Group Leader - Building Electric Appliances, Devices, and Systems

Requisition Id 9111 

Overview:

We are seeking a senior electrical engineer/mechanical engineer/scientist to lead a world class research group in a new area related to Building Electric Appliances, Devices, and Systems (BEADS) to support the ORNL and DOE mission. The BEADS group consists of researchers focused on improving the energy efficiency, integration, and connectivity of all building equipment other than HVAC and water heating, such as major appliances and miscellaneous electric loads to reduce carbon emissions and improve grid resiliency. This position is in the Building Technologies Research and Integration Center (BTRIC) within the Buildings and Transportation Science Division (BTSD). BTRIC, established in 1993, is the Department of Energy’s only designated user facility dedicated to performing early-stage research and development in building technologies.

Purpose:

As Group Leader, you will have the opportunity to provide Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment (RDD&D) leadership to the group that strategically advances science and technology consistent with ORNL’s aspiration to be the world’s premier R&D institution and ORNL’s science culture. In this role, you will bring together a group of peers with the primary goal of pursuing global scientific leadership in their field, nurture ORNL’s culture among group members, and build and scale up individual excellence and impact in RD&D. The Group Leader reports to and works closely with the Section Head to implement the group’s scientific vision; develops group members to enable their career advancement; establishes capabilities that enable programs to excel at the forefront of science and technology; performs R&D to advance the field of knowledge and/or technology in one’s respective specialty; sets, implements, and models standards for performance of work consistent with Environment, Safety, Security, Health, and Quality (ESH&Q) requirements and business rules; and ensures a diverse and inclusive work environment where every employee feels safe, heard, and appreciated—a workplace that sets an example for the broader community.

Major Duties / Responsibilities:

Research

• Serve as principal investigator for major appliance and miscellaneous electric load projects, especially as they relate to coordinated control of appliances to achieve load management and reduced energy consumption.
• Developing research proposals to major funding agencies.
• Presenting and reporting research results and publishing scientific findings in peer-reviewed journals.

Leadership

• Develop a vision and implement a cohesive group research strategy to ensure the success of new and ongoing research projects to position the group for future success.
• Develop and implement plans to exploit new opportunities and/or expand existing efforts.
• Assist staff in setting performance goals consistent with the group’s strategy and members’ long-term career goals. Provide feedback to address performance issues in a timely manner.
• Provide relevant input to assist the R&D Section Head with staff development while providing direct and impactful guidance to staff on regular basis.
• Attract a quality, diverse pool of top candidates and hire staff members who are committed to world-class R&D and aspire to be the best in their field.
• Lead by example by exercising the principles in ORNL’s “Research Code of Conduct” as a guide for proposing, performing, and communicating research.
• Coach and mentor staff regarding Battelle's "Safe Conduct of Research" principles
• Lead ESH&Q by example and ensure all work is carried out safely, securely, and in compliance with ORNL policies, standards, and procedures.
• Exemplify a commitment to "One ORNL" by modeling lab expectations for excellence in research, operations, and community engagement, and by working cooperatively to leverage capabilities across the lab.

Service

• Serve as immediate supervisor for staff members in group.
• Encourage staff to “think and dream big,” take appropriate risks in their work, and develop skills that will enable them to pursue new ideas, scientific passions, and research programs.
• Advance the reputation of the group members and standing of the group as a whole through establishing collaborations, Professional Society leadership and involvement, and organization of technical events.
• Support group members by consistently reviewing technical products such as proposals, publications, and artifacts to ensure high quality and consistency with ORNL standards.
• Build strong teams across ORNL.
• Connect staff to your scientific network and professional societies.
• Hold regular scientific/technical group meetings and be visible in the labs and workplace.
• Assume front-line responsibility for safety in the group’s laboratory; mentor and empower the Laboratory Space Managers to create a strong safety culture.
• Effectively communicate the importance of protecting proprietary or sensitive information and complying with ORNL cybersecurity policies and guidelines.

 Basic Qualifications:

• Requires a MS or PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or Mechanical Engineering, and at least six years of relevant research experience.
• A well-established track record of research in an area relevant to one or more areas of expertise of the group.
• Demonstrated experience in leading R&D projects.

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Research relevant to major appliances and miscellaneous electric loads, device level and whole building control, large scale data-informed methodologies and algorithms.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Effective interpersonal skills.

Accountabilities:

• To group staff, for the quality and safety of their work environment and opportunity for professional growth.
• To R&D section head, for world-leading science and technology directions, safe effective, and compliant operations, ownership of assigned staff, facilities, and equipment, and the quality of products and services.
• To customer, for the quality of products and service. 

Authorities:

• Develop a vision and implement a strategy to pursue world-leading science and technology directions for the R&D group.
• Hold staff accountable for performance.
• Act to ensure safe and effective operations.
• Hire staff.
• Certify the technical quality of the group’s products and services.

This position will remain open for a minimum of 5 days after which it will close when a qualified candidate is identified and/or hired.

We accept Word (.doc, .docx), Adobe (unsecured .pdf), Rich Text Format (.rtf), and HTML (.htm, .html) up to 5MB in size. Resumes from third party vendors will not be accepted; these resumes will be deleted and the candidates submitted will not be considered for employment.

If you have trouble applying for a position, please email ORNLRecruiting@ornl.gov.

ORNL is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants, including individuals with disabilities and protected veterans, are encouraged to apply.  UT-Battelle is an E-Verify employer.