Director, Safety

Director, Safety – AES Indiana & AES Ohio

Location: Indianapolis, IN and/or Dayton, OH with regular travel to operational sites across Indiana and Ohio. Hybrid/On-site presence expected based on business needs.

Reports To: COO, US Utilities

Position Summary: The Safety Director leads health & safety strategy and execution for AES Indiana and AES Ohio across Generation, Transmission & Distribution (T&D), operational/field sites, and all Construction - including Growth projects and programmatic capital programs. This leader is accountable for building and sustaining a strong safety culture, ensuring safety compliance, strengthening serious incident prevention, and improving health & safety performance through standardized systems, disciplined governance, and field-focused leadership.

This role partners closely with Operations leaders, T&D, Generation, Program/Project teams, Central Operations, HR, Legal, Supply Chain, Finance, and the enterprise EHS Center of Expertise (CoE) to ensure AES's safety management system is implemented consistently while enabling local execution excellence and risk reduction across both company and contractor workforces.

Scope:

• Two regulated electric utilities with diverse operational risk profiles
• Coverage includes:
• Power generation facilities and associated operational sites
• T&D field operations (line work, substations, vegetation, construction)
• Fleet, warehouses, service centers, storm response operations
• Contractor and vendor workforces supporting O&M and capital delivery
• All safety oversight for Construction across both utilities, including:
• Growth projects (ongoing and new generation as applicable, interconnections, substations, large load enablement, major reliability upgrades)
• Programmatic programs (Smart Grid, system hardening, reconductoring, substation upgrades, fleet/facilities projects)
• Major contractor mobilizations, EPC/GC-led work, and multi-site execution

Key Outcomes / Success Measures:

• Sustained improvement in serious injury and fatality prevention performance (SIP) and critical risk control verification
• Strong compliance performance with OSHA and state/local requirements (no significant findings; timely corrective actions)
• Improved leading indicators: field observations, hazard reporting, corrective action closure, training completion, contractor compliance
• High-quality investigations and learning dissemination with measurable recurrence reduction
• Increased consistency of health & safety standards, tools, and routines across both utilities and across capital delivery portfolios

Key Responsibilities:

1) Safety Leadership & Culture:

• Lead a "safety-first" culture across Generation, T&D, and Construction, reinforcing visible field leadership and consistent expectations.
• Coach operational and project leaders on safety leadership behaviors, accountability, and decision-making under risk.
• Establish and sustain effective engagement routines: site visits, safety stand-downs, leadership briefings, and field verification of critical controls.

2) Serious Incident Prevention & Critical Risk Management:

• Own and drive serious injury/fatality prevention strategy and execution, including critical risk control verification.
• Ensure high-risk work is planned and executed with effective controls (energized work and switching, confined space, working at heights, lifting/rigging, excavation, traffic control, contractor work).
• Strengthen permit-to-work and work authorization processes where applicable.

3) Safety Management System, Governance & Assurance:

• Implement and continuously improve the safety management system locally in alignment with enterprise standards and the EHS CoE.
• Lead audit/assessment programs, management reviews, and corrective action governance with strong follow-through and transparency.
• Establish data-driven performance management (dashboards, trend analysis, leading/lagging indicator reviews).

4) Incident Reporting, Investigations & Learning:

• Ensure timely reporting, classification, investigation, and closeout of incidents and near-misses.
• Lead/oversee investigations for serious events using established methodologies; ensure high-quality root cause analysis and actionable corrective actions.
• Translate lessons learned into updated procedures, training, and field communications across both utilities and the construction portfolio.

5) Construction Health & Safety Leadership (Growth Projects & Programmatic Programs):

• Own and lead health & safety governance for all construction and capital delivery work across AES Indiana and AES Ohio, including growth and programmatic portfolios.
• Partner with Program Management, Engineering, T&D Construction, Generation project teams, Supply Chain, and contractors to embed health & safety requirements into project planning, design reviews, contracting, mobilization, and execution.
• Ensure consistent application of construction health & safety controls (pre-task planning/JHAs, permits, work zones/traffic control, lifting/rigging plans, energized work boundaries, excavation controls, subcontractor management).
• Establish field verification routines for large projects/programs (site walks, audits, leading indicator reviews, stop-work reinforcement) and ensure corrective actions are closed with discipline.
• Lead serious event readiness for projects: escalation protocols, incident response, investigation standards, and lessons-learned deployment across the portfolio.
• Strengthen contractor qualification, onboarding, and performance management, including clear expectations, KPIs, and consequences for non-compliance.

6) Contractor Safety & Operational Risk Controls:

• Build and enforce contractor health & safety requirements, including onboarding, qualification, field oversight, and performance management.
• Include construction contractors and project/program vendors in the contractor governance model, with clear onboarding, field oversight, and performance routines.
• Partner with Supply Chain and project leaders to embed health & safety requirements into contracting, mobilization, and project execution.
• Drive consistent application of job hazard analysis (JHA), pre-job briefs, stop-work authority, and field verification across O&M and construction.

7) Training, Competency & Workforce Readiness:

• Ensure health & safety training, competency frameworks, and qualification processes are in place for employees and contractors.
• Partner with Operations, Construction leadership, and HR to strengthen onboarding, refresher training, leadership development, and compliance training completion.
• Support emergency preparedness and drill programs (including storm response readiness and construction incident readiness).

8) Stakeholder & Regulatory Interface:

• Serve as the primary health & safety interface with regulators as needed (OSHA, state agencies), including inspections, inquiries, and corrective action plans.
• Partner with Legal and Communications on regulatory matters, reporting, and external stakeholder engagement.
• Participate in industry and peer utility forums as appropriate.

9) Organization Leadership & Talent Development:

• Lead, develop, and align the safety organization across both utilities; build bench strength and succession plans.
• Create clear role expectations, operating rhythm, and performance management for safety team members.
• Build strong cross-functional relationships and influence without authority to drive consistent execution.

10) Budget & Resource Management:

• Manage the safety budget for AES Indiana and AES Ohio, ensuring effective resource allocation and prioritization.
• Build business cases for critical risk reduction investments (process, training, technology, equipment).

Key Interfaces:

• Utility Presidents / COO / Operations leadership
• Generation, T&D, and Construction/Capital Delivery leadership teams
• Program/Project Management, Engineering, and Central Operations
• Enterprise EHS CoE, Risk, Legal, HR, Supply Chain, Finance, Digital/IT
• Contractors, vendors, and external partners
• Regulators and local/state agencies

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in safety, Engineering, Industrial Hygiene, or related field (Master's preferred).
• 10+ years progressive safety leadership experience in utilities, power generation, T&D, heavy industrial, or similar high-risk operations, including multi-site accountability.
• Demonstrated success improving serious incident prevention and operational safety performance.