The Shift Manager Mentor plays a critical role in developing and elevating the operational competency of Nuclear Shift Managers within ENEC's nuclear power plant operations. Drawing on extensive personal experience as a licensed or certified Shift Manager — ideally within high-performing US/UK nuclear power plant organizations — the Shift Manager Mentor provides structured guidance, coaching, and on-the-job mentoring to ensure Shift Managers demonstrate the highest standards of nuclear safety culture, operational discipline, leadership excellence, and technical proficiency. The incumbent serves as a role model and trusted advisor, fostering a culture of continuous learning, conservative decision-making, and operational excellence consistent with world-class nuclear industry benchmarks.
Key Responsibilities and Duties:
- Shift Manager Mentoring and Coaching
- Operational Performance Assessment and Feedback
- Nuclear Safety Culture Reinforcement
- High-Performing Organization (HPO) Standards Development
- Training and Competency Development Support
- Knowledge Transfer and Lessons Learned Integration
- Health and Safety, Security, and Business Continuity
- Excellence and Quality Management
Key Activities, Responsibilities and Accountabilities:
1. Activity: Shift Manager Mentoring and Coaching
- Provide structured one-on-one mentoring to assigned Nuclear Shift Managers, drawing on recent and demonstrated personal experience in the Shift Manager role at a licensed nuclear power plant.
- Observe Shift Manager performance during live plant operations, including control room activities, shift turnovers, and operational evolutions, and provide timely, constructive feedback.
- Guide Shift Managers in the application of conservative decision-making principles, procedure adherence, and operator fundamentals during both normal and abnormal plant conditions.
- Coach Shift Managers on effective communication techniques, including pre-job briefings, shift turnover quality, and crew resource management (CRM) principles.
2. Activity: Operational Performance Assessment and Feedback
- Conduct structured observations of Shift Manager performance across multiple operational scenarios including planned outages, power maneuvers, and emergency operating procedure (EOP) drills.
- Evaluate Shift Managers against established performance benchmarks, competency frameworks, and ENEC/Nawah operational standards, providing documented performance assessments.
- Identify recurring performance trends or systemic gaps across the Shift Manager population and report findings to Operations Leadership with recommendations for corrective action.
- Collaborate with the Operations Training team to ensure assessment results are incorporated into targeted training interventions and simulator exercise design.
3. Activity: Nuclear Safety Culture Reinforcement
- Model and actively promote nuclear safety culture principles in all interactions, demonstrating behaviors consistent with IAEA Safety Standards, WANO guidelines, and ENEC's Nuclear Safety Culture framework.
- Coach Shift Managers on the identification, escalation, and resolution of nuclear safety concerns, reinforcing a questioning attitude and a low threshold for raising issues.
- Support the integration of safety culture self-assessment outcomes into individual and team development activities for Shift Managers.
- Facilitate discussions on nuclear industry operating experience (OPEX) events, highlighting lessons learned and their relevance to shift operations at ENEC's plant.
4. Activity: High-Performing Organization (HPO) Standards Development
- Share demonstrated knowledge and firsthand experience from high-performing US /UK nuclear power plant organizations (e.g., top-quartile WANO/INPO peer review performers) to benchmark and elevate ENEC's operational standards.
- Assist Operations Leadership in identifying gaps between current Shift Manager practices and the standards exhibited by industry-leading nuclear utilities, and propose actionable improvement strategies.
- Support the development and refinement of shift management expectations, standards, and guidelines aligned with high-performing nuclear organization principles.
5. Activity: Training and Competency Development Support
- Collaborate with the Operations Training Department to align mentoring activities with the Systematic Approach to Training (SAT) methodology and the plant's Training Program.
- Provide subject matter expertise in the development or review of Shift Manager-specific training materials, simulator scenarios, and competency assessments.
- Support the qualification and requalification program for Shift Managers, advising on readiness determinations and providing input to the Plant Review Committee or equivalent body as required.
- Identify knowledge or skills gaps observed during mentoring activities and formally communicate these to the Training team to inform the design of targeted learning interventions.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of training programs from an operational perspective, recommending enhancements to better prepare Shift Managers for the demands of plant operations.
6. Activity: Knowledge Transfer and Lessons Learned Integration
- Systematically document and transfer operational knowledge, best practices, and lessons learned from prior experience in high-performing nuclear organizations to ENEC's Shift Manager population.
- Develop practical reference materials, case studies, and scenario-based learning tools derived from real operational experience to supplement formal training programs.
- Facilitate structured knowledge-sharing sessions, tabletop exercises, and team discussions to embed lessons learned from both internal events and industry-wide operating experience into shift management practices.
- Maintain awareness of current nuclear industry trends, emerging operational challenges, and regulatory developments relevant to shift operations, and proactively share relevant insights with Shift Managers and Operations Leadership.
- Support the development and maintenance of the plant's operating experience program by contributing mentor observations and field insights as inputs to lessons learned documentation.
7. Activity: Excellence and Quality Management
- Demonstrate a personal commitment to continuous improvement and nuclear operational excellence in all mentoring activities.
- Ensure all mentoring outputs, assessments, and recommendations meet ENEC quality standards and are documented in accordance with applicable procedures.
- Contribute to ENEC's Corrective Action Program (CAP) by identifying and documenting conditions adverse to ** quality observed during mentoring activities.
- Uphold ENEC's and Nawah's organizational values and fundamentals in all professional conduct and interactions.
Communication and Working Relationships:
Internal:
- Nuclear Operations Leadership (VP/Director level) — reporting of Shift Manager development progress, performance trends, and program recommendations
- Nuclear Shift Managers — primary mentees; day-to-day coaching and feedback relationships
- Operations Training Department — coordination of mentoring activities with formal training programs and competency frameworks
- Plant Management and Safety Review Committees — participation as subject matter expert where required
External:
- WANO / INPO — participation in peer reviews, benchmarking activities, and industry knowledge exchange
- Regulatory Authority (FANR) — awareness and compliance with applicable operational licensing requirements
- Reference nuclear utilities (particularly US/UK-based high-performing plants) — benchmarking and knowledge transfer activities
Requirements:
Academic Qualification:
- Minimum: Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Physical Sciences, or a related technical field
- Preferred: Bachelor's degree or higher in Nuclear Engineering or a closely related discipline
Experience:
- Minimum: 15years of experience in nuclear power plant operations, with a minimum of 10 years of recent, demonstrated experience in the Shift Manager (or equivalent Senior Reactor Operator/Control Room Supervisor) role at a commercial nuclear power plant
- Preferred: 15+ years of nuclear operations experience, including direct Shift Manager experience at a US/UK nuclear power plant operating within a top-quartile high-performing organization as recognized by INPO or WANO peer evaluations; demonstrated experience in coaching, mentoring, or developing operational personnel
Licensing / Certification:
- Minimum: Current or prior Senior Reactor Operator (SRO) license or equivalent national regulatory certification (e.g., NRC SRO license for US/UK plants, or equivalent from a recognized nuclear regulatory body)
- Preferred: Active or recently maintained SRO license or equivalent; additional certifications in coaching, instructional design, or human performance improvement are advantageous
Professional Certifications:
- Minimum: SRO license or equivalent; Human Performance tools training
- Preferred: INPO accredited training certifications; Coaching or mentoring professional certification (e.g., ICF accreditation or equivalent)