Chief Executive Officer

BACKGROUND

Alameda County and 11 of its cities have agreed to form the East Bay Community Energy Authority (EBCE), a non-profit public entity formed in 2016 that will operate a Community Choice Energy program within its service territory. EBCE’s purpose is to be an energy services provider, which benefits the community through the delivery of cleaner and more locally produced electricity, demand reduction, economic investment, and competitive rates for residents, businesses, and municipal facilities in Alameda County.

EBCE’s program will allow participating local governments to pool the electricity demands of their communities in order to increase their purchasing power for higher renewable power content, and invest in local energy infrastructure and energy efficiency programs. EBCE will be locally controlled and ratepayer supported, with no taxpayer subsidies. By law, as a Joint Powers Authority, EBCE is funded through program revenues; its budget is completely separate from the general funds of participating local governments. There will be a dedicated staff to run day-to-day operations of EBCE and provide customer support. Board meetings are open to the public.

     

THE POSITION

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) will report to the Board of Directors of East Bay Community Energy and will provide strategic leadership and direct all activities within the organization. The CEO will coordinate all aspects of launching and operating the Community Choice program, and building it into an innovative enterprise that benefits Alameda County residents and businesses. The CEO will have responsibility over the functional areas of power procurement, integrated resource planning, energy infrastructure development, internal operations, marketing, customer service, community stakeholder relations, finance, and regulatory and legislative affairs. The CEO will work with numerous stakeholders including County residents, businesses, labor representatives, community groups, government officials, other CCA programs, regulatory bodies, and energy and utility experts. The CEO will utilize a combination of EBCE staff and contractor support, as may be needed to perform the required functions of EBCE.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Directs the daily operations of EBCE, supports the Board of Directors in setting the strategic direction of EBCE, and performs related duties as assigned by the Board of Directors:

EBCE Administration and Management 

• Builds EBCE and its staff. Plans, organizes, directs and evaluates the activities of EBCE staff and the establishment of employment policies and procedures. Selects and trains professional and management staff; assigns and reviews work of department heads or other direct reports; establishes employee performance standards; trains and counsels employees; takes or approves disciplinary actions. 
• Negotiates and administers EBCE contracts with energy service providers and other outside consultants or contractors. 
• Develops agreements, methods and procedures to implement, administer and evaluate the EBCE programs; directs the preparation, review and approval of technical reports and proposals, oversees and directs regulatory compliance reviews and analyzes performance outcome measures to determine program effectiveness; develops process improvement plans and strategies to enhance service delivery; reviews project metrics and related records in order to assess the progress of key initiatives and to assure effectiveness and compliance. 
• Prepares and administers an annual operating budget anticipated to be in excess of $500M; establishes, revises and maintains EBCE fiscal policies including operating reserves and debt/credit limits; negotiates and monitors EBCE debt and works with Treasurer and Finance Director to oversee financing of EBCE operations and projects, establishment of accounting systems and procedures to efficiently and accurately monitor income sources and expenses, provide internal accounting controls and financial reports; oversees annual independent audit for EBCE. 
• Develops and implements data and management information systems in order to track, plan, and analyze various EBCE programs, customer relationship management, grid-related data systems, power procurement and development, and program performance.

Program Development 

• Plans and recommends program and policy direction for EBCE that implements various Board approved plans and documents including but not limited to: EBCE’s Joint Powers Agreement, EBCE’s Implementation Plan, the Local Development Business Plan and Integrated Resource Plan(s). 
• Directs the development of EBCE operational and program policies; explains, advises and recommends action on policy matters to the Board of Directors and relevant Board committees; advises the Board of problems and potential problems, and recommends appropriate course of action. 
• In coordination with the Board of Directors, general counsel and relevant committees of the Board, engages in developing strategic, operational, and integrated resource plans and policies, and implementing adopted plans and policies. 
• Researches, identifies, develops and negotiates public and private funding opportunities in order to support EBCE goals and programs; identifies grant funding opportunities and submits grant applications for funding; issues directives related to fund distribution, and policy and procedural constraints of grant requirements.

