Why the Utilities that Act First Will Set the Standard
Every grid hardening project, every electrification buildout and every new piece of infrastructure eventually needs the same thing: someone to run it, inspect it, maintain it and train the next person on it. Across the country, that specific “someone” is getting harder to find and that workforce shortage is opening up one of the biggest opportunities in the energy sector today. Utilities are executing some of the most ambitious infrastructure programs in a generation. Grid hardening, resilience investments, electrification buildout — the goals are set and the technology is arriving. The main constraint is people, specifically experienced operators, technical leads and field supervisors who know legacy systems and are prepared for what’s coming next.
The utilities that treat this moment as an opportunity to build their workforces differently are the ones who will be operating from strength long term.
Workforce Shortage: An Execution and Reliability Problem, Not Just a Talent Problem
The workforce shortage is often framed as a talent challenge. It’s also an execution capacity problem and a reliability risk.
An aging skilled workforce means losing institutional knowledge. The lineman who knows why a feeder behaves differently during summer load peaks, or the engineer who remembers why a design decision was made fifteen years ago will no longer be available to assist when they retire. The organization loses the headcount as well as the context that prevents mistakes when systems get complex and conditions change fast.
The utilities best positioned three to five years from now will be the ones that build sustainable talent pipelines, both internally and with outside partners.
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The Business Case
When qualified crews are stretched thin, project schedules slip and safety risk rises right along with it. Regulatory and reliability requirements don’t flex to accommodate workforce shortfalls; they’re fixed, with real consequences for falling short. Meanwhile, competition for technical talent keeps growing, as data centers, battery storage and large-scale solar all draw from the same labor pool utilities have traditionally relied on.
In major metro markets, projections point to tens of thousands of annual middle-skill job openings in the energy sector alone. These are roles that require real technical competency but not necessarily a four-year engineering degree. Yet a persistent myth keeps the pipeline narrower than it needs to be: that clean energy jobs are all engineering, all field work, all highly technical. There’s room in this industry for a much wider range of talent than most people realize, including outreach, program management, customer service, energy auditing and data analysis. Closing the perception gap is the fastest way to close the talent gap.
Programs That Work
Once utilities start recruiting from a wider pool, the question becomes how to make these programs actually succeed. The strongest ones share a few traits:
They’re Built Around Who’s Actually Available
Veterans transitioning out of military service often make excellent hires. They tend to be disciplined, team-oriented and experienced working in complex, high-stakes environments. Community organizations, workforce boards and returnship programs for people re-entering the workforce are opening up talent pools that traditional recruiting has overlooked. Workers with diverse experiences bring creative ideas and fresh solutions.
They’re Not Purely Technical
On boarding, mentorship and clear career pathways matter as much as skills training. Workers who can see a future in the industry stay. Those who feel stuck in a dead end leave before the training investment pays off.
Upskilling Current Employees Matters as Much as Hiring New Ones
People already inside the organization carry institutional knowledge and hard-won experience. When training is built around real job needs with genuine buy-in from both worker and employer, they’re often the strongest candidates for expanded roles.
Partnerships Expand and Accelerate Opportunity
Workforce shortages don’t have to be a zero-sum competition between utilities. The energy sector has a long history of advancing through shared knowledge, coordinated standards and programs that lift entire regional labor markets. When utilities, contractors, training providers and community organizations build shared pipelines together, everyone benefits, including the communities they serve.
Next Steps: TRC Can Help
TRC has been building, managing and refining workforce programs across multiple practice areas and program structures from the ground up. Our Advanced Energy Apprentice Program, for non-traditional, non-degree job seekers, has put 44 participants through structured 90-day learning cohorts since 2022, with an intent-to-hire model that gives both sides a real trial rather than a credential-based gamble. We hired 19 of those first 44 participants into full-time roles and their contributions are delivering real value to our organization and our clients.
At the program administration level, we also manage workforce development initiatives on behalf of major state energy agencies, structuring programs that move funding and support to employers, training providers, job seekers and community partners in ways that reflect labor market conditions. The mechanics of connecting funding, training quality and employer demand determines whether a workforce program delivers lasting impact. For more, watch the recent SPEER Webinar led by TRC.
TRC brings tested practitioners with a track record in workforce program design, skilled trade pipeline development and workforce implementation across the energy sector. If your team is working through what a sustainable approach looks like, we’re ready to have that conversation.
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