Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Wind Turbine Program Specialist

🎯 Role Definition

We are seeking a Wind Turbine Program Specialist to support the planning, execution and continuous improvement of wind farm operations, maintenance, commissioning and asset management programs. This role acts as a cross-functional coordinator between engineering, field operations, vendors and commercial teams to maximize availability, manage risk, reduce cost of energy (COE), and ensure compliance with safety and regulatory requirements. The ideal candidate brings hands-on wind turbine experience, program-level coordination skills, SCADA and data analytics familiarity, and a proven record of improving reliability and delivering projects on budget and schedule.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Wind Turbine Technician II / Lead Technician
Field Service Engineer or Commissioning Technician
Project Coordinator in Renewable Energy

Advancement To:

Senior Wind Turbine Program Specialist / Program Manager
Asset Manager or O&M Manager
Director of Operations or Reliability Engineering Lead

Lateral Moves:

Reliability Engineer
Construction Project Manager
Commercial Operations Analyst

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Develop, implement and manage the wind turbine program schedule, including preventive maintenance, major component replacements, scheduled outages and commissioning activities, to maximize turbine availability and minimize unplanned downtime across multiple wind sites.
Coordinate and manage end-to-end commissioning and handover processes for new turbine installations and major retrofits — creating punch lists, ensuring completion of manufacturer checklists, validating warranty obligations and generating final commissioning reports.
Lead cross-functional incident investigations and root-cause analyses for turbine failures (gearbox, generator, blade, hydraulic, control systems), producing technical reports with action plans to prevent recurrence and to track CAPA (corrective and preventive actions).
Monitor turbine performance and health using SCADA, CMS and remote monitoring tools; identify anomalies, recommend remediation, and work with data analytics to implement predictive maintenance strategies that reduce O&M cost and increase AEP (annual energy production).
Manage vendor and OEM relations for service agreements, warranty claims and technical escalations; negotiate scopes of work, track SLA compliance, and oversee third-party work execution to ensure quality, safety and contractual compliance.
Maintain and optimize spare parts and logistics strategy (inventory levels, critical spares, consignment, kitting for outages), including coordination with procurement and warehouse to reduce lead times and minimize downtime exposure.
Create and manage project budgets, cost forecasts and variance reporting for program activities; implement cost-control measures and identify opportunities for lifecycle cost reduction.
Develop and maintain technical documentation, standard operating procedures (SOPs), work instructions, inspection protocols and maintenance records in the CMMS (e.g., IBM Maximo, SAP PM) for audit readiness and continuous improvement.
Plan and execute major component exchanges (gearbox, generator, transformer, blade repairs/replacements) including transport logistics, crane/lift planning, contractor coordination and safety/permitting requirements.
Facilitate daily/weekly operations meetings and program reviews with field teams, OEM partners, and stakeholders to prioritize work, escalate issues and align on schedule, resources and safety expectations.
Implement and maintain health, safety and environmental (HSE) standards across program activities; ensure field teams and contractors comply with GWO, OSHA and site-specific safety plans, and drive incident prevention and near-miss reporting culture.
Oversee regulatory, permitting and stakeholder engagement tasks (FAA/aviation lighting, environmental mitigation plans, landowner coordination), ensuring program compliance and timely resolution of permit conditions.
Support integration of new technologies or retrofits (pitch system upgrades, control system firmware updates, blade vortex generators, condition monitoring sensors) — manage test plans, risk assessments, and deployment roadmaps.
Design and deliver technical training and competency development for technicians and operations staff, including troubleshooting curricula, OEM-specific modules and safety refreshers to improve first-time-fix rates.
Execute risk assessments and develop mitigation plans related to weather, access, electrical hazards and supply chain disruptions; maintain contingency plans for emergency responses and storm recovery.
Manage outage planning and execution including scope definition, resource leveling, contractor mobilization, crane and lift scheduling, and post-outage performance verification and reporting.
Support contract administration for O&M and EPC contracts — review technical scopes, evaluate subcontractor proposals, administer change orders and ensure contractual KPIs are met.
Analyze reliability and performance KPIs (availability, capacity factor, MTTR, MTBF) and produce monthly/quarterly asset and program performance reports that inform leadership decisions and investment prioritization.
Lead continuous improvement initiatives using root cause/5-why analysis, FMEA and reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) to optimize maintenance strategies and extend component life.
Coordinate electrical infrastructure activities (substation work, medium voltage switching up to site standards, grounding tests, transformer maintenance) with utility and electrical contractors while ensuring NERC/NIST considerations are addressed where applicable.
Manage remote troubleshooting workflows for control system and SCADA alarms, coordinating firmware rollbacks, control logic updates and vendor technical support to restore normal operations.
Facilitate warranty claim processes with OEMs — collect field data, produce defect reports, coordinate inspections, and track claim resolution to ensure cost recovery when appropriate.
Support capital projects for lifecycle upgrades and repower feasibility studies by contributing technical scope, cost estimates, schedule input and risk analysis.
Ensure accurate asset records, work history and component serial numbers are maintained in asset management systems to support warranty and lifecycle decision-making.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests, prepare operational dashboards and contribute to exploratory data analysis to inform optimization initiatives.
Contribute to the organization's reliability and asset management strategy, helping define roadmaps for predictive maintenance and long-term capex planning.
Collaborate with business units to translate operational challenges into technical projects and engineering requirements.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies where programs use agile methods for continuous improvement and rapid deployment of small-scale projects.
Assist with RFP and technical evaluation processes for new services, sensors and analytics platforms, providing subject-matter input and vendor scorecards.
Provide cross-training to operations and commercial teams on performance drivers and uptime risk factors to align incentives across the business.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

