Dec 08, 2025 Human Resources and Governance Committee Meeting

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WELCOME TO THE HU HUMAN RESOURCES AND GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE.

UM, THIS IS PEGGY HAGG, COMMITTEE CHAIR, AND I HEREBY CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER.

THIS MEETING IS BEING WA CAST LIVE TO THE PUBLIC ON OUR COTS WEBSITE.

I HAVE CONFIRMED A QUORUM IS PRESENT IN PERSON, AND I DON'T BELIEVE WE NEED TO CALL IT PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION MEETING.

THANK YOU, THOMAS.

UH, BEFORE WE PROCEED, I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT THE ANTITRUST ADMONITION AND THE SECURITY MAPPER INCLUDED IN THE MATERIALS.

THE FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS TODAY IS AGENDA ITEM TWO.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC COMMENT, IF ANY.

TODAY'S MEETING WAS POSTED PUBLICLY ON DECEMBER 1ST AND PROVIDED INSTRUCTIONS FOR, UH, THE PUBLIC TO COMMENT IN PERSON TO DATE, NO ONE HAS EXPRESSED AN INTEREST IN, IN COMMENTING.

IS THAT STILL CORRECT, CHAD? THAT IS CORRECT.

THANK YOU.

NEXT UP IS

[3. September 22, 2025 General Session Meeting Minutes]

THERE'S A DRAFT OF THE MEETING MATERIALS IN DRAFT OF THE MINUTES.

IN YOUR MEETING MATERIALS.

DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR WISH TO MAKE A MOTION? I'LL THANK YOU.

UH, MOVED BY BENJAMIN.

IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND.

THANK YOU, CHRIS.

SECOND.

ALL IN FAVOR? AYE.

AYE.

ANY ABSTENTIONS OR OPPOSITION? THE MOTION IS UNANIMOUSLY PASSED.

WE NOW MOVE TO AGENDA

[4. Recommendation regarding ERCOT Vision, Mission, and Core Values]

WE HAD A, UH, PRESENTATION ON THIS AT THE LAST HUMAN RESOURCES AND GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE, SO, UH, PABLO WAS GONNA PROVIDE US A FURTHER UPDATE.

THANK YOU.

GO AHEAD.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, CHAIR HAGG.

UM, SO I, THE MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES OF OUR ORGANIZATION DON'T CHANGE VERY FREQUENTLY.

IT'S SOMETHING THAT, YOU KNOW, WE LOOK AT PERIODICALLY TO MAKE SURE THAT IT REMAINS ALIGNED WITH THE OBJECTIVES AND GOALS AND STRATEGIES OF THE ORGANIZATION, AND VICE VERSA.

IT REALLY SHOULD BE SETTING THE GUIDING DIRECTION OF WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO GO.

OUR VISION IS, UH, DESIGNED TO CHARACTERIZE WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE WHEN WE CAN ACHIEVE THIS IN THE FUTURE.

AND SO, AS WE'VE PUT TOGETHER A COMPREHENSIVE FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN, A COUPLE YEARS AGO, THE LEADERSHIP TEAM DECIDED LET'S MAKE SURE THAT OUR OVERALL GUIDING, UH, DOCUMENTS, OUR VISION, OUR MISSION, AND OUR VALUES ARE ALIGNED WITH WHAT OUR STRATEGIES ARE, AS WELL AS WITH THE EVOLUTION OF WHAT'S HAPPENING ON THE GRID.

A YEAR AGO, WE DEFINED THE CONCEPT OF ERCOT 4.0 AND WHAT IT REPRESENTS IN RELATION TO EARLIER PERIODS OF THE ERCOT MARKET.

AND AT A HIGH LEVEL, IT REPRESENTS A TRANSITION IN OUR MARKET THAT IS CHARACTERIZED BY A VERY HIGH AND RAPID PENETRATION OF INTERMITTENT, AS WELL AS SHORT DURATION SUPPLY RESOURCES.

