Technical Support Specialist 2

Client: Southern Company Services
Location: Birmingham, AL
Contract: 3 Years
Schedule: Rotating 24x7x365 Shift Coverage




Job Summary




We are seeking a Technical Support Specialist II to provide frontline technical support for critical Energy Management Systems (EMS), SCADA, Operational Technology (OT), computer systems, and applications.




This position is part of a 24x7x365 support team and serves as a primary point of contact for customers experiencing technical issues. The successful candidate will receive and document inbound incidents, provide Level 1 troubleshooting and remote resolution, and escalate issues to appropriate technical teams when necessary.




Candidates with previous IT/OT Help Desk, Service Desk, SCADA, EMS, utility, or critical infrastructure support experience are strongly preferred.




Responsibilities
Serve as a single point of contact for inbound OT, EMS, and technical support incidents.
Receive support requests by phone, email, system alerts, and other communication channels.
Log, categorize, prioritize, and track incidents using a ticketing system.
Provide Level 1 troubleshooting and remote technical support.
Escalate unresolved incidents to appropriate EMS, application, network, infrastructure, or technical support teams.
Track incidents through resolution and maintain accurate case documentation.
Monitor primary SCADA and ancillary systems for health, performance, and availability.
Coordinate troubleshooting and repairs with EMS Department personnel and other technical teams.
Notify key customers and stakeholders of system outages and events that may impact critical systems.
Monitor and support Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery systems.
Follow established Change Management processes and knowledge-based procedures.
Prioritize incidents based on operational impact and criticality to the Bulk Power System.
Adhere to electronic and physical access policies.
Communicate system status, outages, incidents, and escalations to customers, support personnel, and management.
Provide feedback and recommendations for continuous process improvement.
Required Qualifications
3 5 years of experience in Technical Support, Help Desk, Service Desk, IT/OT Support, Systems Support, or a related technical role.
Degree or formal education in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.
Experience troubleshooting computer systems, applications, and user issues.
Experience providing remote support through phone, email, or similar channels.
Experience using an incident management or ticketing system.
Strong critical-thinking and problem-solving skills.
Excellent customer service and interpersonal skills.
Strong verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to multitask and prioritize incidents based on severity and operational impact.
Ability to follow technical procedures, escalation processes, and Change Management requirements.
Ability to work effectively in a high-availability and sometimes high-pressure environment.
Preferred Qualifications
Previous IT/OT Help Desk or Service Desk experience.
Experience supporting Energy Management Systems (EMS).
Experience monitoring or supporting SCADA systems.
Working knowledge of Windows operating systems.
Working knowledge of AIX, UNIX, or Linux-based environments.
Basic understanding of distributed computer networks.
Previous utility, electric transmission, power generation, or critical infrastructure experience.
Experience supporting Business Continuity or Disaster Recovery environments.
Regulatory & Security Requirements




The selected candidate must be able to comply with security and regulatory requirements associated with critical energy infrastructure, including:




Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) requirements.
Applicable Sarbanes-Oxley requirements.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Standards of Conduct.
Southern Company electronic and physical access requirements.
Southern Company Separation Protocol.
Southern Company Insider Threat Program requirements.
Required background screening and drug screening.
Work Schedule




This position supports a 24x7x365 operation and requires rotating shift work.




Shifts may be 8 or 12 hours.
Must be available for both day and night shifts.
Weekend and holiday work is required as part of the rotation.
During severe weather or emergency events, employees may be required to remain local to or be sequestered near the control center as essential personnel.
Key Skills




Technical Support | Help Desk | Service Desk | IT/OT Support | EMS | SCADA | Incident Management | Level 1 Support | Ticketing Systems | Windows | AIX | UNIX | Network Troubleshooting | Critical Infrastructure | CIP | FERC | Disaster Recovery | 24x7 Operations