and effectively to changing priorities;
- Proactively anticipate problems and apply innovative, creative, logical techniques in their resolution;
- Manage emergency events such as a generation outage, storm event, safety or environmental incident, etc;
- Perform post-event root cause analysis and continuous improvement initiatives
Desirable Qualifications
The ideal candidate will possess many of the following qualifications:
- Registration as a Professional Engineer (PE) in the State of California.
- Experience working with regulatory and governmental agencies.
- Experience managing large capital budgets and operations and maintenance (O&M) budgets.
- Project management experience involving large, complex, utility-scale hydroelectric, thermal, renewable, and gas pipeline projects.
- Experience developing, negotiating, and administering Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contracts.
- Experience developing goals, objectives, and priorities aligned with asset management industry best practices and standards.
- Experience supporting or leading emergency operations, including response to natural disasters or other major operational events.
- Experience building, supporting, and sustaining a strong safety culture across teams and operations.
- Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering
- PMP Certification - Experience overseeing large-scale capital projects, construction management, and procurement
- Asset Management Certification
- FEMA Incident Command System – ICS-100, 200, 300, and 400
Physical Requirements
Applicants must be able to perform the essential job functions with or without a reasonable accommodation.
Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) - Who We Are
As the nation's sixth-largest community-owned electric service provider, we're proud of our reputation as one of the best places to work in Sacramento. Our employees tell us in our engagement surveys they're "Happy, satisfied and engaged" which helps create a workplace that best serves our customers. Sacramento was named as the 2nd happiest place to work in America by Forbes Magazine. Lake Tahoe, San Francisco and the world-renowned Napa Valley are within easy driving distance of our locations.
Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
SMUD celebrates diversity, and inspires an inclusive culture based on trust and respect to create belonging and connection among our employees, customers, and communities. By working together, we are powering positive, equitable opportunities for all. We aspire to be a workplace where you can be yourself, achieve your best, and thrive together.
An example of our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging is when SMUD signed the California Equal Pay Pledge in 2020. This requires equal pay for employees who perform “substantially similar work,” when viewed as a composite of skill, effort, and responsibility at the time those employees started within that classification. As such, initial hiring salary range is not subject to negotiation and salaries will vary over time based on performance.
SMUD is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, gender (including pregnancy), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, veteran status, or any other applicable legally protected characteristic. All employment decisions are made on the basis of individual qualifications, merit, and business needs and interests.
Why Sacramento, California?
The capitol of California, Sacramento is the state's sixth-largest city, and the 35th largest in the U.S. Local universities include California State University, University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law, and the University of California, Davis and several competitive community colleges. The UC Davis Medical Center, a world-renowned research hospital, is one of more than a dozen hospitals and shared services centers in the Sacramento region. Part of the agriculturally-rich Central Valley, Sacramento is at the forefront of the farm-to-fork food movement. Northern California is home to some of the country's top technology companies, including Google and LinkedIn, and a multitude of startups in many industries. Sacramento is home to the NBA Kings, the River Cats (AAA baseball), the Republic FC (soccer) and the San Francisco Giants, NBA Warriors and NFL 49er's aren't far away. Sacramento offers an affluent liberal arts community with Broadway, Mondavi Center, Crocker Museum and summer musical theater to name a few.
Hybrid Work
SMUD’s hybrid work policy requires employees to work onsite at least three (3) days per week. This position may be eligible for the hybrid work employee benefit, with the schedule determined by the Hiring Manager. Additional onsite work may be required based on business and operational needs at any SMUD location.
CalPERS
SMUD is a CalPERS agency. As a member of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), SMUD offers eligible employees access to a defined benefit pension plan along with other valuable retirement and health benefits. This program helps provide financial security both during your career and after retirement. To learn more about CalPERS and the benefits it offers, please visit www.calpers.ca.gov.
