Director, Environment, Health, and Safety (EHS)

Energize your future by joining our team at Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative (NOVEC)! NOVEC's mission is to create value for its members, employees and communities by providing safe, reliable electricity and quality products at competitive prices.

NOVEC is a locally owned electric distribution system headquartered in Manassas, VA. NOVEC provides reliable electric service to more than 180,000 homes and businesses in Clarke, Fairfax, Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William and Stafford counties, the City of Manassas Park, and the Town of Clifton. NOVEC's service reliability is the best in the region with a 99.99% average system reliability.

As a leader on the high-tech frontier, NOVEC is using proven, cost-effective technology to improve productivity and reliability, reduce expenses, and increase cybersecurity – a national priority. Today’s technology includes what the industry calls "smart grid", as well as fiber optics, and mobile workforce.

OVERVIEW:

The selected candidate will be eligible to work a hybrid work schedule after successfully completing an on-site introductory period (typically 6 months).

Relocation assistance is available for the successful eligible candidate.

NOVEC is unable to provide work authorization or sponsorship for this position.

In this role, you will serve as the company leader in the development of NOVEC’s

Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS) strategy and action plans. This leader is responsible for engaging with key stakeholders and being a critical advocate for the organization’s safety culture and results. Your responsibilities will include developing and implementing Environmental, Health and Safety programs, conducting regular audits, and ensuring compliance with all federal. State, and local safety laws and standards for an electric utility in Virginia. Working closely with the Executive team, you will promote a safety culture, have oversight of safety committees and their areas of focus, and develop team members for professional growth. Your role also involves evaluating safety performance, developing monitoring systems, and reporting findings to key stakeholders along with providing solutions. By setting realistic goals and KPIs, you will drive safety improvements and compliance while continuing to create a strong safety culture. Collaboration with cross-functional leaders will be essential in hazard identification and risk mitigation. You will also engage in emergency response planning, incident investigations, and standardized training programs. Managing safety-related projects and budgets, you will ensure that safety is integrated into the core of NOVEC. This position reports to the VP of Operations and leads a team of 4-5 direct reports.

Your strategic insights will help us develop a comprehensive EHS plan that supports business growth and modernization. The successful candidate will exude passion for EHS, the people of NOVEC, our members, and demonstrate the professionalism, skills, and experience to plan, take action, and get results while fostering a culture of care and inclusion.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Leadership

• Provide leadership and direction to staff, specific to EHS matters, cross-training activities, cross-departmental sharing of knowledge and expertise and, when appropriate, cross-departmental assignments
• Partners with key site leadership to implement, assess and improve programs and processes to increase Safety awareness and minimize injuries and vehicle incidents
• Leads the Company efforts to transition towards safety performance that is first quartile among other electric utilities across North America.
• Leads the company’s Safety program by utilizing key metrics, managing data and budgets to drive performance in Safety across the organization
• Collaborates with site personnel fostering 2-way communication in the management of policies and procedures, as well as recommending changes or development of new policies or procedures
• Leads functional initiatives with Safety teams and representatives from external vendors, partners, and other Safety professionals
• Interfaces with governmental inspectors, agencies, and regulators to facilitate visits and address deficiencies
• Attends and participates in targeted annual EHS conferences
• Develops and manages the NOVEC Safety budget

Operational

• Ensure compliance with Safety and Security audits, inspections and risk assessments
• Implement an enterprise Safety incident tracking, notification, and follow-up system.
• Analyzes audit results to verify adherence to corporate, business, and government standards
• Develop company-wide programs, procedures, work instructions, and training
• Lead Safety and Security projects, audits, and inspections
• Enforce security policies, respond to emergencies, and investigate incidents with corrective actions
• Ensure regulatory compliance, identify risks, and conduct security audits
• Align protocols with site leadership teams, communicate updates, and liaise with external agencies
• Audit incident records and prepare reports for the executive team
• Conduct risk assessments and develop mitigation strategies through site safety leaders
• Analyze incident reports to review root causes, report findings, and implement corrective actions
• Review safety audits and inspections to identify and correct trends/themes
• Submit weekly, monthly and annual Company Safety Reports including specified KPI’s
• Audit site drills and ensure all necessary records are maintained and accurate
• Lead company-wide emergency response planning
• Assess each site’s adherence to emergency response plans through auditing drills
• Partner with Human Resources in working with Workers’ Compensation insurance cases, carriers and internal legal resources

