Compliance Specialist

Advanced Compliance Specialist

FirstEnergy at a Glance

We are a forward-thinking electric utility powered by a diverse team of employees committed to making customers' lives brighter, the environment better and our communities stronger.

FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE) is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Headquartered in Akron, Ohio, FirstEnergy includes one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions, and a regulated generating fleet with a total capacity of more than 3,500 megawatts.

About the Opportunity

All employees who apply for a posted position must notify their supervisors that they have applied. Employees who have not been in their current positions for at least one year, or who are in positions with specific requirements beyond one year, must obtain approval from their supervisor before applying.

Responsibilities include:

Reporting to the CIP Asset Policy & Reporting Manager, the responsibilities of this position include assisting with the development and ongoing monitoring and training of Power Delivery staff the required asset policies and procedures to comply with FirstEnergy and North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) policies and procedures.

The analyst will be responsible for:

• Revising existing and developing new Power Delivery cyber asset work practices and procedures in coordination with Transmission Protection & Planning, Transmission Engineering, Project Management, Power Delivery Operations, and Information Technology departments.
• Improving FirstEnergy processes associated with the initiation of transmission work, both maintenance expense and capital, to ensure compliance to NERC Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP V5) guidelines.
• Maintaining and revising as needed FirstEnergy (FE) compliance program infrastructure including the administration and maintenance of compliance policies, programs, and procedures related to the North American Reliability Corporation (NERC) CIP Reliability Standards.
• Have a working knowledge of work management processes of related systems in CASCADE, PowerBase, EDOA, FileNet (Content Navigator), and SAP. Additional training of these systems will be trained as needed.
• Develops and conducts initial and ongoing training on Asset Policy & Reporting procedures.
• Work with Transmission stakeholders and employees to address questions and provide consistent policy and procedure interpretations.
• Recommend improvements to processes associated with cyber asset installation, removal, and modifications.
• Lead and participate in weekly CIP Medium Impact and Low Impact Change Control meetings to ensure all cyber assets changes are recorded as audit evidence.
• Participate & prepare evidence for periodic audits performed by NERC which assess FirstEnergy's (FE) compliance with the NERC Reliability Standards (gather evidence, draft responses, prepare witnesses, etc.)
• Maintain systems to track/monitor compliance with the NERC reliability standards.
• Investigate system events to determine if compliance was maintained during the events.
• Respond to requests for information (RFIs) from NERC Regional Entities and other regulators.
• Proactively identify areas of risk in FirstEnergy's (FE) compliance with the NERC Reliability Standards and develop solutions to mitigate those risks.
• Collaborate with other FirstEnergy (FE) business units to compile and validate evidence.
• Must be comfortable ensuring timely completion of all compliance deliverables as required by the NERC reliability standards.
• Ability to perform in-depth reviews of business unit processes, procedures, and related controls to determine the effectiveness of reliability standards adherence and compliance practices.
• Develop performance measures and monitoring tools to assure compliance with compliance policies and procedures for planned and unplanned work activity.
• Lead discussions to help ensure compliance with policy and procedure and consistency in application among Operating Companies by coordinating monitoring efforts and compiling results from Operating Company staff.
• Identify performance gaps and propose solutions, communications, and training based on compliance results.
• Make recommendations to influence future policy, procedure, process, and technology changes to improve the overall accuracy and reliability of compliance information.
• Supporting the Emergency Plan through participating in the assigned storm duties including hazard response and hazard dispatch activities.
• Working independently and in unison with others including region and plant personnel as well as other departments and outside contractors.

An employee hired at the Advanced Compliance Specialist or Senior Compliance Specialist level will be expected to perform all the above responsibilities with more proficiency, and in a more independent manner than the Compliance Specialist.

Qualifications at the Compliance Specialist level include:

Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Engineering, Business Administration, or related discipline with a minimum 4+ years' professional work experience is preferred. An advanced degree or professional certification is preferred.

In lieu of a degree, 7 years of direct, related industry experience will be considered. The experience must be at a professional (exempt) level which also includes data reporting, analysis, costing and recommendations, along with an in-depth understanding of the subject matter.

Benefits, Compensation & Workforce Diversity

At FirstEnergy, employees are key to our success. We depend on their talents to meet the challenges of our changing business environment. We are committed to rewarding individual and team efforts through our total rewards philosophy which includes competitive pay plus incentive compensation, a company-sponsored pension plan, 401(k) savings plan with matching employer contribution, a choice of medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, and life insurance programs, as well as skills development training with tuition reimbursement. Please visit our website at to learn more about all of our employee rewards programs. FirstEnergy proudly supports workforce diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, status as a protected veteran, or status as a qualified individual with a disability. No recruiters or agencies without a previously signed contract. Unable to sponsor or transfer H-1B visas at this time.

Safety

Safety is a core value for FirstEnergy and is essential to all of our business activities. We ensure employees have the tools, information, and processes to perform their duties in a manner that assures safety for themselves, their co-workers, our customers and the public. Our goals are to provide a safe work environment, to maintain an accident-free, injury-free workplace, and to promote and maintain public safety. To meet these goals, we dedicate ourselves to achieving world-class safety standards.