Skip to main content

Role Specification for Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Search Reimagined® Audio Interview

Please click here to listen to Lyceum’s unique Search Reimagined® podcast interview program which provide important perspectives from members of the board of directors and the CEO. The program features three members of WECC’s Leadership, including Ric Campbell, Chairman of the Board; Felicia Marcus, Board Member and Chair of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee; and Melanie Frye, President and Chief Executive Officer.

The Program is segmented into five parts:

Part I: The History of WECC, and the Electric Reliability Organizations’ mission critical foundational purpose (2:44)

Part II: WECC’s Delegated Responsibilities and its Division of Responsibilities (15:27)

Part III: WECC’s Strategy and its Implications on Reliability (33:20)

Part IV: Ideal Experiences and Attributes of the Next CEO (47:54)

Part V: The Attraction of WECC and Closing Comments (1:05:47)

The Organization

WECC is a Salt Lake City-based not-for-profit 501(с)(4) social welfare organization that exists to ensure a reliable Bulk Power System (BPS) in the geographic area known as the Western Interconnection. There are six Regional Entities (REs) like WECC that have delegated authority from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Of those six REs, WECC oversees the largest and most geographically diverse region, known as the Western Interconnection. WECC’s footprint serves a population of over 90 million providing over 168.2 GW of Peak Demand in 2024 and spans more than 1.8 million square miles from Canada to Mexico and includes the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, the northern portion of Baja California, Mexico, and all or portions of the 14 Western states between.

The Western Interconnection is made up of over 158,000 circuit-miles of transmission lines that carry power long distances, from remote areas where generating resources are located to populated areas where the user load is located, primarily along the West Coast.

The West has a diverse mix of electrical generation resources, including large amounts of hydro and natural gas, as well as a growing amount of renewable resources such as wind and solar. The generation capacity of the Western Interconnection makes up approximately 20 percent of all capacity in the United States and Canada. However, the Interconnection has over 70 percent of all solar capacity and one-third of all hydro capacity.

Based on the 2024 Western Assessment of Resource Adequacy, entities in the Western Interconnection forecast a 20% increase in annual demand over the next decade. To meet this demand will require unprecedented resource growth, with industry planning to add 172 GW in the next decade. Over the last six years, only 76% of planned resource additions came online in the year scheduled, and in 2023, that number was 53%. Resource margins are shrinking, leaving less buffer for cancelled and delayed projects. If the resource build-out over the next 10 years mimics the last five years, by 2034, the West will have hundreds of hours each year when demand is at risk.

The Western Interconnection’s resource portfolio continues to transform, heavily driven by energy policy.

  • Capacity: The interconnection added approximately 24.3 GW of new generation capacity in 2024 for a total of 321.1 GW. That is up from 15 GW added in 2023.
  • Inverter-Based Resources: 75% (18 GW) of the new generation added in 2024 was inverter-based resources (IBR) made up of 8 GW solar, 3 GW wind, and 7 GW battery storage. Since 2015, more than 70 GW of IBRs have been added to the system. In 2023, wind and solar accounted for 19.1% of energy produced.
  • Natural Gas: 5.5 GW of natural gas generation was added in 2024, a ten-fold increase over what was added in 2023 and more than has been added during any year in the last decade. In 2023, natural gas generation accounted for nearly 36% of all energy produced, the largest single source of generation, followed by hydro at 22.5% of energy.
  • Retirements: In 2024, entities retired 1.4 GW of generation capacity. Most of the retired capacity was coal (920 MW) and natural gas (413 MW). Over the next decade, entities plan to retire an additional 26 GW of resources, most of which is dispatchable (12 GW of coal, 10 GW of natural gas, 1.5 GW of nuclear, and .5 MW hydro.

Source: State of the Interconnection 2025

Key Statistics 

Company: Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC)
Headquarters: Salt Lake City, Utah
Annual Budget: $40 million (Statutory)
Organization Type: A social welfare, not-for-profit 501 (с)(4)
Employees: 175
Website: www.wecc.org

WECC’s Duties and Mission

WECC, the other five REs, and NERC are collectively referred to as the ERO Enterprise, with the REs and NERC playing different but important and complementary roles in delivering ERO Enterprise programs. The ERO Enterprise is explicitly committed to its collective success in achieving its shared vision of a highly reliable and secure North American BPS.

