10 Portland General Electric operations leaders
Benjamin Felton, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Portland General Electric, heads this list of Portland General Electric operations leaders, who also include directors of transmission delivery, power delivery and grid operations. A reader can learn how operations leaders work at Portland General Electric from people who have held the role.
Professionals to explore
Benjamin Felton
LinkedInExperience: Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer · Portland General Electric
Benjamin Felton has been Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Portland General Electric since April 2023. Benjamin Felton was Senior VP- Energy Supply, Enterprise NERC Compliance and Electric Optimization at DTE Energy from 2019 to 2023, Sr. Vice President Electric Operations (NIPSCO) at NiSource from 2018 to 2019 and Vice President Power Delivery at NiSource from 2015 to 2018.
Bob Simpson
LinkedInExperience: Director - Power Delivery · Portland General Electric
Bob Simpson has been Director - Power Delivery at Portland General Electric since August 2024, based in the Portland, Oregon Metropolitan Area. Bob Simpson was Sr Manager - Meter & Telemetry Operations at Portland General Electric from 2020 to 2024, and Director - Asset Risk & Strategy at PacifiCorp from 2015 to 2017 and Director - Metering Assets & Technology there from 2011 to 2015.
Brian Clark
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director, Thermal Generation and Planning · Portland General Electric
Brian Clark is a former Senior Director, Thermal Generation and Planning at Portland General Electric, a role held from January 2021 to January 2024, based in the Portland, Oregon Metropolitan Area. At Portland General Electric, Brian Clark was also Division CIO, Utility Operations from 2018 to 2021, General Manager, Power Supply Engineering Services from 2013 to 2018 and General Manager, Hydro and Renewables from 2010 to 2013.
JD Podlesnik
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director, Transmission Delivery · Portland General Electric
JD Podlesnik has been Senior Director, Transmission Delivery at Portland General Electric since July 2023, based in the Portland, Oregon Metropolitan Area. At Portland General Electric, JD Podlesnik was also Senior Director, Integration Program Management from 2021 to 2023 and Senior Director, Utility Programs, Operations Support, & Construction from 2019 to 2021, and was Vice President, System Operations at PacifiCorp from 2016 to 2018.
Joe McArthur
LinkedInExperience: Vice President of Distribution · Portland General Electric
Joe McArthur is a former Vice President of Distribution at Portland General Electric, in a row dated 1972 to July 2010, based in Hillsboro, Oregon. Joe McArthur was also an Independent Director at WECC in rows running to 2026, and the profile lists a Retired row at WECC since September 2025 and a Plant Maint Eng role at Alcoa from 1969 to 1971.
Kellie Cloud
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director of Wildfire & Operational Compliance · Portland General Electric
Kellie Cloud has been Senior Director of Wildfire & Operational Compliance at Portland General Electric since November 2023, based in the Portland, Oregon Metropolitan Area. At Portland General Electric, Kellie Cloud was also Senior Director Of Engineering from 2019 to 2023, Director Of Operations from 2018 to 2019 and Senior Operations Manager from 2015 to 2018.
Larry Bekkedahl
LinkedInExperience: Senior VP, Advanced Energy Delivery · Portland General Electric
Larry Bekkedahl is a former Senior VP, Advanced Energy Delivery at Portland General Electric, a role held from May 2021 to July 2026, based in the Greater Seattle Area. At Portland General Electric, Larry Bekkedahl was also Vice President, Grid Architecture, Integration & System Operations from 2019 to 2021 and Vice President, Transmission and Distribution from 2014 to 2019, and the profile lists a Retired Senior Utility Executive row since May 2026.
Lee Recchia
LinkedInExperience: Director, Grid Operations · Portland General Electric
Lee Recchia has been Director, Grid Operations at Portland General Electric since July 2026, based in Portland, Oregon, and the profile also lists a Senior Manager Grid Operations row there since November 2021. Lee Recchia was Manager, Energy Control Center at Burbank Water & Power from 2019 to 2021 and Principal Power System Operator there from 2017 to 2019.
Ross Cichosz
LinkedInExperience: Director, Line Design Operations · Portland General Electric
Ross Cichosz has been Director, Line Design Operations at Portland General Electric since October 2024, based in the Portland, Oregon Metropolitan Area. At Portland General Electric, Ross Cichosz was also Senior Manager, Line Design and Crew Coordination from 2022 to 2024, Manager, Planning, Scheduling and Line Dispatch in 2018 and Assistant General Manager, Line Operations from 2016 to 2018.
Tom Yost
LinkedInExperience: Senior Director T&D Operations · Portland General Electric
Tom Yost is a former Senior Director T&D Operations at Portland General Electric, a role held from May 2020 to June 2022, based in Peoria, Arizona. At Portland General Electric, Tom Yost was also Senior Director Transformation from 2022 to 2023 and General Manager Line Operations from 2018 to 2020, and the profile lists a Retired row at Portland General Electric since December 2023.
Choose the right perspective
Pick the person whose own area, such as transmission, power delivery, grid operations, wildfire compliance or generation, is closest to the decision you are making. Check whether the person's Portland General Electric role is current or past before relying on it for how the company runs operations today.
Questions to take into the conversation
- 01How do you decide which grid, delivery or field operations work your group takes on first?
- 02How do you weigh reliability, risk and cost when you plan operations work?
- 03How do you work with other leaders when your operations plans change?
Reaching Portland General Electric operations leaders
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About this directory
This is a professional research starting point based on business profile data retrieved on . Titles and companies reflect that source snapshot; roles marked former had ended by then. Check the linked profiles for current details. Inclusion does not imply Instant Expert membership or availability.
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