Portland General Electric · 17 hours ago
Outage Communications Specialist (Entry or Associate Level)
Tualatin, OR
Full-time
Onsite
Entry, Mid Level
$62K/yr - $124K/yr
1+ years expPortland General Electric is focused on creating a smarter, cleaner, and more enduring Oregon. The Outage Communications Specialist role is responsible for managing outage communications, ensuring accurate information is provided to customers and employees, and supporting wildfire and outage data validation functions.
Electrical DistributionEnergyRenewable Energy
Responsibilities
Uses the Distribution Outage Management System (OMS) to oversee customer outages associated with planned outage switching sheets, 24/7 for all of PGE’s service territory
Uses OMS to manage Estimated Restoration Times (ERT) which involves reviewing assigned ERT assigned by the system, validating the assets associated with the outage, confirming resource (material/human/equipment) availability and assignment and forecasting appropriate ERTs based on scenario analysis. This applies to planned and unplanned outages, 24/7 for all of PGE’s service territory
Uses the Outage Management System to prepare, review & update distribution planned customer outage switching sheets involving secondary voltage for accuracy and schedule according to Crew Coordination and Work Order Owners request
Uses the Maximo Asset System to upload documents, edit and approve tasks as needed
Issues, monitors and updates planned outage status, in the Outage Management System, in real time, to capture accurate outage duration and customer impact
Communicates distribution planned customer outage switching sheet changes to various stakeholders including but not limited to Crew Coordination, Customer Relations, Work Order Owner(s), Key Customer Group, and more when applicable
Communicates with Line Crew on real-time planned outage activities
Monitors outage progress and ensures restorations times are met and or updated appropriately
Coordinates with other departments as needed
Notifies PGE Mapping Department of device mapping corrections needed
May be required to perform real-time updates in OMS for secondary voltages for unplanned outages. May assist with customer callbacks
Works closely with Distribution Control Center staff including Distribution System Operators and Repair Dispatch to interpret the situation and pull relevant information together
Prepares communication updates on the outage to inform PGE employees as well as customers through OMS and the outage log. Updates as information changes, including the published ERTs
Communicates unplanned outage/emergency condition details to various entities, including customers, Corporate Communication, Key Customer Management, Crew Coordination and Repair Dispatch
Actively monitors and provides updates, as applicable, in the Outage Management System, Maximo, and Itoa (operations logging tool) and other relevant tools/systems for Planned and Unplanned Outage Events
Monitors Outage Management System for de-energization and re-energization activities associated to distribution service point and transformer device planned outages to ensure safety, reliability, efficiency and compliance requirements are met with NERC, WECC, FERC, OPUC, DOE and other applicable government and industry criteria, as applicable to the position
Monitor PGE’s Outage Map for real-time accuracy
Monitors tools applicable to PGE’s Wildfire Monitoring Tools (myWorld)
Responds to data requests
Determines the best way to obtain and synthesize data from multiple sources
Develops and runs reports. Performs Outage Response Analysis (OMS, Tableau)
Compiles, analyzes, and reports on a variety of metric data related to departmental and system performance such as ERT forecasting efficiency, system interruptions and outages. Reviews records, logs and summaries and verifies and validates data; verifies data is properly entered into applicable systems or records; prepares formal reports and/or provides feedback on results of review; recommends improvements
Interact with Crews, Crew Coordination, Work Order Owners, Repair Dispatch, Key Customer Group, Business Continuity & Emergency Management, Corporate Communications, Project Management Office, Reliability, Engineering and more for both planned and unplanned outage events
Processes distribution system configuration changes for outage data validation and system configuration tracking and reporting
Peer-to-peer training
Assist with training new hires and other key stakeholders
Participates in outage After Action Reports (AAR) resulting in investigation and data analysis throughout several systems to compile lessons learned related to customers' outages
Compiles, analyzes, and reports on a variety of metric data related to departmental and system performance such as ERT forecasting efficiency, PSPS forecasting, system interruptions and outages tracking, etc
Leads communication and meetings with Crew Coordination, Work Order Owners, Repair Dispatch, Key Customer Group, Business Continuity & Emergency Management, Corporate Communications, Project Management Office, Engineering, and other appropriate parties for both planned and unplanned outage events as needed
Qualification
Required
Entry/p1 and Associate/p2: Associate degree in a relevant field or equivalent experience
Entry/P1 and Associate/p2: Typically, one or more years in operational occupations such as generation, transmission or distribution systems or a related field
Preferred
Excellent verbal and oral communication skills
Working knowledge of PGE's distribution system
Working knowledge of electrical principles and concepts
Working knowledge of PGE's safety procedures
Working knowledge of and skill in using PGE's Outage Management System, Maximo Asset Management System, GIS, Vehicle Locator System (AVL) and Company Radio System, Microsoft suite, and SharePoint
Working knowledge of PGE's geographic territory
Working computer skills for routine office activities such as email and document preparation
Intermediate analytical thinking skills
Working business acumen
Intermediate decision-making skills
Intermediate interpersonal skills
Working organization and prioritization skills
Intermediate problem-solving skills
Benefits
Total rewards package that is designed to reward your contributions to the company, and, at the same time, support your well-being and professional development, both now and into the future.
Company
Portland General Electric
Portland General Electric (PGE) is a vertically integrated electric utility engaged in the generation, purchase, transmission.
1001-5000 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Portland General Electric has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (30)
2024 (24)
2023 (13)
2022 (26)
2021 (26)
2020 (17)
Funding
Current Stage
Public CompanyTotal Funding
$379.5MKey Investors
US Department of Energy
2023-05-10Grant· $4.5M
2022-10-25Post Ipo Equity· $375M
2006-04-03IPO
Leadership Team
Maria Pope
President and Chief Executive Officer
Joseph Trpik
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Recent News
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