A Career Built with Experience and Expertise
I started my engineering journey 25 years ago, as a process engineer at Texaco, Inc. Throughout my career, I have held multiple positions, and these experiences have collectively brought me to the point where I am today.
At Southern Nuclear, we focus on how we develop people. During my 16 years of service, I have gained experience in all areas, including work management and organizational effectiveness. This helped me broaden my skill set and become a better leader.
Evaluating Operational Excellence
Operational excellence in the nuclear industry can be evaluated on two factors—equipment and people. Equipment can be fixed or replaced based on their performance. It’s the people who select, design, install, maintain and fix this equipment. We should focus on their strengths and limitations to train them and gain maximum efficiency. I spend time on site and interact with the engineers, asking them specific questions to get insights on the process and expected output. This has helped me to identify our strengths and gaps and prepare for the future.
We observe these indicators and take an effort to identify those early signs of risk. It helps us to focus our attention where it’s most needed. This is what makes Southern Nuclear capable of remarkable achievements.
Shaping Future Leaders
“We believe the best way to get the next generation ready is by having senior staff share their experiences with future leaders.
At Southern Nuclear, we have very focused knowledge transfer plans. We believe the best way to get the next generation ready is by having senior staff share their experiences with future leaders. When individuals retire, we ensure that they have the time to teach and share their learning.
We have employee resource groups, where we go out to local schools, universities and colleges in the U.S. to engage, share experiences and teach things that we have learnt. Cooperative education programs and internships are also provided to students to equip them with experience before they come to work for us or another company.
The Future of the Nuclear Industry
Southern Nuclear is actively working to shape a stronger and safer future for the industry. Collaborating with the Nuclear Energy Institute, we are addressing the challenge of generational turnover through modernization efforts like Digital I&C and accident-tolerant fuels. We aim to make nuclear power more common to rest of the power generation systems. Ultimately, we can integrate individuals, equipment and use the existing talent to make the industry safer and efficient.
Our work with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission aims to simplify our unit and make it safer. AP 1000 reactors at Vogtle Electric Generating Plant 3 and 4 are a step toward attaining that.
Advice for Future Leaders
My advice to my peers is to look differently. Our safety processes are built around events like Three Mile Island, Chernobyl and Fukushima. The goal is to prevent the occurrence of similar accidents by making our fuels better and stronger.
I encourage young professionals to seek experience beyond their immediate areas. My success is the result of the diverse experiences I gained through my journey. Moving out of your comfort zone and taking up a parallel job can feel tough at the moment, but it will pay dividends in the future.
