Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Wind Farm Program Supervisor

🎯 Role Definition

The Wind Farm Program Supervisor is responsible for supervising day-to-day wind farm operations and maintenance programs to maximize turbine availability, extend asset life, control operating costs, and ensure safe, compliant operations. This role leads multidisciplinary teams, manages contractors and vendors, oversees work planning and execution through a CMMS (e.g., SAP/Maximo), coordinates SCADA monitoring and condition-based maintenance strategies, and delivers KPI-driven reporting to regional asset managers and stakeholders.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Wind Turbine Technician (senior lead)
Field Service / Site Technician
O&M Planner or Field Engineer

Advancement To:

Regional Operations Manager / Senior Wind Farm Manager
Asset Manager (Renewables)
Program Manager — Wind / Renewables Portfolio Director

Lateral Moves:

Maintenance Manager
HSE & Compliance Manager
Commissioning / Performance Engineer

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead, schedule and supervise multi-vendor maintenance and operations teams for onshore and/or offshore wind farm assets to ensure safe, compliant, and high-availability operations of wind turbines, foundations, electrical infrastructure and associated balance-of-plant.
Own end-to-end execution of the wind farm O&M program including preventive maintenance, corrective repairs, planned outages and major component replacements while minimizing downtime and optimizing lifecycle costs.
Manage the work planning and execution lifecycle using CMMS tools (e.g., SAP, IBM Maximo), ensuring accurate work orders, spare parts reservations, permits-to-work, and closeouts with required documentation.
Oversee SCADA / condition monitoring platforms to detect performance degradation, alarms, and faults; prioritize and dispatch corrective actions based on risk, cost and availability impact.
Develop and implement turbine and balance-of-plant maintenance plans and reliability improvement initiatives using root cause analysis (RCA), FMEA and RCM methodologies.
Prepare, manage and report against annual O&M budgets and forecasts (OPEX and short-term CAPEX), review variance reports and drive corrective actions to meet financial objectives.
Coordinate and manage third-party service providers, suppliers and contractors including contract execution, performance KPIs, SLA enforcement, and supplier safety & competency audits.
Lead outage planning and execution for major component overhauls, blade repairs, gearbox or generator replacements and electrical system upgrades, ensuring logistics, lift planning, and crane operators meet safety and regulatory requirements.
Ensure all site activities are compliant with local, state and federal regulations, environmental permits and grid interconnection conditions; act as primary interface with regulators and grid operators as required.
Implement, monitor and continually improve Health, Safety and Environmental (HSE) programs — lead incident investigations, near-miss reporting, JSA/JHA reviews and corrective action tracking.
Manage spare parts inventory strategy and logistics to balance availability and carrying costs, including long-lead items, critical spares forecasting and warehousing coordination.
Supervise on-site teams: hiring, coaching, competency development, shift rostering, disciplinary actions and performance reviews to maintain a proficient and motivated workforce.
Conduct technical inspections and condition assessments for turbine towers, blades, drivetrain, nacelle, yaw and pitch systems, transformers and medium-voltage switchgear, escalating recommended repairs and lifecycle decisions.
Lead commissioning, handover and acceptance activities for newly installed turbines, substations and BOP packages in collaboration with project and construction teams.
Drive continuous improvement through data analysis (Excel, Python/R optional, Power BI) and KPIs (availability, AEP, MTTR, MTBF) to identify opportunities for improved operations, cost reductions and increased energy capture.
Maintain and ensure timely, accurate reporting to senior management on operational KPIs, safety metrics, budget variances and major incidents; prepare monthly and quarterly performance reviews.
Coordinate emergency response procedures for storm, fire, major equipment failure or grid events including mobilizing crews, coordinating logistics and communicating with stakeholders.
Oversee interface and handover processes with construction, commissioning and asset management teams to ensure smooth transition into operations and maintenance.
Drive compliance with manufacturer service agreements, warranties and technical bulletins; manage relationships with OEM service teams for complex repairs and technical escalations.
Manage site-level environmental programs such as wildlife protection, soil erosion control and permit compliance, including liaison with environmental consultants and regulatory bodies.
Implement and monitor predictive maintenance programs and analytics (vibration analysis, oil analysis, thermography) to reduce unplanned downtime and extend component life.
Lead cross-functional project implementation such as SCADA upgrades, remote monitoring installations, and digitalization initiatives to improve visibility and remote operations.
Ensure efficient fleet logistics including site access, crew transport (vans or crew transfer vessels for offshore), hoisting, and on-site accommodation logistics where applicable.
Maintain comprehensive documentation and records for compliance audits, insurance claims and regulatory reporting — including maintenance histories, inspection reports and safety records.