WECC’s delegated, statutory activities include the following functional areas as described in Exhibit E of the Regional Delegation Agreement:

  • Participating in the development of NERC Reliability Standards and developing additional standards with particular relevance to the Western Interconnection
  • Operating a Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement program, which includes risk assessment and the development and execution of risk-informed Registered Entity oversight plans and the enforcement of national and (where applicable) Regional Reliability Standards (Note: WECC’s compliance monitoring and enforcement programs for international entities in British Columbia, Alberta, and Mexico are conducted pursuant to bilateral agreements with applicable international authorities)
  • Registration and certification of the Western Interconnection’s Bulk Power System entities (a number that is rapidly growing with the energy transition)
  • Proactive assessment of the reliability of the Western Interconnection and analysis of its performance, including studies of future reliability and performance risks (including all of the necessary data gathering and analysis inherent in these activities)
  • Event analysis to study system conditions and events that affect or may affect the reliable operation of the BPS and analyze historical operation and performance of the Western Interconnection to identify emerging trends and lessons learned
  • Training, Education, and Outreach to inform, educate, and interact with registered entities and other stakeholders
  • Situational awareness and infrastructure security to understand system and security issues when they emerge and ensure that NERC and FERC are well-informed of system events (storms, wildfires, unplanned outages, etc) that may impact BPS reliability

In addition, WECC has one department that performs the non-statutory activity of tracking renewable energy certificates for participating states through the Western Renewable Energy Generation Information System (WREGIS). WECC is undertaking a greenfield software development to support this program, with the intention to establish WREGIS as a separate company once fully functional.

The Position

Position Title: Chief Executive Officer
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Reports to: WECC Board of Directors

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is accountable to the Board of Directors for leading WECC in achieving its mission to effectively and efficiently mitigate risks to the reliability and security of the Western Interconnection’s Bulk Power System. The CEO will steward WECC’s delegated authority under its Regional Delegation Agreement with NERC, its compliance with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rules and directives, and its collaboration with Canadian and Mexican reliability counterparts.

The CEO provides strategic, operational, and cultural leadership to the organization, ensuring WECC remains an independent, objective, and forward-looking voice in an era of unprecedented system transformation. The position requires a leader who can balance technical rigor with strategic diplomacy, sustaining operational excellence while elevating WECC’s external visibility and impact through relationships, credibility, and influence.

The CEO is also a member of the ERO Enterprise Executive Committee (EC), which includes the CEOs of all six REs and the CEO and SVPs of NERC. The EC works to create executive alignment, leadership, and strategic direction for the ERO Enterprise, balancing the need for national alignment of programs where necessary while honoring unique regional needs and priorities.

The next CEO will inherit a strong organization with a capable and cohesive executive team, a respected position within the ERO Enterprise, and a deeply engaged Board. The Board seeks a leader who will continue to mature WECC’s outreach and influence with regulators, policy leaders, and industry executives, ensuring that the organization’s insights inform decisions shaping reliability across the Western grid.

The CEO leads the organization in fulfilling its delegated responsibilities, advancing WECC’s long-term strategy, and sustaining a culture of integrity, collaboration, and high performance. For additional background, please access this link:  WECC Long-term Strategy.

Key Accountabilities Include:

Leadership and Organizational Stewardship of WECC’s Unique Leadership Culture

  • Lead and manage WECC’s operations, ensuring the organization delivers on its statutory and strategic obligations with excellence and efficiency.
  • Cultivate a high-performing executive team, while also ensuring effective leadership and talent strategies are in place to sustain bench-strength, develop future leaders and succession plans, and advance the organization’s long-term success.
  • Foster a culture of accountability, leadership, and continuous improvement across a distributed and highly technical workforce.
  • Champion WECC’s commitment to technical and analytical rigor, perspective, and independence.

