Aligning Utility Transformation with Ratepayer Affordability and Equity

Gilder Search Group; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 85,500 - 104,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, and vision insurance

Job summary

Gilder Search Group is seeking a FUSE Executive Fellow to join the City of Los Angeles’ Office of Public Accountability. The fellow will support initiatives related to utility modernization, focusing on economic analysis and affordability program evaluation. This fellowship offers a unique opportunity to influence major infrastructure investments and ensure equitable benefits for community members.

The role includes extensive engagement with stakeholders, data-driven recommendations, and enhancing capacity within OPA.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience in organizational transformation and change management.
• Ability to synthesize complex information into concise recommendations.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Conduct economic analysis and financial assessments related to utility investments.
• Develop project goals and deliver actionable recommendations.
• Strengthen analytical infrastructure within the Office of Public Accountability.

Skills

Organizational transformation

Change management

Data-driven solutions

Stakeholder engagement

Project management

Job description

The City of Los Angeles’ Office of Public Accountability (OPA) is working to ensure that large-scale utility modernization and infrastructure investments deliver affordability, transparency, and equitable benefits for ratepayers, particularly those most vulnerable to rising energy and water costs. The FUSE Executive Fellow will help OPA strengthen customer-centered oversight by advancing economic analysis, affordability program evaluation, and benefits realization strategies tied to major infrastructure investments. This has the potential to be a two-year fellowship, with Year One focused on discovery, strategy development, and foundational analysis, and Year Two (if desired) focused on deepening implementation influence, scaling effective solutions, and embedding durable oversight practices within OPA.

Fellowship Dates: October 26, 2026 – October 22, 2027

Salary: Executive Fellows are FUSE employees and receive an annual salary of $95,000. Fellows can also access various health, dental, and vision insurance benefits. This amount is not representative of market-rate salaries for the experienced professionals in our program but is intended as compensation for a year of public service.

ABOUT THE FUSE EXECUTIVE FELLOWSHIP

FUSE is a national nonprofit dedicated to increasing the capacity of local governments to work more effectively for communities. We embed private sector executives in city and county agencies to lead projects that improve public services and accelerate systems change. Since 2012, FUSE has led over 400 projects in 58 governments across 26 states, impacting a total population equivalent to 1 in 10 Americans.

When designing each fellowship project, FUSE works closely with government partners and community stakeholders to define a scope of work that will achieve substantive progress toward high-priority local needs. Projects address today’s most pressing challenges and opportunities, including affordable housing, economic mobility, climate resilience, public safety, infrastructure, technology, and more.

FUSE conducts a full executive search for each individual project to ensure that the selected candidate has at least 15 years of professional experience, the required competencies for the role, and deep connections to the community being served.

Executive Fellows are embedded in government agencies working with senior leaders for at least one year of full-time work. Prospective responsibilities may include thorough data analytics and research, developing enhanced operations and financial models, building change management and strategic planning processes, and/or building broad coalitions to support project implementation efforts. Executive Fellows are data-driven and results-oriented and able to effectively manage complex projects. They build strong relationships with a broad array of stakeholders, foster alignment within and across various layers of government, and build partnerships between governments and communities.

Throughout the fellowships, Executive Fellows receive training, coaching, and professional support to help achieve their project goals.