IT'S, UH, CHARACTERIZED BY A VERY RAPIDLY CHANGING CUSTOMER BASE THAT INCLUDES PRICE RESPONSIVE LOADS LIKE CRYPTO MINING FACILITIES, AS WELL AS RAPIDLY GROWING LARGE SCALE DATA CENTERS.

AND WE ARE ALSO SEEING A VERY SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN SHIFT TOWARDS RAPID PENETRATION OF DISTRIBUTED ENERGY RESOURCES ACROSS THE GRID ON THE DROUGHT DISTRIBUTION NETWORK.

ALL OF THESE THINGS REPRESENT A SHIFT IN THE OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS OF THE ORGANIZATION AND REPRESENT OPPORTUNITIES IN THE FUTURE FOR INNOVATION, FOR IMPROVED RELIABILITY, FOR IMPROVED COST EFFICIENCY OF THE GRID.

SO WITH THIS SHIFT, WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR VISION AND OUR MISSION WAS ALIGNED TO THE SUCCESS OPPORTUNITIES THAT WERE REPRESENTED BY THE ERCOT 4.0 CONSTRUCT.

AND THAT SUCCESS DEPENDS ON KEEPING RELIABILITY AS THE BEDROCK OF OUR ORGANIZATION.

RELIABILITY IN TODAY'S DEFINITION OF RELIABILITY, WHICH INCLUDES THAT SOCIETY DEPENDS ON THE AVAILABILITY OF ELECTRICITY FOR NEARLY EVERY FACET OF MODERN LIFE, AND TO DO SO REQUIRES EMBRACING INNOVATION AS A CORE SUCCESS FACTOR.

IN ORDER TO KEEP UP WITH THAT PACE OF CHANGE, WE WANT THE BOARD TO FORMALLY APPROVE THE VISION AND MISSION, AS WELL AS THE VALUES FOR THE ORGANIZATION IN ORDER TO COMPREHENSIVELY COMPLETE ITS APPROVAL OF OUR OVERALL STRATEGY DOCUMENTS WE'VE HAD AT PERIODS IN TIME IN THE PAST THAT THE BOARD HAS APPROVED THE VISION, THE MISSION BEFORE, AS WELL AS THE STRATEGY.

OUR CURRENT STRATEGY WE'RE OPERATING ON THE BOARD DID APPROVE BACK IN, UH, 2 20 23.

AND WITH THIS REVISION TO OUR VISION, MISSION, AND VALUES, WE'RE ASKING FOR THE, FOR THE BOARD'S APPROVAL AS WELL.

OUR NEW VISION IS TO BE THE MOST RELIABLE AND INNOVATIVE GRID IN THE WORLD, NOT IN TEXAS, NOT IN THE US, BUT IN THE WHOLE WORLD.

WE ARE ONE, IF NOT THE LEADING GRID GLOBALLY TODAY WHEN IT COMES TO OPERATIONAL AND TECHNICAL COMPLEXITIES.

AND TO BE SUCCESSFUL, WE NEED TO BE A CLEAR LEADER ON A STAGE THAT IS THE ENTIRETY OF THIS PLANET

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OUR MISSION IS WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO EVERY DAY.

IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE THAT VISION, WE'RE GONNA ENSURE A RELIABLE GRID WITH COMPETITIVE AND COST EFFICIENT ELECTRICITY MARKETS.

AND AGAIN, RELIABILITY IS AT THE CORE OF THAT MESSAGING.

AND WE RECOGNIZE THE CRITICAL IMPORTANCE OF A COST EFFECTIVE GRID IN THE CONTEXT OF A THRIVING ECONOMY.

OUR VALUES WERE DEVELOPED DIRECTLY WITH INPUT FROM ERCOT EMPLOYEES.