Strategic and Technical Direction

  • Lead the organization’s strategic planning and execution to identify and respond to emerging reliability risks from the energy transition, climate change, technological and physical disruption, and policy divergence across jurisdictions.
  • Ensure WECC’s reliability assessments, risk analyses, and scenario studies remain authoritative, relevant, and accessible to decision-makers.
  • Integrate innovation and data analytics, including emerging applications of AI and automation, to enhance predictive capabilities, compliance efficiency, and insight generation.

Stakeholder and Regulatory Engagement

  • Serve as WECC’s principal ambassador and spokesperson, representing the organization with NERC, FERC, state and provincial regulators, industry leaders, and policy forums.
  • Strengthen relationships with regional and national policymakers to ensure reliability considerations are understood and embedded in energy planning and regulatory design.
  • Lead WECC’s participation in the ERO Enterprise Executive Committee and other ERO Enterprise-wide bodies, shaping reliability strategy across the enterprise with a spirit of collaboration.
  • Build and sustain trust-based relationships with utilities, balancing authorities, market operators, trade associations, and policymakers and regulators across the West.

Board Partnership and Governance

  • Partner with the Board of Directors to shape and execute WECC’s strategic direction and policy priorities.
  • Provide timely, objective, and transparent reporting on reliability risks, organizational performance, and emerging issues.
  • Ensure the Board has access to clear analysis and insight to fulfill its oversight role effectively.

Public Voice and External Visibility

  • Represent WECC as an independent, objective, resource neutral voice on reliability.
  • Elevate WECC’s presence in policy, industry, and public forums through thoughtful, data-driven communication.
  • Engage diverse stakeholders with credibility, humility, and purpose to advance common understanding of reliability challenges and solutions.

The Person

The successful candidate will bring a record of strategic leadership, organizational management, and technical understanding within the energy sector, ideally in roles involving system operations and planning, regulatory oversight, or reliability management.

 Qualifications and Experience Required

  •  Ten or more years of senior leadership experience within the electric power, reliability, or regulatory sectors, with demonstrated success managing multidisciplinary teams in technically complex or policy-sensitive environments.
  • Understanding of bulk power system operations and reliability standards, including experience with NERC, FERC, regional reliability organizations, and/or major utility operations.
  • Proven ability to navigate the intersection of regulation, policy, and operations, demonstrating constructive engagement with regulators, policymakers, and industry executives.
  • Track record of effective governance partnership, including experience working with or reporting to a Board of Directors.
  • Strong strategic, analytical, and financial acumen, capable of guiding the organization through complex operational, technological, and regulatory change.
  • Demonstrated communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to represent the organization credibly and persuasively before diverse audiences.
  • Experience leading distributed or matrixed teams, fostering alignment, collaboration, and accountability across technical functions.
  • Must reside, or relocate, within commuting distance to WECC headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah.
  • Educational foundation that includes a bachelor’s degree in engineering, business, or a related field; an advanced degree (MBA, MPA, or MS in engineering or energy systems) is desirable.
  • Additional assets may include experience with reliability assessments, grid modernization, data analytics, or the application of AI and emerging technologies in utility or regulatory contexts.

Leadership Competencies    

The next CEO of WECC must possess a leadership profile that combines the analytical discipline of a systems thinker, the foresight of a strategist, and the authenticity of a convener and adept people/organizational manager. In keeping with WECC’s public-interest mission, these competencies define the behavioral and leadership characteristics that will distinguish a successful leader.

Regulatory and Stakeholder Management

The political posture of the WECC CEO must remain strictly objective and nonpartisan. The ideal leader will have demonstrated the ability to build long-term, trust-based relationships with regulatory bodies, policymakers, and diverse stakeholders across multi-jurisdictional contexts. This individual will understand the nuances of working within a regulatory framework while preserving WECC’s independence and credibility. The CEO will exhibit political acumen and be able to anticipate shifts in policy, manage competing interests, and advance reliability through education and collaboration rather than advocacy.