Secondary Functions

Support strategic planning for lifecycle asset management and participate in capital prioritization workshops and renewal planning.
Assist in developing and refining vendor selection criteria, RFPs and contract templates to standardize procurement and service delivery.
Provide mentorship and on-the-job training for technicians and junior supervisors; participate in succession planning and skills gap analysis.
Contribute to local community and stakeholder engagement activities to support social license to operate and maintain positive relations with landowners and local authorities.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Deep technical knowledge of wind turbine systems (rotor/blades, gearbox, generator, yaw/pitch, hydraulic and electrical systems) and experience with major OEMs (Vestas, GE, Siemens Gamesa, Nordex, etc.).
Proficiency with SCADA systems, condition monitoring platforms and alarm triage workflows to prioritize interventions and reduce AEP losses.
Hands-on experience with CMMS platforms (SAP, IBM Maximo, Infor EAM) for work order management, spare parts control, and asset history documentation.
Strong understanding of medium-voltage electrical systems, transformers, switchgear, protection relays and grid interconnection requirements.
Demonstrated ability to manage O&M budgets, cost control, forecasting and CAPEX/OPEX optimization.
Experience in outage planning and lift/crane management, including rigging plans, third-party lift coordination and heavy component logistics.
Proven competency in HSE management systems, incident investigation, permit-to-work systems, JSA/JHA, and emergency response planning.
Familiarity with reliability engineering practices: RCA, FMEA, RCM and predictive maintenance techniques (vibration, oil analysis, thermography).
Contract management and vendor/supplier performance management experience including SLA/KPI design and enforcement.
Data analysis skills with Excel (advanced), and familiarity with Power BI, SQL or Python for operational analytics and KPI dashboards.
Knowledge of environmental compliance requirements, permitting, and wildlife / habitat mitigation practices at wind sites.
Experience with commissioning and handover processes for new builds, repowering projects and retrofit initiatives.
Certifications desirable: GWO, IRATA, crane/rigging competency, or recognized electrical/mechanical trade qualifications.

Soft Skills

Strong leadership and people management: ability to motivate, mentor, and hold contractors and staff accountable while fostering a safety-first culture.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills for clear reporting to senior management, regulators, OEMs and local stakeholders.
Proven problem-solving and decision-making skills under pressure, with emphasis on technical troubleshooting and rapid escalation paths.
Excellent organizational and planning skills, able to manage multiple priorities and crews across remote sites or offshore environments.
Strong interpersonal skills and stakeholder management to coordinate across internal teams, external vendors, landowners and regulatory authorities.
Attention to detail and integrity in documentation, compliance and safety procedures.
Adaptability and resilience to operate in changing environmental and operational conditions (seasonal weather, supply chain variability).
Coaching and talent development orientation with ability to assess competency gaps and implement training plans.
Negotiation skills for supplier contracts, service agreements and dispute resolution.
Cultural sensitivity and community-awareness for effective liaison with local stakeholders and landowners.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Renewable Energy, Industrial Engineering, or equivalent technical discipline; OR substantial technical experience in wind farm operations with relevant certifications.

Preferred Education:

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Engineering (Mechanical/Electrical), Renewable Energy, Energy Systems, or Business Administration with focus on project/asset management.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Mechanical, Electrical or Renewable Energy Engineering
Industrial Engineering, Energy Systems or Environmental Science
Business Administration with Project Management or Operations focus

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

6–12 years of relevant experience in wind farm operations, O&M, or power plant maintenance with at least 3–5 years in a supervisory or lead role.

Preferred:

8+ years with demonstrated experience managing multi-disciplinary O&M teams, overseeing contractor delivery, budgeting, outage execution and HSE leadership — prior experience with both onshore and offshore wind assets preferred.

Keywords: wind farm supervisor, wind farm program supervisor, O&M supervisor, wind operations, SCADA, CMMS, wind turbine maintenance, asset management, reliability engineering, HSE, predictive maintenance, outage planning, contractor management.