PROJECT BACKGROUND

Strategic utility oversight is critical to ensuring that large-scale infrastructure investments translate into affordability, transparency, and long-term community resilience. These investments directly shape residents’ cost of living and access to essential services. However, when utility transformation prioritizes system expansion and utility operations benefits without equitably centering customer benefits, affordability pressures can intensify. These challenges disproportionately affect low- and moderate-income households, communities of color, seniors on fixed incomes, and small businesses, who already experience higher energy and water cost burdens and are more vulnerable to rate increases. Utility modernization must focus on delivering measurable savings, accessible programs, and equitable outcomes for ratepayers to sustain public trust and economic stability.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) is the nation’s largest municipal utility, providing water and electricity to roughly 4 million residents and a quarter million businesses in Los Angeles. LADWP is at a critical juncture, with several massive initiatives on the horizon, such as achieving a 100% clean energy power supply by 2035 (LA100), multi‑billion‑dollar water system upgrades, advanced meter deployment, and rate redesign. The City of Los Angeles established the Office of Public Accountability (OPA) to provide independent oversight and economic analysis of LADWP. As the Ratepayer Advocate, the OPA evaluates the reasonableness of, and provides transparency for LADWP policies, budgets, and rate proposals. Over the past year, OPA rebuilt its team and launched new initiatives to evaluate LADWP budgets and expenditures, analyze long‑term resource planning modeling inputs to achieve LA100, assess water system investment strategies, benchmark utility rates, and expand public‑facing dashboards and reports. OPA is also examining the effectiveness and accessibility of customer‑facing affordability programs, including income‑qualified discounts, efficiency incentives, and rebate initiatives, with attention to cost‑benefit outcomes and legal constraints on rate design. To help guide this work, OPA is significantly expanding direct stakeholder engagement to incorporate the diverse perspectives of community members into analysis and recommendations. As LADWP begins deploying millions of advanced meters and prepares for upcoming rate design cycles, OPA will continue to strengthen its technical rigor and strategic communications to ensure ratepayer interests remain central to decision‑making.

OPA will partner with FUSE to strengthen the analytical and strategic capacity of the team during this critical period of utility transformation. During the fellowship, the FUSE Executive Fellow will support the economic and financial analysis of investments, budgets, and capital plans, as well as advanced meter benefits realization, affordability program portfolio analysis, and customer‑centered policy design by conducting technical and economic analysis, developing advocacy‑ready reports, and translating complex investments into actionable insights for decision‑makers. The first year of the fellowship will focus on deep landscape analysis and a listening tour, followed by framework development and foundational recommendations. The second year (if desired) would potentially advance implementation influence, refine tools, and embed durable practices within OPA’s oversight model. Ultimately, this partnership will position OPA to advance a more transparent, accountable, and equitable LADWP that manages long‑term costs responsibly while expanding access to savings and opportunity for all ratepayers.

PROJECT APPROACH

Beginning in Fall 2026, the FUSE Executive Fellow will work with OPA to strengthen the analytical and strategic foundation of utility oversight during a period of major infrastructure transformation. The fellow will help OPA evaluate and translate complex utility investments, rate decisions, and customer programs into clear, customer‑centered recommendations and strategies that prioritize affordability, transparency, and measurable ratepayer benefits. The fellow’s work will focus on aligning economic analysis, program design, and policy advocacy to ensure that large‑scale utility modernization delivers equitable and durable outcomes for Los Angeles residents.

The fellow will begin with a 90‑day period of in‑depth discovery and assessment. During this phase, the fellow will conduct a comprehensive listening and learning tour with OPA leadership and staff, representatives from LADWP, Mayor’s Office, and City Council staff, relevant City departments, technical consultants, and community stakeholders. This process will surface insights into current rate design considerations, advanced meter deployment plans, affordability program challenges, legal constraints, and political dynamics shaping decision‑making.

The fellow will conduct a landscape analysis reviewing LADWP budgets, LA100 modeling inputs, advanced meter implementation strategies, affordability program documentation, prior OPA reports, and relevant legal frameworks. In parallel, the fellow will research best practices from peer municipal utilities that have advanced customer‑centered benefits realization, affordability program reform, and equitable rate strategies.

Drawing on insights from the discovery phase, the fellow will develop refined project goals, priority focus areas, and anticipated Year One deliverables and present them for review and approval by OPA leadership. This step will ensure the fellowship’s direction reflects operational realities, aligns with OPA’s oversight mandate, and establishes a clear and shared foundation for implementation.

The fellow will then focus on advancing Year One strategies that translate analysis into action. A central workstream will support advanced meter benefits realization by developing economic frameworks that quantify customer savings, assess deployment sequencing, and identify policy levers that strengthen affordability outcomes. The fellow will collaborate with OPA staff and external technical partners to analyze data, evaluate cost‑benefit scenarios, and translate findings into advocacy‑ready reports and decision‑support materials. A second major workstream will focus on affordability program portfolio analysis, including evaluating program effectiveness, identifying structural access barriers, benchmarking peer utilities, and recommending refinements that improve customer experience and targeted support for underserved communities. Throughout the year, the fellow will also provide technical and economic analysis to support OPA’s assessment of LADWP expenditures, capital plans, and departmental policies. Additionally, the fellow will support other ad hoc economic analyses requested by City leadership and contribute to strengthening public‑facing tools that enhance transparency and accountability.