Strategic Orientation

The CEO will be a forward-thinking strategist capable of integrating technical, regulatory, and policy perspectives into a coherent vision for the organization and the Western Interconnection. This includes the ability to interpret complex signals from evolving energy markets, emerging technologies, and climate dynamics, translating them into actionable plans that ensure WECC remains at the forefront of reliability risks. The successful candidate will demonstrate intellectual agility, an ability to frame uncertainty as opportunity, and a disciplined approach to balancing innovation with risk mitigation.

Systems Thinking and Foresight

The energy ecosystem of the Western Interconnection is increasingly integrated: technologically, geographically, and institutionally. The CEO must possess an advanced systems mindset, understanding how interdependent factors across markets, transmission systems, and environmental conditions influence reliability. This individual will guide WECC in identifying and prioritizing systemic risks, using data-driven insight, modeling, and scenario analysis to inform decisions. The leader will bring a forward-looking perspective, ensuring that WECC continues to provide predictive, rather than reactive, reliability leadership.

 Collaboration and Influence

The CEO must be a consummate collaborator who leads through inclusion, humility, and clarity. As a convener, the leader’s influence will come not from advocacy or authority but from the ability to connect stakeholders around shared facts and purpose. The CEO will have demonstrated success building coalitions and facilitating dialogue among diverse entities such as utilities, regulators, state agencies, and regional participants, while maintaining WECC’s impartial stance. This competency requires the capacity to listen deeply, communicate with precision, and foster understanding even among competing viewpoints.

Execution and Results Orientation

WECC’s stakeholders expect operational excellence, fiscal discipline, and measurable performance. The ideal leader will combine strategic vision with strong results orientation, ensuring that WECC’s programs deliver timely, accurate, and relevant outcomes that advance reliability. This includes leading through metrics and accountability, setting high standards for quality and precision, and cultivating an organizational culture that values both innovation and stewardship.

Organizational Leadership and Culture Building

The CEO must be an inspiring and inclusive leader who develops and empowers others. This includes fostering the culture of personal leadership, empowerment and accountability, continuous improvement, and focused actions within a distributed and highly technical organization. The leader will attract, develop, and retain exceptional talent; promote diversity of thought; and reinforce WECC’s core values, mindsets, and behaviors. Demonstrating this competency in the CEO role also includes thoughtful succession planning and leadership development, ensuring the organization’s continuity and readiness for the future.

Communication and Presence

The CEO serves as WECC’s public face and chief communicator. The role requires an exceptional ability to distill complex technical or regulatory issues into language that is clear, credible, and relevant to varied audiences, from engineers and policy experts to commissioners and legislators. The successful candidate will exhibit calm authority and confidence, particularly in moments of public scrutiny or system stress. Communication will be grounded in authenticity and purpose, reflecting WECC’s mission to inform, not advocate.

Timeline of Selection Process

The key dates and timeline of steps leading up to this decision are as follows:

12/17/2025 Submittal of Qualified Candidate List to WECC Search Team.
12/19/2025 Shortlist determination. Lyceum will notify you after this date with an update regarding WECC’s decision for First round interviews.
1/07/2026 First Round interviews with WECC Interview Panel.

These will be 75- to 90-minute virtual interviews (participants and virtual platform TBD)

All interested candidates should tentatively hold this date. Lyceum will notify you shortly after the WECC Interview Panel has selected the slate of candidates for Final Round interviews.
01/28/2026 or 01/29/2026 Final Round 2-part, In-Person Candidate Presentations/Interviews with WECC Interview Panel (participants and location TBD.)

All interested candidates should tentatively hold one or both of these dates.

Lyceum will notify you after the WECC Interview Panel and Board of Directors have made their decision.

CANDIDATE SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

If you have not otherwise expressed your interest to Lyceum Leadership Consulting, please submit your resume and cover letter by Friday, December 5th, 2025 to Donna.Frakes@LeadershipLyceum.com and reference “WECC CEO Search” in the subject line. Qualified applicants only please.

A PDF version of the Role Specification can be found below: