Senior Advisor

Overview

Allegheny Science & Technology (AST) is seeking a Senior Advisor to provide strategic, technical, regulatory, and programmatic advisory support to the DOE Office of Electricity (OE). This role supports OE's mission to strengthen the reliability, resilience, and security of the U.S. electric power system through research, development, demonstration, and deployment (RDD&D).

The Senior Advisor serves as an independent, objective, and technically rigorous resource to federal leadership, supporting policy analysis, regulatory impact assessment, merit review programs, funding assistance mechanisms, portfolio evaluation, and engineering design review. The position integrates technical depth with program oversight to ensure research investments are effective, defensible, market-aligned, and aligned with statutory and national priorities.

Strategic Policy & Regulatory Advisory

• Assist in the development and review of professional articles, white papers, and publications addressing policy and regulatory issues affecting electric power systems and clean energy technologies.
• Review and evaluate the impacts of proposed and enacted regulations on current and future OE programs.
• Provide analysis of regulatory actions, market factors, and policy developments impacting program direction and portfolio performance.
• Develop decision-ready recommendations that align research investments with evolving federal, state, and market frameworks.

Portfolio Strategy & Performance Oversight

• Track projects and monitor progress toward technical targets against approved work plans, schedules, and milestones.
• Conduct program and portfolio-level reviews to assess research effectiveness, relevance, technical rigor, and timeliness.
• Support effective and active management of program datasets, ensuring data integrity for technology performance assessment, cost validation, and program metric compliance.
• Develop technical evaluation capability reports and strategic recommendations to inform leadership decision-making.
• Analyze technology readiness, commercialization pathways, and market readiness indicators to inform Go/No-Go determinations.

Funding Program Design & Merit Review Governance

• Support preparation of Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFOs) and other federal funding assistance instruments.
• Assist in the development of objective, transparent, and defensible funding evaluation criteria.
• Provide assistance with planning, preparing, and implementing structured review programs.
• Organize reviewer panels, coordinate reviewer meetings, and support reviewer compensation processes.
• Provide independent technical reviews of applications and develop written critiques.
• Develop and implement reviewer training curricula and online training modules to ensure consistent and unbiased evaluation.
• Identify, collect, and disseminate technical resources to strengthen review program quality and integrity.

Technical & Engineering Assessment

• Provide subject matter expertise for comprehensive, unbiased review of research proposals and evaluation of ongoing and completed research projects.
• Conduct detailed engineering design reviews and technical analyses supporting program planning and strategic direction.
• Assess system design assumptions, performance metrics, modeling approaches, and validation methodologies.
• Provide recommendations regarding market readiness, system optimization, performance validation, and technical risk mitigation.
• Support evidence-based Go/No-Go decision-making through structured technical assessment.

Reporting, Accountability & Congressional Support

• Support preparation of:
• Annual program reports
• Congressional reports
• Program execution plans
• Leadership briefings and presentations
• Contribute to the development of executive summaries, technical assessment reports, and portfolio performance analyses.
• Assist in dissemination of technical findings and policy insights to internal and external stakeholders.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a related field and 20 years of related experience. Additional experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• Clearance:
  Ability to obtain and maintain Public Trust (or higher, as required).
• U.S. Citizenship is required.

Multiple factors contribute to determining the final pay for a position. These include, but are not limited to, relevant work experience, skills, certifications, and competencies that align with the specific role, geographic location, educational background, and contract provisions related to labor categories specific to the position. We are committed to offering a competitive compensation package that reflects the value and expertise that each candidate brings to our team.

The pay range for this position based on Part-Time employment is $100.00 - $150.00 / hour.