PG&E Advances Regionalization Plan to Deliver Better Operational and Safety Outcomes with Appointment of Regional Vice Presidents; Strengthens Security with Hiring of New Chief Information Security Officer
PG&E has appointed five Regional Vice Presidents and Jerry L. Davis as Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, enhancing its focus on safety and operational performance. This move aligns with PG&E's commitment to a regional service model as part of its Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization. The newly appointed leaders bring extensive experience from various sectors and will be responsible for regional operations, safety, and community engagement. Their roles begin on June 1, 2021, except for Simes, who starts July 6.
- Strengthened regional leadership with experienced executives.
- Focus on community engagement and safety tailored to local needs.
- Davis to enhance technology security and safeguard PG&E's assets.
- Concerns about continuity and experience gaps as new leadership assumes further operational responsibilities.
As part of its commitment to enhance focus on safety, security, and operational performance, PG&E today announced the appointment of five Regional Vice Presidents and the appointment of Jerry L. Davis as Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer.
Teresa Alvarado, Vice President, South Bay & Central Coast Region (Photo: Business Wire)
Regional Vice Presidents
The announcement of the regional leaders marks a milestone in PG&E's plan to move to a regional service model, as outlined in its Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization and its Updated Regionalization Proposal filed February 26, 2021, with the California Public Utilities Commission. PG&E had committed to appoint a regional leadership team by June 1, 2021.
"We have assembled a strong and experienced group of leaders who will live and work in the communities they serve. This will position them to better understand and address the challenges unique to their regions. In doing so, they will have the full support of PG&E's executive leadership and the functional expertise of our 25,000 coworkers. I know they're eager to settle in and get to work, and I'm excited to welcome them to the team," said PG&E Corporation Chief Executive Officer Patti Poppe.
The Regional Vice Presidents are:
Teresa Alvarado, Vice President, South Bay & Central Coast Region: Ms. Alvarado has 20 years of executive experience in the energy and water sectors and has held civic leadership roles focused on environmental justice and equity. She currently chairs the California Water Commission, which provides a public forum for discussing water issues, advises the Director of the Department of Water Resources, and approves rules and regulations. Previously, she was Chief of Local Impact for the San Francisco Bay Area Planning & Urban Research Association, where she led a team responsible for implementing effective and equitable policy and planning solutions in San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland. Before that, she was Deputy Administrative Officer for the Santa Clara Valley Water District. Earlier in her career, she served as the founding Executive Director of the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley, and worked as a Charitable Contributions Program Manager and Government Relations Representative for PG&E.
Aaron J. Johnson, Vice President, Bay Area Region. Mr. Johnson has been with PG&E for 12 years, most recently as Vice President, Wildfire Safety & Public Engagement, with responsibility for improving operational practices and situational awareness to mitigate wildfire risk and leading strategic planning for rebuilding infrastructure damaged by wildfires. Previously, he was Vice President, Customer Energy Solutions, overseeing customer and clean energy programs, including customer and technology research; program design, launch and process improvement; and assessment and integration of third-party services markets. Earlier, he was Director, Renewable Energy Procurement, shaping policy and commercial strategy for wholesale procurement to meet ambitious renewable portfolio standard targets, and led solar and wind resource development. Before joining PG&E, he served the California Public Utilities Commission as a consumer advocate, policy advisor, and regulatory analyst.
Ronald P. Richardson, Vice President, North Coast Region: Mr. Richardson joined PG&E more than 20 years ago as a utility worker and apprentice lineman, and steadily progressed through a variety of leadership roles to his current position as Senior Director of Transmission Substation Maintenance & Construction. In this role, he held responsibility for the timely repair and maintenance of transmission and substation assets; supporting efforts to reduce wildfire risk and reducing the footprint of Public Safety Power Shutoffs; and driving the delivery of the Transmission Substation Maintenance & Construction workplan. Previously, Mr. Richardson was Director, North Coast, Field Operations region, which included Humboldt, Sonoma and North Bay. Throughout his career with PG&E, he has focused on field operations, overseeing service delivery, safety inspections, maintenance and construction work, and engaging with customers to resolve escalated issues.
