Gerry Cauley appointed President and CEO of NERC

NERC CEO Appointment confirms Gerry Cauley to lead North America's grid reliability body, advancing standards, cybersecurity, and bulk power system oversight through a seamless leadership transition and strengthened self-regulatory collaboration with industry and government.

Mr. Gerry Cauley was appointed by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC’s) board of trustees to serve as the organization’s next president and chief executive officer.

The announcement comes at the conclusion of an extensive search that considered a wide range of candidates from inside and outside the electricity business, begun after current CEO Rick Sergel announced his intent to retire earlier this year.

“Of the many excellent and highly qualified individuals included in the search, we unanimously found Gerry’s experience, credentials, and vision to best fit with the requirements we have for NERC’s future direction, with a stronger emphasis on critical infrastructure protection initiatives going forward,” commented John Q. Anderson, NERC Chairman. “We are enthusiastic about Gerry’s ability to lead NERC through the next phase of its work.”

Mr. Cauley comes to NERC from his role as the president and chief executive officer of SERC Reliability Corporation, a position he has held since 2007, where he oversaw reliability compliance efforts across the region. Prior to acting in this capacity, he served for ten years in positions of increasing responsibility at NERC, culminating as vice president and director of standards focused on ensuring reliability across the grid.

Mr. Cauley previously worked as the program manager of the Electric Power Research Institute’s Grid Operations and Planning Program and prior to that as a training consultant. He holds a B.S. from the United States Military Academy at West Point and served five years in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on flood resilience initiatives. He has also earned an M.S. in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Maryland and an M.B.A. from Loyola College. He is a licensed professional engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

“I am looking forward to working with NERC’s stakeholders in industry and government to continue the progress that’s already been made toward our mutual goal of building a lasting and successful self-regulatory model for ensuring the reliability of the bulk power system in North America,” commented Mr. Cauley. “We have many opportunities ahead of us, notably including continued focus on cyber security and other emerging reliability issues. I approach each of these with confidence that NERC, its technical committees, and our partners in government will work together to address concerns and find solutions. I’m eager to dive in and get down to work.”

“As we welcome Gerry back to NERC, we also recognize Rick for his leadership and dedicated service to the organization,” continued Anderson. “Rick has led NERC through a critical phase in its growth and has firmly established the organization as the North American Electric Reliability Organization. We have all appreciated his commitment to making this organization successful and wish him the best in his retirement.”

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