We are seeking an experienced Principal Project Scheduler to support complex projects at AEP’s Comanche Plant. This role will work closely with Project Managers (PMs), site execution teams, EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) contractors, and senior management to develop, integrate, maintain, and analyze project schedules, track progress, identify risks, and support successful project delivery.

With minimal supervision, the Principal Project Scheduler will lead scheduling activities and/or commodity tracking for major projects, with a particular focus on complex scopes of work and EPC contracting strategies. The ideal candidate brings extensive Primavera P6 experience, a strong background in industrial or large commercial construction, expertise in integrated project scheduling, and the ability to coordinate multiple contractors and project stakeholders onsite.

This is a hands-on, fully onsite role requiring a self-motivated, detail-oriented professional who can independently manage complex scheduling activities, provide actionable schedule analysis, mentor junior schedulers, and communicate effectively with project teams and senior leadership.

Key Responsibilities

Project Scheduling and Planning

• Develop and maintain complex project schedules by defining activities, durations, work sequences, relationships, and critical milestones that reflect key decisions and deliverables.
• Review project scope, client requirements, division of responsibilities, objectives, and constraints to develop effective project delivery strategies, particularly for EPC contracting arrangements.
• Develop and analyze schedules for a wide range of scopes of work, including complex and intermediate projects.
• Develop fully integrated system schedules, including resource loading and leveling, using Critical Path Method (CPM) scheduling.
• Build detailed schedules using project work packages and planners’ work lists.
• Ensure all project scope, activities, and deliverables are accounted for and that schedules meet customer requirements, internal standards, and required levels of detail.
• Adapt scheduling strategies and requirements to the needs of complex projects and EPC delivery models.

Schedule Maintenance, Reporting, and Analysis

• Maintain schedules and collect, validate, and incorporate project progress data.
• Develop and implement scope-of-work schedule and status reports, providing consistent and accurate updates to senior management.
• Analyze project performance metrics and schedule risks, identify potential delays, and communicate issues that could affect critical milestones.
• Develop what-if schedules to evaluate alternative scenarios and options, and identify opportunities to shorten or crash project durations when needed.
• Coordinate schedule and cost integration, including Schedule Performance Index (SPI) and Cost Performance Index (CPI) processes at the scope-of-work level.
• Support project risk assessments and recommend mitigation strategies.
• Provide schedule analysis and recommendations to support project execution, decision-making, and milestone achievement.

Stakeholder and Contractor Coordination

• Collaborate with Project Managers, site execution teams, EPC contractors, other contractors, stakeholders, and AEP senior management to develop and maintain accurate, integrated schedules.
• Coordinate scheduling activities across contractors and project teams to ensure alignment of work activities, dependencies, resources, and milestones.
• Organize and facilitate schedule review meetings with stakeholders, incorporating appropriate levels of detail.
• Document meeting minutes and action items as needed.
• Provide schedule updates and communicate risks, issues, and potential milestone impacts to project teams and leadership.
• Support the coordination and tracking of project commodities, as assigned.

Scheduling Systems, Governance, and Compliance

• Apply applicable project management standards, governance requirements, and scheduling best practices.
• Follow the standards and guidance established by the AEP Project Management Governance Committee.
• Support scheduling system administration, including security, user profiles, and role assignments for new users, in coordination with the appropriate administrator.
• Troubleshoot and resolve project scheduling issues within assigned systems and software.
• Ensure scheduling processes and deliverables comply with applicable internal standards, guidance, and handbook procedures.

Mentoring and Training

• Mentor and assist junior schedulers with scheduling activities, stakeholder reviews, and schedule development.
• Train junior schedulers in:
  • Preparing and analyzing performance metric reports.
  • Preparing and analyzing schedule risk.
  • Developing what-if schedules and evaluating alternative scenarios.
  • Crashing schedule durations when appropriate.
  • Following established processes, standards, and handbook procedures.
  • Using assigned scheduling systems and software effectively.