WE HELD FOCUS GROUPS AND GATHERED SURVEYS FROM HUNDREDS OF EMPLOYEES ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION, ASKING THEM WHAT IT SHOULD FEEL LIKE TO WORK AT THIS ORGANIZATION AND WHAT SET OF CORE VALUES WILL CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT THAT WILL FOSTER BOTH INDIVIDUAL AS WELL AS ORGANIZATIONAL SUCCESS.

I'M NOT GONNA REVIEW EACH VALUE IN DETAIL, BUT YOU CAN SEE 'EM ON THE GRID IN THIS SLIDE.

BUT EACH ONE OF THEM BUILDS UPON AND SUPPORTS THE OTHER TO CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE WE CAN ACHIEVE OUR VISION AND BE SUCCESSFUL IN OUR DAILY MISSION.

I DID WANT TO CAPTURE A COUPLE OF WORKING DOCUMENTS THAT WE'VE PRODUCED AS A, A SUPPORT FOR THE VALUES WHERE WE SHOW WHAT THE VALUE IS AND WHAT IT SHOULD LOOK LIKE IN ACTION.

AND SO WE'VE GOT THIS DEFINED FOR EACH OF OUR VALUES IN ORDER TO HELP BRING TO LIFE EXAMPLES OF WHAT IT SHOULD LOOK LIKE WHEN WE ARE LIVING THESE VALUES IN THE WAY THAT EMPLOYEES WISH TO DO SO.

SO I INCLUDE THESE FOR PERSPECTIVE AS WELL AS FOR DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT'S INTENDED BEHIND THE DEFINITION OF EACH OF THESE VALUES.

SO WITH THAT, I WILL PAUSE AND OPEN IT UP FOR ANY QUESTIONS.

OUR ASK IS THAT THIS COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS TO THE BOARD THE APPROVAL OF OUR NEW VISION, OUR NEW MISSION, AND OUR VALUES DURING, UH, THE GENERAL SESSION TOMORROW.

ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS FOR PABLO? WELL, I, I LIKE TO SAY THAT I REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK YOU'VE DONE ON THIS, PABLO.

I LIKE, UH, THERE'S A LOT ABOUT THIS.

I LIKE THE CLARITY, THE FOCUS ON RELIABILITY AND COST EFFECTIVENESS, AND THINK YOU GUYS DID A GREAT JOB ON THIS.

THANK YOU.

UH, IF THERE ARE NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, UH, I'D LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE THE RECOMMENDATION REGARDING THE ERCOT VISION, MISSION, AND CORE VALUES.

THANK YOU, KATHLEEN.

SECOND, CHRIS SECOND.

ALL IN FAVOR? AYE.

ANY OPPOSED OR ABSTENTIONS? THE MOTIONS UNANIMOUSLY PASSED.

THANK YOU.

AND BEFORE I CONCLUDE, I'D JUST LIKE TO CALL OUT FOR THIS COMMITTEE'S AWARENESS, UH, THAT LAUREN FLEMING AND, UH, ADAM MARTINEZ PLAYED A VERY SIGNIFICANT PART IN THE LEADERSHIP OF HELPING TO PULL TOGETHER AND TO MANAGE THE, THE, UH, THE, THE SURVEY PROCESS, THE, THE, THE GATHERING OF OUR EMPLOYEES AND THE FOCUS GROUPS REALLY, REALLY CARRIED THE BALL ON THIS IN A SIGNIFICANT WAY.

AND SO I JUST WANNA SHARE MY APPRECIATION FOR, TO LAUREN, TO YOUR TEAM, ADAM, TO YOUR TEAM FOR THE LEADERSHIP AND HELPING TO DRIVE THIS, AND MARA, FOR THE LEADERSHIP ACROSS YOUR TEAM AS WELL.

THANK YOU, LAUREN.

AND ADAM, WHY DON'T YOU RAISE YOUR HAND.

SO WE GOT SOME NEW BOARD MEMBERS.

.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

NEXT UP

[5. Review of ERCOT Governing Documents]

THE HR G COMMITTEE CHARTER REQUIRES US TO ANNUALLY REVIEW THE CERTIFICATE OF FORMATION IN THE BYLAWS FOR THE REASONS SET FORTH IN THE MEMO, UH, INCLUDED IN THE MATERIALS.