In-depth knowledge of wind turbine systems (nacelle, rotor, blades, gearbox, generator, converters, yaw, pitch, hydraulic systems) and common failure modes.
Strong experience with SCADA systems, condition monitoring systems (CMS), and remote diagnostics tools; ability to interpret telemetry, alarms and trend data to isolate root causes.
Practical experience with CMMS and asset management platforms such as IBM Maximo, SAP PM or equivalent for planning, work orders and parts management.
Proven ability to manage commissioning and major component exchange projects, including logistics, lift planning and contractor coordination.
Familiarity with medium-voltage electrical systems (up to 34.5 kV), grounding, transformers and electrical testing procedures.
Data literacy: ability to work with operational datasets, produce KPI dashboards, and use Excel (advanced), SQL, Python or analytics tools to inform decisions.
Contract and vendor management skills including scope development, SLA negotiation and performance monitoring.
Knowledge of HSE standards and certifications relevant to wind (GWO, OSHA 10/30, rescue and first aid), and experience implementing safety management systems.
Experience with reliability engineering methods (RCM, FMEA), root-cause analysis, and deploying predictive maintenance programs.
Proficiency in project and program management tools (MS Project, Primavera, Jira) and experience creating budgets, schedules and resource plans.
Hands-on familiarity with OEM platforms and manufacturer-specific procedures (e.g., Vestas, GE Renewable, Siemens Gamesa) for troubleshooting and warranty processes.
Basic understanding of permitting, environmental compliance and stakeholder engagement for wind farm operations.

Soft Skills

Strong verbal and written communication skills for clear technical reporting, cross-functional collaboration and vendor negotiations.
Excellent organizational and prioritization skills to manage multiple sites, projects and competing deadlines.
Analytical mindset with attention to detail and a data-driven approach to problem solving.
Leadership presence and ability to influence field crews, OEMs and commercial stakeholders without direct authority.
Customer-focused orientation to serve internal stakeholders and external owners, delivering operational excellence and transparent escalation management.
Adaptability and resilience to operate in variable field conditions and respond to emergency outages or extreme weather events.
Collaborative team player who builds trust with technicians, engineers, and contractors to drive results.
Strong decision-making with practical judgment for safety-critical and cost-sensitive situations.
Continuous improvement mindset and curiosity to trial new tools and processes to increase reliability and lower COE.
Time management and planning skills to coordinate multi-day outages and complex logistics under tight schedules.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Renewable Energy, Energy Systems, or equivalent technical discipline; or equivalent combination of education and field experience.

Preferred Education:

Bachelor’s degree plus certifications in wind-specific training (GWO, NOSS), project management (PMP) or reliability engineering (CRE).
Advanced degree (M.S.) in Renewable Energy, Engineering Management or similar is a plus.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Mechanical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Renewable Energy / Wind Energy
Energy Systems Engineering
Industrial Engineering / Reliability Engineering

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 3–8 years in wind turbine operations, maintenance or project coordination; 5+ years preferred for larger, multi-site programs.

Preferred:

3–5 years hands-on turbine or field service experience plus 2+ years program/project coordination.
Experience with OEMs like Vestas, Siemens Gamesa, GE Renewable Energy or Nordex.
Demonstrated success managing outages, major component exchanges and vendor/OEM escalations.
Experience using CMMS (Maximo, SAP), SCADA platforms and condition monitoring tools, and familiarity with data analysis in Excel/SQL/Python.
Valid driver’s license and willingness to travel frequently to sites; ability to work extended hours during outages or storm response.