Local, State, and Federal Regulations/Audits

• Ensure compliance with health and safety regulations, including OSHA and DOT
• Guide interpretation and implementation of safety regulations
• Review and assess worker training on safety laws and use of safety equipment including appropriate use of PPE
• Perform facility, machinery, and equipment safety audits as part of site visits
• Ensure vendor and contractor safety programs comply with NOVEC safety policies

Safety Practice Continuous Improvement

• Analyzes relevant data to identify trends and creates forward-looking mitigation strategies
• Engage with Utility Industry Safety Benchmarking and Best Practices organizations such as First Quartile.
• Stay updated on safety through professional development
• Maintain required reports and records
• Build effective network within the company and with external partners to develop appropriate leading indicators across NOVEC

This general overview only includes essential functions of the job and does not imply that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instruction and to perform any other job-related duties requested by management.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

Required Qualifications:

• Twelve (12) or more years of experience in safety and health or utility safety to include water, gas operations, energy generation, electric utility transmission and distribution operations or relevant experience
• Experience must include at least eight (8) years of direct safety team experience within an organization to include experience with administration oversight, providing guidance, leadership or instruction to operational staff
• Experience must include at least seven (7) years of experience with ANSI, OSHA 1910.269, IEEE C95.6- 2002, NFPA 70E, DOT standards and applicable work practices and safety policies

• Must be able and available to work weekends, holidays, evenings, nights, and other times outside of standard work hours to assist in service restoration, emergencies that may arise, and necessary business operations

• Must possess a valid driver’s license, an acceptable driving record over the past seven years, and be able to operate company pool vehicles as necessary

Preferred Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree in industrial maintenance, electrical systems, occupational safety and health, public health or related field is preferred; an equivalent combination of education and demonstrated related experience may be considered in lieu of degree
• An advanced degree within the utility sector to include safety and health, utility operations, public health, environmental health or a business degree.
• A safety certification designation from the following list, Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Associate Safety Professional (ASP), Certified Utility Safety Professional (CUSP) or ability to obtain
• Knowledge and experience implementing the ISO 45001 and ANSI Z10.0 Occupational Health and Safety Systems. Knowledge and experience with ISO 45001 Certification and Corrective Action Programs
• Knowledge of the application of leading versus lagging safety metrics
• Experience with leading edge safety practices such as high energy events and the Energy Wheel

SKILLS & ABILITIES:

• Knowledge of OSHA and ANSI standards and record keeping
• Knowledge of incident investigation methods
• Knowledge of materials and tools used in assigned area
• Knowledge of work environment safety hazards related to assigned area
• Knowledge of electrical circuit theory
• Knowledge of all applicable codes including but not limited to: OSHA, NFPA and National Electrical Code
• Knowledge of uninterruptable power systems (UPS) which provide a reliable backup power source
• Knowledge of the analysis of electrical and electronic control systems
• Skill in record keeping
• Skill in incident investigations
• Skill in analyzing and solving complex problems
• Skill in verbal and written communication, including effectively communicating information to large audiences
• Skill in communicating effectively with team members, supervision/management and external organizations under normal and emergency
• conditions
• Skill in articulating complex technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences
• Skill in office productivity applications (such as email, word processing, spreadsheets, etc.)
• Ability to work in a team environment
• Ability to balance and manage competing high priority work demands

PHYSICAL DEMANDS representative of those required of an employee to perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, there is a limited degree of climbing, balancing, stooping, kneeling, crouching, or crawling. There is a moderate degree of sitting, standing, and walking; reaching with hands or arms, and driving a light-duty vehicle. The employee rarely will be required to lift or exert a force of up to 10 pounds. This position does require a great deal of motor coordination with finger dexterity on a keyboard and other machine operations.

WORK ENVIRONMENT representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job there is a minimal degree of risk of electrical shock from working with office equipment. There is a limited degree of exposure to airborne particles and work in high precarious places. There is a moderate degree of exposure to outdoor weather conditions; work with or near moving mechanical parts; and exposure to fumes and toxic or caustic chemicals. The noise level in the work environment is moderate, as in an office area with equipment and voices, to loud, as that of outdoors at work sites with construction equipment.

Work involves exposure to various and sometimes extreme weather conditions

WHAT WE OFFER:

Competitive salary and Incentive plan

Premier health benefits, including an onsite wellness center.

Survivor and Disability benefits

401(k) retirement plan with a 4% base salary match and an additional match of your contribution at a rate of 50% up to the first 12%

Life insurance

Vacation, Sick and Holiday Leave

Educational Assistance

Annual Company Events

If you're ready to take the next step towards advancing your career, apply today! NOVEC is an equal opportunity employer and participates in E-Verify. We do not provide sponsorship for this position.