THERE ARE NO CHANGES THAT ARE CURRENTLY BEING PROPOSED.

CHAD, IS THERE ANYTHING YOU'D LIKE TO ADD ON THIS? SURE.

I MEAN, I JUST WANT TO KIND OF PUBLICLY STATE WHY WE'RE NOT ABLE TO CHANGE, UH, ANY OF THE BYLAWS RIGHT NOW.

THE, THE BYLAWS WERE CHANGED IN 2022.

UH, THE BYLAW PROCESS, UH, BECAME A DISPUTE BETWEEN THE CORPORATE MEMBERS, THEIR CAP BOARD, AND ULTIMATELY THE PEC.

SO THERE'S TWO CONTESTED CASES THAT ARE EITHER ABATED OR PLAYING ITSELF OUT THROUGH THE, THE COURTS RIGHT NOW.

THE, THE FIRST ONE INVOLVES, UH, CERTAIN CORPORATE MEMBERS AGAINST THE PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION, AND THAT'S HIGHLIGHTED IN THE MEMO.

THAT'S AT THE 15TH COURT OF APPEALS WAITING FOR A DECISION ON THE GOVERNANCE CHANGE PROCESS OF THE BYLAWS.

THE BOARD WAS ALSO SUED BY CERTAIN CORPORATE MEMBERS AT THE PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION.

THAT PROCEEDING IS ABATED BECAUSE ULTIMATELY I THINK WE'LL GET RESOLUTION THROUGH THE, THE LEGAL ISSUES THROUGH THE 15TH COURT APPEALS AND POTENTIALLY EVEN THE TEXAS SUPREME COURT, DEPENDING ON WHAT THE OUTCOME IS.

BUT IT DOES HINDER US FROM MOVING FORWARD WITH CHANGE IN BYLAWS UNTIL WE UNDERSTAND KIND OF WHAT THE OUTCOME OF THAT IS.

YOU'LL SEE IN THE MEMO THAT WE HAVE AN APPENDIX THAT HIGHLIGHTS SOME OF THE POTENTIAL CHANGES THAT NEED TO HAPPEN TO THE BYLAWS ONCE THOSE LEGAL ISSUES ARE RESOLVED.

ONE THAT I WOULD CALL OUT SPECIFICALLY IS ITEM 10, TALKING TO, TO BEN BARKLEY ABOUT POSSIBLE CHANGES TO THE TAC REPRESENTATIVE.

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SO WE'LL CONTINUE TO TRACK POSSIBLE CHANGES, UM, THROUGH THIS KIND OF ARTIFACT, AND THEN WHENEVER THOSE PROCEEDINGS ARE RESOLVED, THAT'LL ALLOW US TO KIND OF MOVE FORWARD AND, AND DO THE REMAINING CHANGES TO THE GOVERNANCE PROCESS.

HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU, CHAD.

THE NEXT ITEM

[6. Review of Periodicity of Board Meetings]

UH, THERE'S SOME MATERIALS IN YOUR, UH, YOUR, THE MEETING MATERIALS ON, UH, THE COMPARISON OF THE OTHER ISO RTO MEETINGS, AND WE'RE REQUIRED TO LOOK AT THIS ANNUALLY, UH, AS PART OF THE BYLAWS, I BELIEVE.

UH, SO, SO THE FOUR OP BOARD OF MEMBERS DIRECTORS MET SIX TIMES IN 2025, INCLUDING FIVE, UH, REGULARLY SCHEDULED MEETINGS AND ONE SPECIAL MEETING.

UH, THE CADENCE IS SIMILAR TO OTHER ISOS AND RTOS, ALTHOUGH THERE ARE, YOU KNOW, SOME DIFFERENCES IN HOW, HOW THEY APPROACH IT.

UH, SO THAT IS AN INFORMATIONAL ISSUE.