The fellow will help develop practical tools and repeatable processes that strengthen OPA’s long‑term capacity, while also providing OPA with additional capability to support informed decision‑making by the LADWP Board of Commissioners. This may include establishing standardized evaluation frameworks, outlining benefits realization metrics, developing performance dashboards, and creating structured templates for future program assessments. Where appropriate, the fellow may support early implementation‑oriented efforts that test analytical models, pilot performance metrics, or inform near‑term policy decisions, while remaining responsive to emerging priorities.

By the end of Year One, the fellow will have helped establish a stronger analytical infrastructure within OPA, improved clarity around customer‑centered benefits of major utility investments, and enhanced capacity to evaluate and influence affordability programs. The fellow and OPA leadership will collaborate to define more specific goals, measurable impact targets, and scope for the second year of the fellowship, informed by lessons learned and early progress.

The second year (if desired) will then focus on deepening implementation influence, scaling effective affordability and benefits realization strategies, and embedding durable analytical practices within OPA’s oversight model. By the end of a potential second year, the north star of this fellowship is for OPA to be positioned with a transparent, accountable, and customer‑centered utility oversight framework that ensures major infrastructure investments translate into measurable savings, expanded access to programs, and long‑term economic resilience for all ratepayers.

EXPECTED DELIVERABLES

By Fall 2027, the FUSE Executive Fellow is expected to have:

• Developed an Advanced Meter Benefits Realization Framework – Worked with OPA leadership, LADWP staff, and technical partners to define and quantify customer‑centered benefits associated with advanced meter deployment, including projected savings, affordability impacts, and measurable performance indicators.
• Produced an Affordability Program Portfolio Assessment – In collaboration with OPA staff and contractors, conducted a comprehensive evaluation of LADWP’s customer‑facing programs, assessing cost‑effectiveness, accessibility, customer experience, and equity impacts, and identifying recommendations for refinement, consolidation, or targeted expansion.
• Delivered Utility Investment and Rate Impact Analyses – Generated clear, advocacy‑ready economic analyses of major utility investments, rate proposals, or emerging policy questions, translating complex technical modeling into actionable insights for City leadership and public stakeholders.
• Designed Standardized Evaluation Tools and Performance Metrics – Established repeatable analytical frameworks, dashboards, and reporting templates to strengthen OPA’s long‑term capacity to evaluate infrastructure investments, program performance, and ratepayer impacts.
• Established Foundational Knowledge Transfer Resources – Produced documentation, synthesis materials, and internal guidance tools that support sustained oversight, inform Year Two implementation priorities, and strengthen continuity within OPA’s small team.

KEY STAKEHOLDERS

• Executive Sponsor – Timothy O’Connor, Executive Director, Office of Public Accountability
• Project Supervisor – Edith Moreno, Deputy Executive Director, Office of Public Accountability

QUALIFICATIONS

• 15+ years of progressively responsible experience in organizational transformation and change management, from practitioner to enterprise‑level leadership.
• Synthesizes complex information into clear and concise recommendations and action‑oriented implementation plans.
• Develops and effectively implements both strategic and operational project management plans.
• Generates innovative, data‑driven, and result‑oriented solutions to complex challenges.
• Responds quickly to changing ideas, responsibilities, expectations, trends, strategies, and other processes.
• Communicates effectively verbally and in writing and excels in active listening and conversing.
• Fosters collaboration across multiple constituencies to support more effective decision‑making.
• Establishes and maintains strong relationships with diverse stakeholders, both inside and outside of government, particularly community‑based relationships.
• Embraces differing viewpoints and implements strategies to find common ground. Demonstrates confidence and professional diplomacy while effectively interacting with individuals at all levels of various organizations.

FUSE is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply for this position.