POWER June 2021 - 23

WORKFORCE
analytics skills that utilities often lack,
hindering their ability to maximize the
investment return and improve customer
service delivery.
In the past, key jobs within the sector
were industry-specific, and utilities
competed mostly against each other for
talent. With the rapid adoption of new
technologies and the need for a more
data-focused approach to service, utilities
are competing against a broad range
of industries for a limited pool of talent.
In fact, a study found that 60% of U.S.
companies report difficulties filling tech
skill positions, even after 12 weeks of
the position being open. Complicating
this issue is the fact that the P&U sector
in the U.S. is expected to need more
than 100,000 new workers-many of
them requiring digital skills-by 2030.
Five Changes Utilities Must Make
As the industry has struggled to attract
new employees, the workforce has continued
to age. According to the U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics, almost half of
sector employees are age 45 and older
and 26% are 55+, compared to the 24%
who are 25-34. Utilities also face diversity
issues, with an industry workforce
that is about 70% white and male, according
to the U.S. Energy and Employment
Report.
The workers available to fill new and
existing positions within the sector will
likely have significantly different expectations
than those before them. Attracting
those valuable employees will require a
substantial pivot for utilities. Five critical
changes that utilities need to make to be
successful in hiring and retention in the
years ahead follow.
Promote the Opportunity. Historically,
utilities positioned themselves
as stable and reliable because that's
what consumers and investors valued.
But Millennial and Generation Z workers-those
most likely to have digital
skills-see utilities as old-fashioned and
carbon-intensive. Utilities must do a better
job of communicating the unique
technological challenges and environmental
benefits that a modern grid and
distributed energy present-challenges
that require smart, digitally savvy employees
to solve. Helping potential employees
understand how they can make
a difference in the industry will make utility
jobs more attractive.
Change the Culture. Employees are
seeking inclusive companies that offer
flexibility and are less tied to location,
have a more open approach to collaboraJune
2021 | POWER
tion, and embrace technologies such as
automation to make work easier. They
want their employer to have a strong environmental
agenda and they prefer organizations
with few layers of management.
To recruit and retain these employees,
utilities need an employee-centric
culture. Programs and initiatives that
enhance employee satisfaction, improve
employee mental health, offer
work-life balance, teach new skills, elevate
employee responsibility, and increase
outreach to underrepresented
groups are vital.
Inclusion requires a culture change at
many organizations, too. Subtle or unspoken
requirements that employees
adapt to a dominant behavioral culture
can sideline the benefits of inclusiveness.
Embracing differences across the
enterprise requires both a concerted organizational
effort as well as a high level
of self-awareness from the C-suite on
down. To help build this culture, leaders
should frequently ask themselves and
their teams: " Is this a preference, tradition,
or requirement? "
Cast a Wider Net in Recruiting. Employees
today want a workplace where
leadership embraces diversity and teamwork.
Most companies today recognize
the value of a diverse workforce, but
often don't change their approach to recruiting
and hiring. Broadening the candidate
pool requires companies to rethink
their employment processes from the
ground up.
Here's an experiment. If your company
found an ideal candidate for a
much-needed technology job, but that
individual was self-taught and had no college
degree, would you make an offer or
would your human resources (HR) team
pass because the candidate didn't fit existing
guidelines? Would your HR function
even be able to find this candidate in
the first place?
True diversity encompasses more
than gender and race. Hiring people
from different backgrounds and with
different life experiences is the key to
maximizing creative disruption and enhanced
problem-solving. For example,
many companies find that implementing
a neurodiversity
program-hiring
employees on the autism spectrum,
and giving them the training and support
they need-can lead to increased
innovation, especially around highly
technical processes such as AI, cybersecurity,
and process automation.
Emphasize Career Development.
Employees today don't expect lifetime
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employment, but they do expect their
employer to provide training and opportunities
to develop their skills and
keep them hirable. That doesn't mean
constant promotions are necessary-
development today can be fluid and job
changes can be horizontal. Challenging
employees through new experiences
or projects helps them feel valued and
improves their desire to advocate for
your organization.
Eliminate Silos. The systemic cultural
change that utilities need today requires
an overarching enterprise-wide strategy
supported by a close working relationship
across the executive team-specifically,
among the chief HR officer, chief
information officer, and chief financial
officer. Studies show that close collaboration
among these leaders results in
higher earnings growth and improved
human capital metrics, including significant
improvements in workforce productivity
and employee engagement. When
these functions work closely together,
business challenges are addressed from
the three critical perspectives of workforce
and technology needs as well as
budgeting/funding capabilities.
Don't 'Do' Digital; Be Digital
To execute an employee-centric approach
throughout the business transformation,
utility leadership must continually ask the
right questions to make sure they are optimizing
and building workforce skills and
culture to improve performance and create
long-term value for all stakeholders.
In short, it's not enough for P&U companies
to " do " digital-simply implementing
digital technology. Rather, utilities
must implement a workforce strategy
that enables them to " be " digital-creating
and nurturing a culture that enables
digital technology and human ingenuity
to flourish side-by-side, and complement
and enhance each other's growth.
As utilities implement new technologies
and processes to meet consumer needs
and decarbonization demands, focusing
on workforce and culture issues can
make a true transformation possible. 
-Cyntressa Dickey is a principal at Ernst
& Young LLP and serves as the EY Global
and Americas Energy People Advisory
Services Leader. Ryan Levine is a principal
at Ernst & Young LLP and serves as
the EY U.S.-East Region Energy People
Advisory Services Leader. The views
expressed are those of the authors and
do not necessarily reflect the views of
Ernst & Young LLP or any other member
firm of the global EY organization.
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POWER June 2021

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