Dir LMI Programs & Customer Advocacy

Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest energy provider, providing natural gas and/or electricity to 6.8 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties. Consumers Energy knows job number one is to keep the lights on for customers. We are committed to delivering reliable, clean, and affordable energy to our customers 24/7.  

This position is not eligible for immigration sponsorship, e.g., H-1B, TN, etc. Please do not apply if you will need immigration sponsorship for a work visa now or in the future, including sponsorship for H-1B, TN, etc., now or in the future. We are unable to hire individuals with CPT, OPT, or STEM OPT for this position as the position is not eligible for participation in the H-1B lottery program and is not eligible for current or future immigration sponsorship for a work visa.

Location: This is a hybrid (virtual/onsite) position with required onsite days on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and may be assigned to any Consumers Energy Service Center located throughout Michigan's lower Peninsula.  The selected candidate must be within a commutable distance or willing to relocate (relocation package is available for those that qualify). 

GENERAL SUMMARY OF JOB RESPONSIBILITIES 

The Director, Income-Qualified Customer Experience will make it easier for eligible customers to access support with clarity, dignity, and confidence. This leader will modernize how customers are identified, guided, enrolled, and supported across programs, agencies, funding sources, digital tools, regulatory commitments, and internal teams. The mandate is clear: close eligibility gaps, reduce friction, simplify handoffs, and connect customers to support before they are in crisis. The role oversees a $100M+ annual portfolio serving approximately one-third of the customer base and is accountable for measurable improvements in enrollment, assistance capture, digital completion, energy savings, arrears and shutoff risk, customer satisfaction, partner performance, and regulatory outcomes. 

WHY THIS ROLE MATTERS 

• Improve affordability, access, trust, and energy security for customers who often face fragmented processes and need support before crisis. 

• Own the full income-qualified customer journey, not just individual programs or transactions. 

• Identify eligible customers earlier and reduce the burden of asking for help. 

• Influence how the Company works with agencies, regulators, policymakers, and community organizations to remove barriers and improve outcomes. 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Own and continuously improve the end-to-end income-qualified customer journey, including identification, outreach, application, enrollment, participation, follow-up, and ongoing engagement. 

• Design a proactive navigation model that uses data, digital tools, field and contact center insights, and community referrals to reach eligible customers earlier. 

• Lead strategy and performance for income-qualified offerings, energy assistance, affordability programs, EWR opportunities, and related customer support experiences. 

• Manage portfolio outcomes for approximately one-third of customers, including access to $225M+ in energy assistance and support for $60M in energy waste reduction performance incentives. 

• Establish scorecards for enrollment, assistance capture, digital completion, energy savings, customer satisfaction, arrears and shutoff risk, partner performance, and regulatory commitments. 

• Reduce customer and partner friction by eliminating unnecessary handoffs, paperwork, confusion, delays, rework, and other barriers to support. 

• Build operating partnerships with community agencies, nonprofits, advocates, state leaders, local governments, and implementation partners. 

• Translate customer data, journey insights, partner feedback, and operational barriers into program improvements, regulatory strategy, policy proposals, and testimony. 

• Advocate internally on rate design, rate case considerations, affordability impacts, and customer experience implications to advance outcomes for income-qualified and low- to moderate-income customers. 

• Identify, prioritize, and use the right data, analytics, customer insights, and performance measures to move the income-qualified customer experience strategy forward and improve measurable outcomes. 

• Lead cross-functional execution across Regulatory Affairs, Government Affairs, Legal, Finance, Customer Operations, Digital, Communications, and business units. 

• Build and coach a team that anticipates issues, brings recommendations, uses data, and executes with ownership. 

• Represent the Company externally with credibility, empathy, sound judgment, and clear understanding of customer, community, policy, regulatory, and reputational implications. 

• Perform other duties as assigned or as necessary. 

KNOWLEDGE / SKILLS / ABILITIES 

• Customer journey leadership: Own journey mapping, segmentation, experience design, and continuous improvement for income-qualified customers. 

• Affordability and program strategy: Improve access, reduce energy burden, increase participation, and align customer outcomes with enterprise goals. 

• Operational execution: Turn strategy into operating model, routines, decision rights, service standards, and measurable performance. 

• Data and digital acumen: Use customer data, analytics, digital tools, and voice-of-customer insights to improve completion and outcomes. 

