Distributed Flexibility Strategy Manager - ESO

About the role

Great Britain's electricity system is undergoing an ambitious, exciting and vital transformation. Together with industry, we are creating a cleaner, greener system, one that protects the planet and serves generations to come.

Climate change is the challenge of a generation, and the time to act is now. Join us and you won’t just be touching the lives of almost everyone in Great Britain – you will be shaping the way we use and consume energy for generations to come.

Within Markets, the ‘Flexibility Market Strategy’ department is the strategic engine thinking about the development and growth of flexibility markets that are vital in meeting our zero carbon operation ambitions. The team aims to enable and unlock flexibility, including distributed generation, storage, and demand side flexibility such as EV charging and electric heating. They also engage with a variety of stakeholders and collaborate with industry experts and innovators to design the roadmap to achieve that vision. They lead on and deliver innovative and radical market development projects to achieve their vision of enabling all demand that is capable of flexing, to be rewarded and incentivised for doing so, delivering vital services to a net zero power system.

This role will lead a team responsible for collaborating across industry to develop and align on Flexibility Market Strategy commitments that will deliver the distributed flexibility markets of the future. The department is less than a year old and growing at pace, and this role will design, develop and mobilise a new team, leading it to deliver great performance. This role will suit a resilient and ambitious team leader, looking to consolidate your leadership skills by running a high performing team and leading through significant transformation and change.

This role can be based from Wokingham, Warwick or Glasgow, and we continue to offer hybrid working from office and home. We are open to full time and part time applicants, as well as flexible working arrangements.

About us

The ESO has a key role to play in tackling climate change by transitioning GB’s electricity system to net zero. We already operate the fastest decarbonising electricity system in the world, with an ambition for zero carbon operation by 2025. And by 2035, we want to run 100% clean, green energy, all the time.

Becoming the National Energy System Operator

In Summer of 2024, the ESO will transition to becoming the National Energy System Operator, or NESO for short. Previously denoted as the Future System Operator (or FSO), the new National Energy System Operator will be the independent body responsible for planning Great Britain’s electricity and gas networks and operating the electricity system.

The ESO, including all of its existing roles, will be at the heart of the new National Energy System Operator. As NESO, we will build on our existing roles, capabilities, and ways of working significantly to create an organisation the energy system and its users’ need. Our new capabilities will enable us to look across vectors, including electricity, natural gas and hydrogen, and crucially consider the trade-offs between them.

The organisation will be set up as a public corporation with its own Board of independent directors, with complete operational independence from government, the regulator and any and all commercial interest. As the ESO are today, NESO will be licenced and regulated by Ofgem through price control agreements and obligated to identify optimal solutions to system operations and planning in the most sustainable, affordable and secure way for all.

The time to deliver is now. As part of our team, you won’t just be touching the lives of almost everyone in Great Britain – you’ll be shaping the way we use and consume energy for generations to come.

Key Accountabilities

• Play an integral part in the Flexibility Market Strategy leadership team as the department establishes its position as a high performing and customer focused team leading the strategic changes needed to deliver net zero. This will include, but not be limited to: setting direction and high work quality standards, developing our people to enable them to achieve their full potential, encouraging healthy challenge and debate, empowering our people to enable them to achieve, collaborating with other managers to ensure delivery plans are in place and resource appropriately allocated.
• Design, develop and mobilise a new team – identifying the key skills, experiences and capabilities required to deliver the teams’ accountabilities, nurturing this team and setting strategic direction. This will require leading a team with direct reports and a wider virtual team to deliver challenging goals, providing guidance, as well as coaching and developing colleagues.
• Create and role-model a culture where the NESO values thrive, that is Be Curious; Accelerate Progress; Create Belonging; Build Trust.
• Lead effectively across industry, working with Ofgem, DESNZ, DSOs, flexibility service providers, independent aggregators, technology aggregators and platform providers to align around a common vision for coherent, co-ordinated and competitive distributed flexibility markets. Collaborate effectively to develop the policies and strategic deliverables that will deliver this vision

• Lead effectively across the NESO organisation, influencing other leaders to support your strategic recommendations and commit to delivering capability/resource/data where required.
• Collaborate with internal and external industry colleagues to agree deliverable plans, identify benefits, scope out key activities and dependencies, OPEX and CAPEX requirements, and mobilising effective project management to deliver agreed goals. This may include scoping and leading consultancy projects to complement in-house analysis
• Ensure effective communication of deliverables to all impacted stakeholders, with a consistent focus on delivering value and agreed outcomes, re-prioritising and re-aligning plans where necessary in response to changes so benefits are extracted.
• Develop a horizon scanning capability to anticipate issues that may impact the success of distributed flexibility markets and the seamless movement of flexibility assets between markets, to deliver whole electricity system value to consumers

About you

What we do isn’t just important – it’s essential. That’s why we look to recruit experts in their field. In this case, we’re looking for someone who:

• Essential: Exhibits inspirational leadership, problem solving, with a proven ability to coach and develop others. Experience of leading a team of technical experts to deliver complex strategic change programmes, with a strong understanding of the principles and tools that enable change to be delivered effectively and to maximise value
• Essential: Experience of building relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and in balancing the needs of competing stakeholders to get to the best overall outcome
• Essential: Passionate about creating an exceptional customer experience
• Desirable: proven ability to think holistically and strategically, anticipating business needs and joining the dots on complex issues and aligning a wide range of stakeholders to drive towards a common goal and way forward
• Desirable: Ability to lead and influence across multi-disciplinary teams, optimising resource in a matrix management team
• Desirable: Knowledge of GB Electricity Market and understanding of flexibility services procured at both national and regional level, by ESO and DSOs
• Desirable: Experience in developing policy or changing frameworks and codes in GB electricity markets
• Desirable: experience in developing digital strategies that underpin strategic market change or policy

What you'll get

A competitive salary between £65,000 - £80,000 – dependent on experience and capability.

As well as your base salary, you will receive a bonus of up to 15% of your salary for stretch performance, 28 days annual leave as standard, and a competitive contributory pension scheme where we will double match your contribution to a maximum company contribution of 12%.

As we work towards creating a cleaner, greener, and more affordable future for all, we also work towards creating a place for our teammates to belong, with professional and personal growth and positive well-being.

• Full support and career-development resources to expand your skills, enhance your expertise, and maximise your potential along your career journey.
• A diverse and inclusive community of belonging, where teammates are empowered to bring ideas to the table.
• Generous Total Rewards Plan – comprising of health, finance and wealth, work/life balance, and career benefits.

More Information

This role closes on 15th April 2024 at 23:59, however we encourage candidates to submit their application as early as possible and not wait until the published closing date as this can vary. We will be holding an interview day for these roles and this will be held on Friday 3rd May 2024 in Warwick. Other dates maybe available.

We work towards the highest standards in everything we do, including how we support, value and develop our people. Our aim is to encourage and support employees to thrive and be the best they can be. We celebrate the difference people can bring into our organisation, and welcome and encourage applicants with diverse experiences and backgrounds, and offer flexible and tailored support, at home and in the office.

We're committed to building a workforce that represents the communities we serve, and a working environment in which each individual feels valued, respected, fairly treated, and able to reach their full potential.