“In the electric power business, we expect to see more change in the next 10 years than we saw in the last 100.”

Ted Craver, president and CEO, Edison International, made this statement in a recent Edison Electric Institute article titled "Raising Our Game.” In the piece, Craver goes on to say: “We must raise our game. I believe that means being more competitive, more entrepreneurial, and even more customer-focused.”

For Southern California Edison (SCE), that means finding the company’s next generation of employees and leaders. In a recent conversation at the Careers in Energy Summit with University of Southern California graduate students, company executives spoke about the state of the industry, careers at SCE, and echoed Craver’s thoughts on what it will take for SCE to continue to excel into the future. 

Gary Fraser, assistant dean of the Full Time MBA Program and Career Services at USC, echoed those thoughts. The exposure to "senior executive team, and alumnae made the event that much more impressive. It was a classy and informative showcase of the endless possibilities and career paths available to those who join the SCE team.”

The summit, held at SCE’s Irwindale Energy Education Center, provided students a setting in which they could interact with leaders as well as recent USC graduates now working at the company. The event also focused on creating a forum for students to learn about SCE and get a sense of the opportunities available to them.

“It is very important to cultivate a pipeline of talented students and make them aware of the broad range of options within the company as they consider their future careers,” said Angela Delgado, SCE manager of University and Campus Relations.

Students had the opportunity to hear directly from SCE employees and managers in areas ranging from customer service, power supply, corporate communications and information technology. Those conversations focused on the experiences of the panelists in their work at SCE, how they came to the company and also what opportunities they felt they had to grow at SCE. 

Joe Jankosky, a manager from Strategic Alliances and Partnerships in Customer Service, discussed his background in the energy industry prior to his employment at SCE. Gus Flores, principal manager of Gas & Emissions Trading in Power Supply, shared his movement within the company, including the opportunity to continue his education with support from his managers. Both are graduates of the Marshall School of Business.

Delgado wrapped up the summit by discussing the available opportunities at SCE, explaining the application process and timelines involved. She also noted the February deadline for applying for internships at the utility.

“The event provided us an excellent opportunity to not just inform students, but to have them put a face to the company and meet the people who may be their manager or form part of their team if they join SCE,” she said.

Nicole Butler, USC's associate director MBA Career Services, added that “the SCE Energy Summit has taken the USC and SCE partnership to a new level. Our student survey confirmed that is was an optimal platform to further educate the students about such a complex industry."  

Additional information on student opportunities at SCE is available at Edisoncollegejobs.com.