Senior Substation Design Engineer

ThinkingAhead Executive Search; United States; Remote; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

ThinkingAhead Executive Search is seeking an experienced Substation Design Engineer to become the first dedicated substation engineer in a growing power delivery organization. You will own the technical side, help establish standards, and guide a developing team as the practice expands.

Initially an individual contributor role, with potential progression to technical lead or engineering management. The role supports remote, highly collaborative work across utility-scale projects.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Civil, Structural, or related engineering discipline.
• 5+ years of relevant substation engineering/design experience.
• Strong understanding of substation design principles and equipment.
• Experience with substation design software/tools and utility-scale projects.

Responsibilities

• Lead and perform substation engineering and design for utility and power delivery projects.
• Develop substation designs from conceptual development through detailed engineering and construction.
• Perform and/or oversee design calculations and analyses.
• Coordinate with civil, structural, electrical, protection & controls disciplines.
• Develop and review drawings, specifications, calculations, and technical documentation.
• Review deliverables for quality, accuracy and compliance.

Skills

Substation design

Project ownership

Communication

Remote work

PE license preferred

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

ETAP

SKM

AutoCAD

Power system software

Job description

We are looking for an experienced Substation Design Engineer to become the first dedicated substation engineering hire within a growing power delivery organization.

This is an opportunity for a strong substation engineer to take ownership of the technical side of the company's substation work while helping establish the processes, standards, and capabilities that will support a larger engineering team over time.

Initially, this will be a hands-on individual contributor role. As the substation group grows, the position is expected to evolve into a formal technical lead and/or engineering management role, with the opportunity to mentor and eventually lead additional engineers.

What You'll Do

• Lead and perform substation engineering and design for utility and power delivery projects
• Develop substation designs from conceptual development through detailed engineering and construction
• Perform and/or oversee substation design calculations and engineering analyses
• Develop and review substation physical layouts, equipment arrangements, grounding, bus design, and associated design packages
• Coordinate substation civil, structural, electrical, protection & controls, and other engineering disciplines
• Develop and review engineering drawings, specifications, calculations, and technical documentation
• Apply applicable NESC, IEEE, ASCE, utility, and client standards to substation designs
• Review technical deliverables for quality, accuracy, and compliance with project requirements
• Coordinate with clients, utilities, vendors, and other project stakeholders
• Support project planning, estimating, scheduling, and technical execution
• Help establish internal substation design standards, processes, templates, and best practices
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship as the substation team expands
• Participate in client meetings and contribute to the continued growth of the substation practice

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Civil, Structural, or related engineering discipline
• 5+ years of relevant substation engineering/design experience
• Strong understanding of substation design principles, equipment, layouts, and engineering practices
• Experience with substation design software and engineering tools
• Experience working on utility-scale substation projects
• Ability to independently take ownership of projects and technical deliverables
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Comfortable working in a remote, highly collaborative environment
• Professional Engineer (PE) license strongly preferred, but not required

Why This Role

This is an opportunity to join at the ground floor of a growing substation engineering practice. Rather than inheriting an established department, you'll help build it. You'll have the opportunity to influence technical standards, engineering workflows, design processes, tools, and future hiring while remaining hands-on with the engineering work. As the practice grows, the role can develop into a technical lead and ultimately an engineering leadership position.