• Regulatory and policy influence: Shape filings, testimony, policy positions, funding mechanisms, and stakeholder coalitions. 

• Partnership leadership: Build trusted relationships with agencies, nonprofits, advocates, state leaders, local governments, and community organizations. 

• Enterprise and people leadership: Align senior leaders, influence without authority, build team capability, and deliver through others. 

IDEAL CANDIDATE PROFILE 

• Customer-obsessed leader who understands the barriers eligible customers face when seeking help. 

• Strategic operator who simplifies complex systems and turns vision into practical execution. 

• Data-driven problem solver who identifies where customers fall out of the journey and removes root causes. 

• Trusted relationship builder who works credibly with customers, agencies, advocates, regulators, policymakers, and internal leaders. 

• People leader who builds capability, raises standards, and creates accountability for results. 

WHAT GREAT LOOKS LIKE 

•  A holistic low to moderate income customer strategy is executed to connect more eligible customers earlier to the right support before crisis. 

• Eligible customers have lower bills and are on a sustained path to success because the full affordability ecosystem and customer journey have been redesigned to move customers from assistance to stability—not simply to improve execution of existing programs. 

• The application and enrollment experience is simpler, faster, easier to understand, and less burdensome for customers, agencies, and internal teams. 

• Assistance capture, digital completion, program participation, energy savings, and customer satisfaction improve to ultimately reduce customer energy “share of wallet” percent. 

• Arrears and shutoff risk decline as more customers stay current. 

• Customer journey data and voice-of-customer insights drive program, policy, regulatory, and operational improvements. 

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE 

• Bachelor's degree with ten (10) or more years of progressive leadership experience with a significant focus on developing or managing programs for LMI or other vulnerable populations. Experience in a regulated utility, government agency, or large non-profit organization is highly desirable. Must have a proven track record of managing government-funded programs, building community-based partnerships, and advocating for policy change. Experience leading diverse teams to achieve both social and business outcomes is required.
• (OR) Associate’s degree with twelve (12) or more years of progressive leadership experience with a significant focus on developing or managing programs for LMI or other vulnerable populations. Experience in a regulated utility, government agency, or large non-profit organization is highly desirable. Must have a proven track record of managing government-funded programs, building community-based partnerships, and advocating for policy change. Experience leading diverse teams to achieve both social and business outcomes is required.
• (OR) High School Diploma /GED with fourteen (14) or more years of progressive leadership experience with a significant focus on developing or managing programs for LMI or other vulnerable populations. Experience in a regulated utility, government agency, or large non-profit organization is highly desirable. Must have a proven track record of managing government-funded programs, building community-based partnerships, and advocating for policy change. Experience leading diverse teams to achieve both social and business outcomes is required.

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Why should you join our team?

At Consumers Energy, we offer more than just a place to work. We foster a culture that supports career development, growth, and stability, and we take pride in offering our co-workers excellent benefits and compensation packages. We are deliberately creating an inclusive culture that makes our diverse team of co-workers feel valued, supported, and empowered every day. We're a company made up of thousands of people, all with different stories to share and work to do, but we stand united in our company purpose: world class performance delivering hometown service.

What we offer:

• Competitive compensation packages
• Medical, Dental and Vision
• 401k with company match
• Paid parental leave
• Up to 13 paid Holidays
• Paid time off
• Educational Assistance Program

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: 

We, at CMS Energy, value Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. It is part of our DNA. We treat our employees with respect, we treat each other fairly and we value the opinions of others. We are passionate about building and nurturing an environment where everyone feels included. We don’t discriminate. We seek to learn about each other and better understand our unique differences. Our uniqueness makes us authentic. We create safe spaces where everyone can be who they truly are. We invite difficult conversations and uncomfortable topics. We value diverse perspectives; this is what makes us great together. We harbor an inclusive environment where employees feel empowered to share their backgrounds, experiences, and ideas. Our Employee Resource Groups, Women in Energy (WE), Minority Advisory Panel (MAP), Pride Alliance of Consumers Energy (PACE), GENERGY (Different Generations), capable (Different Abilities), Interfaith, People Planet Partners, and Veterans Advisory Panel (VAP) are key enablers to living the values of our company culture: Caring, Empowered, Deliberate, Agility, and Ownership.

All qualified applicants will not be discriminated against and will receive consideration for employment without regard to protected veteran status, disability, race, color, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.