Joshua M. Simes, Vice President, Central Valley Region: Mr. Simes comes to PG&E from Comcast, where he spent more than two decades in field operations leadership roles. Most recently, he held the position of Vice President, Field Operations, South Valley, California, where he was responsible for all field operational activity for Comcast’s South Valley Region and led a team of more than 300 members serving more than 800,000 video, internet, digital voice, home security and commercial customers. Mr. Simes initially joined Comcast as an installation technician and was subsequently promoted to a series of supervisory and leadership positions, including Field Operations Supervisor, Field Operations Manager, and Director of Field Operations. He has served as a member of the California Comcast Diversity and Inclusion Council and as an executive sponsor for the Young Professional Network.
Joe Wilson, Vice President, North Valley & Sierra Region: Mr. Wilson joined PG&E in 2012 and currently serves as Director, Community Rebuild and Resiliency Program. In this role, he has led financial planning, engineering, customer strategy, stakeholder engagement, and construction for the regional rebuilding program in Butte County, which was created in response to the impact of the Camp Fire in late 2018. Previously, he was the Regional Local Public Affairs Manager based in Sacramento, where he headed emergency response coordination with state and local agencies during wildfires, floods, and storms, and served as Liaison Officer during the North Bay, Carr, Camp Fire. He joined PG&E as a Senior Government Relations Representative in the Northern Sacramento Valley and Sierra Region after working with public utilities in Plumas County and Indian Valley. He has been active as a volunteer for civic and community organizations focused on employment, education, and economic development.
The Regional Vice Presidents will report to Marlene Santos, Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer, and will be accountable for delivering high-quality performance and for ensuring the safety, availability, and reliability of regional operations. These leaders will be based in their assigned regions, enabling them to stay closely connected with local customers, business organizations, local counties and cities, and other community groups and be responsive to their concerns. Each Regional Vice President will be supported by a local team that will include a Regional Safety Director charged with monitoring and improving safety performance across their assigned regions and partnering with functional leaders to ensure consistency across the company. All Regional Vice Presidents are scheduled to assume their new roles effective June 1, with the exception of Mr. Simes, who starts July 6.
To ensure a diverse slate of candidates for these new positions, PG&E performed a competitive national search, considering both internal and external candidates. The individuals selected were identified as the best qualified based on their skills, experiences, and leadership capabilities, including a deep understanding of utility operations and demonstrated success in building strong relationships with customers and communities.
Jerry L. Davis Joins PG&E as Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer
As Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer of the Utility, Mr. Davis will report to Ajay Waghray, PG&E's Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, effective June 7. In this position, he will lead a team responsible for overseeing and maintaining enterprise technology security to ensure that PG&E's technology assets are adequately protected.
Before joining PG&E, Mr. Davis founded Gryphon X, LLC, a technology risk advisory firm, where he counseled corporate clients on strategic cybersecurity problem solving and cybersecurity readiness and served as a retained expert witness on cybersecurity matters. Prior to establishing his consulting firm, Mr. Davis served for more than 20 years in executive-level roles in physical, personnel, and cyber security. He was Vice President and Global Chief Security Officer for a global semiconductor equipment manufacturing company and served as Chief Information Officer for the NASA Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. Previously, Mr. Davis was the Chief Information Security Officer for the U.S. Department of Education; before that, he was the Deputy Assistant Security for Cybersecurity for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
"I am thrilled that Jerry is joining our team. Jerry is a proven leader in his field and brings a great depth of experience and technical expertise to this critical role. Under his leadership, we will enhance the security of our infrastructure and information systems and continue to build a world-class IT function," said Ms. Poppe.
About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit pge.com and pge.com/news.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210527005891/en/
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