Director - NE Process and Gas Field Safety

About us

National Grid is hiring a Director for our NE Process and Gas Field Safety department in Waltham, MA.  This is a Hybrid Role.  

Every day we deliver safe and secure energy to homes, communities, and businesses.  We are there when people need us the most.  We connect people to the energy they need for the lives they live.

The pace of change in society and our industry is accelerating and our expertise and track record puts us in an unparalleled position to shape the sustainable future of our industry.  To be successful we must anticipate the needs of our customers, reducing the cost of energy delivery today and pioneering the flexible energy systems of tomorrow.  This requires us to deliver on our promises and always look for new opportunities to grow, both ourselves and our business.  

Job Purpose

The Director, Process & Gas Field Safety is accountable for the strategic leadership, implementation, and oversight of Process Safety and Gas Field Safety programs across the New England business unit.  The role sets and executes a risk-based strategy aligned to business priorities, driving a focus on critical risks, control effectiveness and continuous improvement.

The role provides second line assurance for Gas Field Safety, ensures effective governance of the Process Safety Management System, and champions the consistent application of Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) principles to strengthen and lead incident analysis, organizational learning, and corrective action quality to reduce the likelihood and severity of high‑consequence safety events. The Director serves as a primary safety stakeholder to operational leadership, partnering to influence, develop and execute strategic and tactical plans that mitigate process safety and occupational safety risks across New England operations. 

Key Responsibilities

Process Safety Leadership

• Provide leadership and oversight of the Process Safety Management System, ensuring consistent, and effective risk-based implementation across applicable New England assets and activities.
• Lead and oversee process safety risk identification, evaluation, and control activities for assets prioritizing potential for high‑consequence outcomes, and critical safeguards.
• Ensure robust application of process safety tools and analyses, including process hazard analysis (PHA), incident analysis, management of change, operational readiness, and other recognized methodologies, with focus on systemic risk reduction.
• Champion the application of Human and Organizational (HOP) principles to strengthen incident learning and corrective action quality.
• Monitor process safety performance, trends, and leading indicators; escalate material risks and systemic weaknesses to senior leadership and influence decisions using data-driven insights.

Gas Field Safety - Second Line Assurance

• Provide second line assurance oversight for Gas Field Safety programs across New England, confirming first‑line controls are designed and operating effectively and aligned to key risks.
• Exercise formal authority to challenge conditions, decisions, or activities where gas field safety risks are inadequately controlled, including the ability to require corrective actions or stop work where necessary.
• Lead or support incident analysis and incident learning for gas field safety events, serious near misses, and abnormal operations, ensuring identification of systemic causes.
• Verify the effectiveness and sustainability of corrective actions and ensure learning is embedded across field operations, driving reduction in repeat events and strengthening control reliability.

Leadership & Organization Management

• Lead and develop a multidisciplinary team encompassing Gas Field Safety (one manager with four Gas Field Safety Representatives) and Process Safety (two Process Safety Analysts and one contractor).
• Establish clear expectations, priorities, and performance standards aligned with New England safety objectives.
• Build technical capability, leadership strength, and a strong learning culture within the team, including role clarity, competency development, and succession planning for critical roles.

Strategic Partnership & Stakeholder Engagement

• Work closely with other directors within the NE Safety, Health & Assurance leadership team to develop and execute integrated strategic and tactical plans to reduce process safety and occupational safety risk.
• Act as the primary safety stakeholder for NE operational leadership, engineering, and capital delivery teams.
• Influence decision‑making related to high‑risk activities, non‑routine work, abnormal operations, and major projects to protect employees, contractors, customers, and the public, using analytics, insights, and technical expertise to inform prioritization and resource allocation.

Governance, Assurance & Continuous Improvement

• Support internal governance and assurance activities related to process safety and gas field safety, including audits, assessments, and leadership reviews, ensuring outputs are risk-focused and drive meaningful system improvements.
• Track emerging industry practices and lessons learned and integrate applicable improvements into New England programs.
• Promote continuous improvement and a proactive, prevention‑focused safety culture, leveraging innovation, analytics, and industry best practices to enhance outcomes and credibility.

Knowledge & Experience Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Chemical, Mechanical, Engineering, or similar technical discipline required
• Strong expertise in process safety, engineering principles, methodologies, and gas utility operations
• 3+ years of proven ability to lead managers and technical specialists in a complex operating environment, including building organizational capability, succession planning, and high-performing teams of employees and contracted engineers
• Significant experience leading incident investigations, learning reviews, and systemic risk reduction efforts, including understanding and application of Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) or similar frameworks.
• Strong understanding of U.S. regulatory frameworks applicable to process safety and gas operations and ability to translate regulatory expectations into risk-based operational practices.
• Demonstrated experience leading second‑line assurance / oversight functions and providing independent challenge while influencing senior operational leaders.
• Experience using data, analytics, and digital systems (e.g. safety management systems) to inform risk identification, prioritization, and decision-making.
• CUSP, ASSP, SACHe, CCPS certifications are highly desirable
• Valid driver's license required with a safe driving history that meets National Grid's Safe Driver Policy

Work Location and Schedule

• This is a hybrid position based in Massachusetts.
• Candidates must maintain primary residence within the Greater Boston or Central MA region and be available for regular on-site presence as required.
• Periodic travel throughout the NE Business Unit is expected.