System Operator

Project Management Advisors, Inc. (PMA) is a national real estate advisory firm providing consulting services as the owner's representative, including development management, project management, program management and investor representation. Recognized among the commercial real estate industry's top professional services firms, including being named to Engineering News-Record top CM firms for the past four years in a row, we partner with our clients as their unbiased advocate to provide leadership and strategic guidance for increasingly sophisticated real estate needs and challenges, minimizing risk while maximizing outcomes.

PMA Power & Energy: PMA Power and Energy delivers strategic, forward-thinking energy infrastructure solutions for complex development and infrastructure projects. The team specializes in early power intelligence, utility coordination, grid interconnection strategy, and long-term capacity planning to ensure projects are feasible, scalable, and operationally resilient from inception through operations.

By integrating energy modeling, infrastructure planning, and utility engagement, PMA Power and Energy helps clients navigate grid constraints, evolving regulatory environments, and increasing demand for reliable power. The practice aligns energy infrastructure with development timelines and operational requirements, reducing risk, accelerating delivery, and supporting resilient, future-ready energy solutions in dynamic power markets.

CREATE YOUR FUTURE WITH PMA Power & Energy

Curious to accelerate your career in the dynamic power and energy sector? Are you interested in collaborating as an integral part of a team delivering complex energy infrastructure and power-focused development projects across the country?

PMA Power & Energy is hiring a System Operator for our Dallas office who will work on a variety of projects. Accelerate both your professional and personal growth by joining our team!

Our Work and Culture

We know that where you work matters. The people on your team. The culture of the environment. The client and project opportunities. The potential for learning, growth, and evolution. These all impact on the quality of your work and the quality of your life. We get it.

Fit is critical for you and for us. That’s why we’re curious to learn about you and to help you discern if a career with PMA is a good fit for you, your values, and your goals.

Role Summary

A Systems Operator is responsible for the real-time monitoring, coordination, and operation of interconnected technical systems to ensure reliability, performance, safety, and compliance. The role sits at the intersection of operations, control systems, and decision execution, translating plans, policies, and control logic into live system actions.

In the i3 context, this role is the human-in-the-loop operator who executes, supervises, and validates outcomes across digital twins, control platforms, and physical assets.

Within the i3 Energy Architecture, the Systems Operator:

• Operates across Intelligence → Integration → Interoperability


• Uses tools originally developed in planning (digital twin, simulations, IDRP outputs)


• Supports NOC / DSO / DMO operational models


• Acts as a bridge between automation, governance, and real-world execution

Core Responsibilities 

• Monitor system performance across multiple platforms (OT, IT, energy, infrastructure)


• Execute operational procedures, control actions, and response protocols


• Coordinate between automated systems, operators, and external stakeholders


• Identify anomalies, alarms, and degradation events


• Escalate issues based on predefined thresholds and playbooks


• Ensure adherence to safety, regulatory, and operational standards


• Maintain operational logs, incident reports, and performance metrics


• Support commissioning, testing, and continuous improvement efforts

Typical Systems Operated

• Control systems (SCADA, EMS, DMS, BMS)


• Digital twin environments and simulation outputs


• Energy systems (grid interconnections, DER, microgrids)


• Mission-critical infrastructure (data centers, utilities, industrial facilities)


• Networked platforms and system-of-systems architectures

 Your Values and Skills

• Strong operational discipline and situational awareness


• Understanding of control logic and system dependencies


• Ability to interpret dashboards, alarms, and analytics


• Incident response and troubleshooting


• Clear communication under time-critical conditions


• Familiarity with standard operating procedures (SOPs)


• Comfort working alongside automation and AI-assisted tool

 Decision Authority

• Execute predefined control actions and operating modes


• Initiate escalation and failover procedures


• Recommend operational adjustments based on system conditions


• Validate automated actions and override when required

Outcome of the Role

• High system availability and reliability


• Faster response to events and constraints


• Reduced operational risk


• Predictable, repeatable operations at scale

Your Success

The day-to-day experience at PMA promises challenge, collaboration, and growth, while our comprehensive benefits create opportunities for you and your family to prosper, including:

• Being part of a respected company with high-caliber clients and projects.


• A workplace that is values-based and consciously practices its values every day.


• A culture that respects work/life balance.


• Competitive salary and bonus program.


• Formal and informal training, leadership development, mentoring programs, and other opportunities for growth and advancement.


• Quality benefits including medical, dental, vision, life and disability insurances, education reimbursement, and much more.


• 401(k) plan with employer match.

PMA is comprised of over 150 project professionals experienced and licensed in nearly every aspect of the real estate industry with multi-disciplined backgrounds that are heavily rooted in the built environment, including architecture, development, asset management, brokerage, construction, engineering, finance, and urban planning.  Our local market knowledge and ability to leverage broad and diverse experience across a national portfolio of projects is unmatched in the industry, including assignments in civic, cultural, education, healthcare, hospitality, industrial, life sciences, multi-family residential, office and retail.  

PMA is headquartered in Chicago, with offices in Austin, Los Angeles, New York, Orlando, San Diego and San Francisco, delivering expertise to a broad range of clients from developers to institutional investors based on 30 years of practical experience, allowing our teams to consistently anticipate issues, understand potential impacts and provide proactive solutions.

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