changes are coming - IEEE Xplore

leader’s corner

Wanda Reder

changes are coming in the power industry and in PES

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THE POWER INDUSTRY IS changing, and the list of change-driven challenges is a long one: We face a dynamic regulatory and political climate, cost pressures, heightened environmental concerns, increased public scrutiny, more international sourcing, volatile material pricing, a construction boom in many parts of the world, increased outsourcing, and a potential brain drain as significant numbers of engineers in industry and academia move toward retirement. In light of such a daunting list, it’s surely an understatement to say that our roles as power professionals are becoming more complex than ever before. As our industry changes, the IEEE Power Engineering Society (PES) clearly must evolve to position our organization for the future and to continue providing value for members. In that regard, we have already launched a number of initiatives, including image building, online career services customized to student needs, technical committee outreach, and collaborative efforts to create an action plan for workforce development.

Building Membership Through Image Enhancement One of four strategies identified in the PES long-range plan is to boost PES membership and the image of power engineering. The average age of PES members is approaching 50, about eight Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MPE.2007.904757

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years older than the average age of IEEE members, so we obviously need to actively recruit and retain new members. To attract crucial new talent to both the industry and PES, the visibility and image of power engineering and PES need to improve. In addition to increasing membership, other aspects of this strategic initiative include boosting the involvement of IEEE GOLD members, improving the public image of power engineering, and seeking collaborative efforts and opportunities to communicate the value of the power industry profession. PES must move forward on this front while clarifying our purpose and mission in the emerging context of reliability and the environmental impact of growing energy use. PES is working to build the Society’s image by implementing online surveys and creating a branding campaign. Online surveys have been sent to PES members, nonmembers active in the power industry, and students planning to pursue careers in power. Preliminary survey results were available at the PES General Meeting in June. These survey results were coupled with a review of the current PES Web site and an assessment of our promotional efforts, with a final report on image and branding expected to be complete before the end of the year. The report will include recommendations for promotional concepts, new member referral suggestions, and adjustments needed to better position the PES as the Society of choice. I

want to thank you for the feedback you provided through the online survey; to move forward, it is necessary to understand what’s important for existing and potential members, especially in today’s industry environment of rapid, multifaceted change.

Announcing PowerCareers.org About one year ago, the U.S. Department of Energy sent a report to Congress defining the aging power industry workforce as a critical issue for the 21st century. This issue has implications for economic productivity in general, and for reliability in particular. The NERC 2006 Long-Term Reliability Assessment, issued in October 2006, stated that, “The reliability of the North American electric utility grid is dependent on the accumulated experience and technical expertise of those who design and operate the system. As the rapidly aging workforce leaves the industry over the next five to ten years, the challenge to the electric utility industry will be to fill this void….” It goes on to say, “The electric utility industry as a whole has not…established the needed cooperative programs with academia to reinvigorate power engineering education in North America.” Similar conclusions appear in reports from other countries. Moving beyond those two reports will require action to attract students into power careers and to build a sustainable educational infrastructure that can produce enough highly september/october 2007

One of four strategies identified in the PES longrange plan is to boost PES membership and the image of power engineering.

trained engineers into the future. PES is working collaboratively with industry, government, and universities to define what those next steps should be. PES needs to experiment with new initiatives to help address these complex workforce issues. One step we’re taking is to create a prototype online career service, called PowerCareers.org, that is uniquely designed for power engineering students. One objective of PowerCareers.org is to facilitate information flow among students, industry, and academia about internship, full-time, and part-time opportunities. Another objective is to build a better understanding of future power

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engineering workforce needs and of the educational infrastructure required to support those needs. Employers registering to use PowerCareers.org will be asked to complete a brief survey on their present and future needs for power engineers. Engineering faculty will have the opportunity to use PowerCareers.org to explore career trends and opportunities for their students. PES is developing PowerCareers.org in cooperation with the multi-university Power Systems Engineering Research Center (PSERC). The prototype will target students, employers and faculty in the United States and Canada. After a trial period, the possibility of geo-

graphic expansion to other IEEE regions will be evaluated.

Technical Committee Outreach As part of the image-building effort, John McDonald and I have been giving keynote talks to share the vision of the PES Governing Board and gather member feedback. To date, we have met with the Substations, Insulated Conductor, Switchgear, and Stationary Battery Committees. Through the end of the year, we also are scheduled to meet with the Transmission and Distribution, Nuclear Power Engineering, Power System Relaying and Transformer Committees. In this outreach effort, we introduce the board members, share PES goals, recognize and congratulate recently named Fellows, and describe new PES initiatives. Topics covered in the presentation include:

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✔ efforts to improve the visibility

and image of power engineering and PES ✔ training and educational developments, including the announcement of an advisory group on Education/Industry Relations, short course offerings and IEEE Expert Now On-Line Courses, which have been jointly developed with the Industry Application Society ✔ new awards, such as the IEEE Robert P. Noberini Distinguished Contributions to Power Engineering Professionalism Award and the new Fellows category of application engineer/practitioner ✔ the introduction of super sessions, which are being used at meetings to address emerging issues that span across committees ✔ new promotional efforts such as the membership contest for

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IEEE PES Chapters introduced in 2007, a Web site contest, and PES posters and promotional material (in development) ✔ collaborative efforts for technical advancement; these include the second symposium for Ship Technologies, Broadband over Power Line (BPL) Communications subcommittee, Renewable Energy subcommittee, and a pending Intelligent T&D grid subcommittee. Through this technical outreach effort, it has been rewarding to see technical committee leaders recognizing the importance of engaging GOLD members and soliciting first-time technical committee attendees. Having longerterm committee members invite newer members to shadow their activities will help ensure that knowledge is passed along and that technical committee efforts will thrive in the future.

Conclusion The power industry is changing dramatically, and PES is changing with it. PES serves power engineers globally and seeks to ensure that the necessary engineering leadership and abilities are available to address technical challenges throughout the world. Personally, I look forward to assuming the role of PES president in January 2008 and working with you to keep this momentum going and achieve the necessary changes in PES to maintain its relevance as our industry changes. As January approaches, I am seeking to better understand what we can do to provide increased value to our members and the general society that we serve. Clearly, we need to work both internally and externally to communicate who we are and what we do to position PES as the Society of choice during a period of far-reaching change. If you have suggestions or comments, please p&e contact me at [email protected].

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