Overview
This is a Secondment / Fixed-Term opportunity - circa 12 months. The Volta Programme Manager leads NESO’s flagship transformation programme for AI-enabled system operation, shaping an integrated portfolio of optimisation and decision-support innovations for the future control room. The role combines strategic roadmap ownership, technical and operational stewardship, cross-directorate coordination, and external partner management, ensuring Volta delivers credible, validated solutions that can transition from innovation into business-as-usual operations.
The Volta Programme Manager is accountable for the end-to-end leadership and delivery of the Volta programme, translating NESO’s long-term system operation needs into an integrated innovation portfolio, and steering that portfolio from discovery through validation to production-ready pathways, while maintaining strong operational, technical and governance alignment.
This role can be based from Wokingham or Warwick with hybrid working from office and home. There is an expectation to visit the Wokingham office on at least a weekly basis, to work closely with the existing team and key stakeholders. Flexible working arrangements are available.
Key Accountabilities
- Building and Leading a High-Performance Innovation Function: Lead and develop a multidisciplinary team that underpins NESO’s operational innovation portfolio. Provide technical direction, set delivery standards, and shape the capability needed to design, test, and deploy advanced optimisation, AI, and decision-support tools for the control room of the future.
- Strategic System Transformation & Roadmap Architecture: Lead the development of NESO’s cross-directorate roadmap for delivering an AI-enabled, data-driven control room. Translate long-term system needs into a coherent portfolio of innovation projects covering modelling, optimisation, situational awareness, predictive analytics, and operator-support tooling. Define milestones, dependencies, and resource strategies to ensure system-level integration and regulatory alignment.
- Cross-Functional and Cross-Industry Collaboration: Work across System Operations, Networks, Markets, Digital, and Major Projects directorates to ensure innovation outputs are technically aligned with operational constraints and implementation pathways. Drive collaboration with global grid operators and technology partners to import best-practice intelligence into NESO’s design processes and strengthen internal technical maturity.
- Technical Leadership of Complex Innovation Projects: Lead the design and execution of complex projects across the Volta portfolio, including adaptive modelling, advanced scheduling, real-time optimisation, and scenario-based situational awareness. Oversee formulation development, algorithmic testing, and architectural validation. Guide teams through proof-of-concept phases, ensuring solutions meet operational realism, computational requirements, and scalability thresholds.
- Rigorous Validation, Assurance, and Transition to Delivery: Set validation criteria, test strategies, and acceptance thresholds for all Volta innovations. Ensure proofs-of-concept undergo structured evaluation, stress-testing, sensitivity analysis, and performance benchmarking before transitioning to delivery teams. Provide technical support through handover to ensure designs are fully understood, implementable, and integration-ready.
- Continuous Improvement, System Learning, and Innovation Culture: Embed a culture of scientific rigour, experimentation, and continuous improvement across the innovation programme. Use insights from previous projects, assurance reviews, and operator feedback to refine methodologies, strengthen modelling capabilities, and evolve the roadmap. Champion emerging technologies and industry best practice to keep NESO at the forefront of global system-operation innovation.
About You
We’re forging the path, and we know we can’t do it alone. We’re looking for someone who has:
- Expertise in Power Systems Engineering: Deep technical understanding of real-time and forward-looking power system operation, including stability, balancing, security constraints, and system-wide implications of high renewable penetration. Experience in assessing grid-integration challenges and the design of next-generation operational strategies for a decarbonised system.
- Control Room Systems, Architectures & Operational Tooling: Extensive knowledge of electricity control room functions and end-to-end architecture of operational systems, including forecasting, dispatch optimisation, network security assessment, situational awareness tooling, and operator decision-support frameworks. Ability to identify gaps, design new capabilities, and assess operational feasibility of novel AI- and optimisation-based solutions.
- Future Power System Design & Market-Aware Operations: Knowledge of evolving system operation paradigms, including flexible demand, storage integration, locational signals, and advanced market-driven behaviours. Ability to translate long-term system trends into technical requirements for future control-room algorithms and decision-support systems.
- Applied AI & Advanced Analytics for System Operations: Proficient in machine learning, adaptive modelling, optimisation, and emerging AI techniques (including predictive models, NLP for operator interfaces, and computer-vision-enabled asset intelligence). Experience evaluating feasibility, interpretability, and deployment considerations for AI-based operational tools in regulated environments.
- Strategic & Systems Thinking: Ability to take a whole-system perspective, framing challenges across markets, operations, engineering, and digital capabilities. Skill in anticipating constraints, sequencing transformation steps, and shaping roadmaps that balance ambition with operational realism.
- Programme & Project Leadership: Strong command of programme governance, risk management, and dependency mapping across complex innovation portfolios. Ability to shape workstreams, structure PoCs, define validation criteria, and ensure orderly transition into delivery teams.
- Stakeholder Engagement & Influence: Exceptional engagement skills grounded in clarity and technical credibility. Ability to extract key insights from busy experts, convene diverse groups, translate between technical and operational audiences, and create shared ownership of outcomes.
Note: We encourage applicants who may not meet every single requirement to apply. We are committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace.
What You’ll Get
A competitive salary of £72,000 - £78,000 dependent on experience and capability. In addition to base salary, a bonus of up to 15% of salary for stretch performance, 28 days annual leave as standard, and a contributory pension scheme with up to 12% company contribution (double matched).
Benefits
NESO’s flexible benefits programme includes:
- Flexible Bank Holidays & Holiday Trading
- Additional Birthday Day Off
- Cycle to Work Scheme, Retail & Gym Discounts
- Private Medical Insurance, Critical Illness Insurance & Personal Accident Insurance
About Us
At the National Energy System Operator (NESO), we play a vital role in tackling climate change and securing Great Britain’s energy future. We operate the world’s fastest decarbonising electricity system and work towards running it carbon-free for a period this year with renewable sources. NESO provides advice to government on delivering a clean power system by 2030. In autumn 2024, the Electricity System Operator (ESO) transitioned to NESO - an independent public corporation with a whole-system view across electricity, gas, and hydrogen. We are licensed and regulated by Ofgem and act in the best interests of all energy users, independently from government, regulator, and commercial interests. The time to deliver is now. Your energy. Our future. Together.
More information: This role closes at 23:59 on the day before the date shown above, but we encourage early applications. NESO is committed to a fair, inclusive recruitment process and to building a workforce that represents the communities we serve.
