Microgrid Validation Lead

Microgrid Validation Engineer

About This Role

As part of Intersect’s Microgrid Engineering team, you’ll lead the development of the validation strategy, infrastructure, and testing methodologies that ensure microgrid control systems perform safely and reliably before deployment. You’ll build and scale Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) testing environments, simulation frameworks, and automated validation workflows that verify controller performance across a broad range of operating conditions. Working closely with controls engineers, power systems engineers, utilities, and external partners, you’ll help establish the standards, tools, and processes that enable reliable operation of complex microgrid systems while supporting compliance, safety, and long-term performance.

Team Overview

This team plays a critical role in advancing Intersect’s mission to accelerate the clean energy transition, designing and operating systems that deliver reliable power at massive scale. The Microgrid Engineering team works across software, hardware, operations, and external stakeholders to validate complex systems under realistic conditions, ensuring safety, performance, and long-term operability. Joining this team offers hands-on exposure to advanced validation techniques and large-scale energy systems while contributing to work that has real-world impact.

What You’ll Do

Own Validation Strategy and Architecture

• Develop testing capabilities that exercise microgrid control algorithms across a full range of operating conditions, including failure modes, communication delays, and equipment faults.

• Design and evolve the laboratory infrastructure roadmap for Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) testing using controller hardware and representative power system equipment.

• Lead the evaluation and selection of simulation platforms, validation tools, and testing approaches to support system performance and regulatory compliance.

• Establish scalable validation capabilities that support the deployment of increasingly complex microgrid systems.

Establish Verification Methodology and Standards

• Design and implement automated test execution workflows that improve validation efficiency, repeatability, and reporting.

• Develop verification metrics that demonstrate controller performance, operational safety, and compliance with technical requirements.

• Define validation standards, best practices, and documentation processes that support consistent testing across projects.

• Drive continuous improvement of validation methodologies as technologies and system requirements evolve.

Define Test Cases and Performance Criteria

• Partner with engineering teams, utilities, and external stakeholders to define laboratory requirements, test plans, and performance criteria.

• Validate controller behavior under both steady-state and abnormal operating conditions.

• Develop comprehensive test scenarios that assess system performance across realistic grid and asset operating conditions.

• Mentor junior engineers and support technical development within the validation function.

Integrate Field Learnings into Validation

• Analyze field operating data to improve simulation models and identify edge cases that require additional validation.

• Incorporate operational insights into regression test suites to continuously expand validation coverage.

• Support investigations into system performance issues and apply lessons learned to strengthen validation processes.

• Help bridge field operations, controls engineering, and validation activities to improve overall system reliability.

What You’ll Bring

The following qualifications will help you succeed in this role:

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.

• 3-7+ years of experience in real-time system HIL validation, power system model verification, or related validation disciplines.

• Experience designing, building, and operating laboratory environments used to validate electrical power systems.

• Demonstrated ability to develop automated test pipelines, validation frameworks, and verification metrics for real-time or embedded systems.

• Experience with real-time digital simulators such as RTDS, OPAL-RT, Typhoon HIL, or comparable platforms.

• Familiarity with power system modeling and simulation tools such as Simulink, Modelica, or similar technologies.

• Experience supporting commissioning, troubleshooting, or operational validation of laboratory or utility-scale power systems.

• Experience developing and executing validation plans for grid-forming inverter controls, microgrid controllers, or advanced power system controls.

• Familiarity with industrial control and embedded programming environments such as C++, IEC 61131-3 Structured Text, AcSELerator QuickSet, CODESYS, Lua, Rust, or C.

• Experience using modern software development practices, including version control, automated testing, and validation workflows.

• Understanding of utility interconnection requirements, grid operations, and energy market participation; ERCOT experience is preferred.

• Strong collaboration skills and the ability to work effectively across multidisciplinary engineering teams and external stakeholders.

• A systems-thinking mindset, strong technical judgment, and attention to detail that supports safe, reliable, and high-quality engineering outcomes.

• A passion for mentoring others, solving complex technical challenges, and continuously improving engineering processes.