I work as a Transmission Planner. Planners are the ones that look at the long-term horizon (1-20 years) of the electric grid. We have models of the entire interconnection and we're looking at things like load growth and new energy sources. We identify potential issues and develop plans to correct them.
My job includes a mix of project studies and regulatory compliance work.
Do you work for a small or large company? How long have you been working in this field?
Medium sized (500-2500 employees). Working as a Planner for <2 years.
Would you describe your job as a high-stress position?
Nope. Frustrating some times though. It sucks when you get pretty far into a study only to realize the model is wrong or you're missing a planned project in the planning time-frame.
Do you spend all day in a cubicle, with infrequent walkdowns, or is your job more field-oriented?
Cube Jockey.
Do you have constant emergent deadlines?
Rarely. Its usually a special request at the Executive level about some project or some lawsuit we're facing. They usually want to understand the alternatives to large projects so they can make some kind of informed decision.
Is there an overwhelming amount of paperwork?
Compliance has a bit of paperwork, but its not bad. Document, Document, Document for study work. Others should be able to replicate your results.
Is bureaucracy a barrier to timely completion of your work? I mean a very serious barrier, e.g. something is urgent but literally cannot be completed by a certain date due to internal or external reviews, meetings, or paperwork.
Not really. People not responding to my emails is my biggest frustration.
Do you have to communicate with clients/customers on a very frequent basis?
No.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
I make or break multi-million dollar projects.
What do you dislike most about your job?
Some routine tasks are mind-numbing. The electric grid models have a lot of parameters that need to be kept up to date. Its a lot of data to keep accurate and constantly review. But that's what interns are for.
How well are you compensated financially? If you're comfortable giving a number, I would prefer that.
$76k, 20 paid days off (vacation + holidays), full benefits, pension.