Assistant Corporate Secretary - Legal & Corp Secretary - Akron FirstEnergy Headquarters bei FirstEnergy Service Company

FirstEnergy at a Glance 

We are a forward-thinking electric utility powered by a diverse team of employees committed to making customers’ lives brighter, the environment better and our communities stronger. 

FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE) is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Headquartered in Akron, Ohio, FirstEnergy includes one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions, and a regulated generating fleet with a total capacity of more than 3,500 megawatts. 

About the Opportunity 

This is a great opportunity for a corporate governance professional to join a growing team, and to help advance the ever-changing governance landscape at a highly dynamic, publicly-traded company. FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE) is a fact-paced, forward-thinking electric company powered by a diverse team of employees committed to making customers’ lives brighter, the environment better and our communities stronger. FirstEnergy is dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence. Headquartered in Akron, Ohio, FirstEnergy includes one of the nation’s largest investor-owned electric systems connecting the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions.

This Assistant Corporate Secretary will join the Corporate Secretary team within FirstEnergy Service Company (a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp.) and will report to the Corporate Secretary and Associate General Counsel at the FirstEnergy Headquarters in Akron, Ohio.  This Assistant Corporate Secretary will support the Board of Directors and executives of the parent company, and its subsidiaries, and will collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams across the Company including Legal, Investor Relations, Communications, Corporate Responsibility, Accounting, Finance, Human Resources and Ethics and Compliance, to drive implementation of key initiatives in a wide-range of corporate governance matters. 

THIS POSITION IS LOCATED ON-SITE AND FULL-TIME AT THE FIRSTENERGY CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS, AKRON, OH.  44320. 

Responsibilities

• Secretarial support of the Board of Directors: 
  • Serve as a governance resource related to corporate strategic initiatives, including Board and Committee oversight and governance responsibilities 
  • Support the preparation and distribution of information to the Board of Directors, including meeting materials and Board calendar items; draft corporate resolutions and consents, and maintain corporate minute books and Board portal 
  • Ensuring compliance with Board and Committee policies and charter documents
  • Support and coordinate director education and new director training and onboarding
  • Assist in drafting Board and committee meeting minutes 
  • Oversee administration of director compensation 
• Serve as a primary resource related to subsidiary management:
  • Responsible for planning and maintaining work systems, procedures, and policies that enable and encourage the optimum performance of legal subsidiary administration
  • Oversee preparation of corporate legal documents with various Secretaries of State with respect to corporate transactions (formation, merger/conversion, reorganization, acquisition, divestiture or liquidation, etc.) and maintain subsidiary good standing status
  • Provide supporting corporate documents such as good standing certificates, secretary certificates and incumbency certificates
  • Maintain current list of legal entities and organizational chart and subsidiary officers/directors, and manage signing authorities at the subsidiary level
  • Oversee responses to compliance and know-your-customer requests related to legal entity information and ownership structure for banks, vendors, customers, regulatory agencies, etc.
• Support the corporate secretary team reporting components of the Company’s (and certain of its subsidiaries’) securities filings, including 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, proxy statement, registration statements, Section 16 filings, and support compliance with all applicable stock exchange requirements
• Maintain secretarial team policies and procedures, including administration of the Company's Insider Trading Policy and Rule 10b-5 compliance, delegations of authority, related party transactions and other proxy disclosures, and director compensation 
• Review and advise on external public-facing communications, policies or reports, including earnings releases, press releases, investor/analyst presentations, corporate responsibility reporting, Annual Report, responses to shareholder requests, etc.
• Support governance of key management committees and the company’s non-profit Foundation
• Identify and recommend best practices and improvements to processes within functional area
• Conduct business efficiently and with the highest ethical standards
• Other general duties as may be assigned

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution is required
• Juris Doctorate (J.D.) degree from an accredited law school preferred
• Certified Corporate Governance Professional® accreditation from the Society of Corporate Governance is preferred, although otherwise qualified candidates will still be considered
• Minimum of 10 years of relevant work experience is required. Relevant work experience considered includes management of corporate governance matters, Boards of Directors and Committees, preferably with a publicly-traded entity, compliance with stock exchange listing compliance requirements, strategic experience in evaluating and implementing governance trends, or similar
• Experience with a public US company with significant governance, corporate and entity management experience preferred. Utility industry experience preferred
• Competent level of skill and familiarity with Microsoft Office; knowledge of SAP and FileNet is a plus, as well as experience with common Board portal platforms and entity management tools
• Strong knowledge and experience with respect to current legal and compliance laws, public company issuer standards and regulations, evolving governance and ESG trends and expectations, shareholder engagement practices, and entity management related corporate legal matters
• Excellent project management, drafting, researching and time management skills.
• Demonstrated leadership abilities and able to be an effective member of a highly functioning team
• Sound strategic thinking and business counsel, with the ability and comfort to provide support to the Board of Directors, senior executives and internal clients
• Strong owner of responsibility, and proactive seeker for continuous improvement
• Experience in building positive relationships and working with peers cross-functionally, demonstrating teamwork and collaboration
• Perform all responsibilities consistent with FirstEnergy’s core values and behaviors, rooted in the highest standards of integrity, trustworthiness and transparency
• Strong executive presence and leadership, critical thinking skills, collaboration and communication skills

Benefits, Compensation & Workforce Diversity 

At FirstEnergy, employees are key to our success. We depend on their talents to meet the challenges of our changing business environment. We are committed to rewarding individual and team efforts through our total rewards philosophy which includes competitive pay plus incentive compensation, a company-sponsored pension plan, 401(k) savings plan with matching employer contribution, a choice of medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, and life insurance programs, as well as skills development training with tuition reimbursement. Please visit our website at www.firstenergycorp.com to learn more about all of our employee rewards programs. FirstEnergy proudly supports workforce diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, status as a protected veteran, or status as a qualified individual with a disability. No recruiters or agencies without a previously signed contract. Unable to sponsor or transfer H-1B visas at this time. 

Safety 

Safety is a core value for FirstEnergy and is essential to all of our business activities. We ensure employees have the tools, information, and processes to perform their duties in a manner that assures safety for themselves, their co-workers, our customers and the public. Our goals are to provide a safe work environment, to maintain an accident-free, injury-free workplace, and to promote and maintain public safety. To meet these goals, we dedicate ourselves to achieving world-class safety standards.