Collaboration and Community Engagement 

• Consults with and solicits the engagement of the EBCE Community Advisory Committee and various business, labor, community groups and government agencies in implementing Board-approved program goals and objectives pursuant to EBCE’s Joint Powers Agreement; develops responsive programs to meet those goals and objectives. 
• Coordinates program planning with jurisdictions participating in EBCE, other relevant jurisdictions, federal funding agencies and community and business groups; stays abreast of community, social, and political issues and their relevance to and impact upon EBCE’s programs. 
• Directs the development of a public affairs program to inform and get feedback from the public about operations, services, programs, goals and objectives; provides consultation to individuals, citizen groups, business organizations, consultants and governmental agencies on all matters related to Authority operations.

Policy and Regulatory Advocacy

• Analyzes the impact of newly-enacted State and Federal legislation and regulatory decisions on EBCE policies and operations; addresses legislative and regulatory bodies to influence or persuade them to take supportive actions related to protecting and advancing EBCE program goals; makes recommendations and decisions regarding EBCE legislative and regulatory positions; tracks, reviews and critiques CPUC proceedings, rulemakings and proposed legislation, initiates studies of technical problems and recommends necessary actions. 
• Represents EBCE at governmental hearings, in front of administrative bodies, and at public meetings.

   

Click here to view the complete recruitment brochure.

EDUCATION

Any combination of educational coursework and training, which would provide the necessary knowledge and abilities for the position such as: degree from accredited university with emphasis in energy, environment, engineering, natural sciences, public administration, public policy, business administration, economics, finance or a closely related field. A Master's Degree is desirable but not required commensurate with experience.

EXPERIENCE

Any combination of experience and training that complement and expand competencies beyond educational credentials such as ten years of full-time administration/senior management experience supervising professional staff engaged in energy-related fields, including specific experience in financial, program and organizational operations, analysis, member Board of Directors, 25-50 employees, and an annual budget approximating $500M is highly desirable

KNOWLEDGE OF:

• Energy principles, California energy market functions, and electric generation procurement, development and service delivery functions. 
• Current issues in demand-side management, renewable energy, climate change, and energy policy. 
• Municipal operations and public agency protocols including board and governance management, public procurement procedures, and the Brown Act. 
• Programs, functions and operations of investor-owned utilities, California Independent System Operator, California Energy Commission, California Air Resources Board, and the California Public Utility Commission.

ABILITY TO:

• Lead long-range strategic and fiscal planning for EBCE development and program design process, including needs assessments, project design, proposal development, budgeting, marketing strategy, customer relations evaluation components of each. 
• Identify and direct grant opportunities and negotiate complex contracts. 
• Prepare, administer, and monitor program budgets to meet contractual and statutory requirements. 
• Provide program management guidance for staff and the public. 
• Assure compliance with program goals, policies and procedures and lead a continuous improvement process.
• Develop risk management policies and contingency plans to address changing program needs. 
• Coordinate the preparation of professional reports as required by the EBCE Board, funding agencies and other interested parties. 
• Handle multiple projects simultaneously within stringent time constraints. 
• Manage staff and contractors to ensure that deliverables are received within contracted time, quality, quantity and cost requirements. 
• Exercise discretion and independent judgment. 
• Maintain a good working relationship with members of the Board and Committees, EBCE staff, external stakeholders, contractors and clients.

HOW TO APPLY

The materials listed below must be electronically submitted in PDF format to Lucy Romo at ebce.recruitment@acgov.org.

1. Current Resume.

2. Cover letter with responses to the following topics: 

• A summary of your qualifications, specifically your executive leadership, budget/finance, governance and personnel management, and energy market or utility experience. 
• A description of your experience establishing, growing and leading an organization with regional impact. 
• An example of a time when you successfully managed competing political interests among parties, including the skills and techniques you utilized, and the outcome. 
• An example of a complex contract negotiation that you were directly involved in and its outcome.

3. Three professional references.

Applicants must submit required materials no later than 5:00PM on April 10, 2017. Please title the e-mail in the Subject field as "EBCE CEO Recruitment".

For additional information, please contact Lucy Romo by telephone at 510-670-6422 or by email at ebce.recruitment@acgov.org.

TENTATIVE SELECTION PLAN

Deadline for Filing	April 10, 2017
Panel Interviews	Week of April 17, 2017
Finalist Interviews	Week of April 24, 2017
Final Selection	May 17, 2017