WE DO, WE HAVE TO TAKE ACTION ON THAT.

CHAD.

NO, YOU DON'T HAVE TO TAKE ACTION THAT THERE'S A COMMISSION RULE THAT REQUIRES US EVERY YEAR TO, TO MAKE A FILING.

AND SO THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO.

UM, NOW THAT THE COMMITTEE HAS DISCUSSED IT, BY THE END OF THE YEAR, WE'LL MAKE THAT PERIODICITY FILING WITH THE COMMISSION.

THANK YOU.

[7. Recommendation regarding 2027 ERCOT Board Meetings Schedule and 2027 Annual Meeting of Members]

UH, THE, THE, THE DATES ARE UP THERE ON THE SLIDES.

YOU'VE SEEN THESE DATES BEFORE.

UH, UNLESS A COMMITTEE MEMBER WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS THIS, I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE THE 2027 OR BOARD MEETING SCHEDULE IN 2027, ANNUAL MEETING OF THE ITS MEMBERS.

THANK YOU, KATHLEEN.

MOVING SECOND, CHRIS SECOND.

ALL IN FAVOR? AYE.

ANY OPPOSED OR ABSTENTIONS? THE MOTION'S UNANIMOUSLY PASSED.

MOVING ON

[8. Annual Review of Board Committee Membership]

UH, COMMITTEE CHAIRS INTRODUCED NEW MEMBERS DURING THE RESPECTIVE MEETINGS AT LA OF SEPTEMBER 22ND, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUE TO LOOK AT THESE, UH, UH, COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP AND MAKE ADJUSTMENTS AS APPROPRIATE.

NEXT

[9. Results of Annual Committee Self-Evaluation Surveys]

THE HR AND G COMMITTEE CHARTER REQUIRES AN ANNUAL COMMITTEE SELF-EVALUATION SURVEY OF THE HR AND G COMMITTEE.

AND IN ADDITION TO OVERSEEING THE ANNUAL SURVEYS OF THE OTHER COMMITTEES FOLLOWING THE SEPTEMBER BOARD, MEETING BOARD MEMBERS WHO SERVED ON THE COMMITTEES PARTICIPATED IN A SELF-EVALUATION OF THE RESPECTIVE COMMITTEES.

RESULTS ARE IN THE MEETING MATERIALS, UH, FOR YOUR REVIEW, AND YOU'LL SEE THAT, THAT, UH, I THINK ALL THE COMMITTEES GENERAL VIEWS, ALL THE COMMITTEES WERE, UH, FUNCTIONING WELL.

THERE'S ON SLIDE 32 IN DILIGENCE IS THE COMPARISON, IS THE VARIOUS, UH, RESULTS OF THE DIFFERENT COMMITTEE SURVEYS.

WOULD ANYONE LIKE TO COMMENT ON THE SURVEY RESULTS? HEARING NONE.

NEXT SET THIS AGENDA.

[10. Annual Communications Overview]

GILBERT HUGHES AND MARK MINOR WILL JOIN US FOR THIS PRESENTATION, AND PLEASE PROCEED WHEN YOU'RE READY.

GOOD MORNING.

GOOD MORNING.

OOPS.

SORRY.

THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME FOR YOU AND, AND, UH, SPEAK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, OUR, UH, COMMUNICATION ACTIVITIES.

WE BELIEVE THAT EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION IS THE

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AS THE ENERGY LANDSCAPE EVOLVES DRIVEN BY NEW TECHNOLOGIES, SHIFTING POLICY PRIORITIES AND GROWING CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS, OUR ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE CLEARLY, CONSISTENTLY, AND CREDIBLY BECOMES ESSENTIAL TO MAINTAINING OUR TRUST.

OUR COMMUNICATION PLANS OUTLINE HOW WE PROACTIVELY SHARE INFORMATION, SUPPORT GRID RELIABILITY, AND ENGAGE OUR STAKEHOLDERS.

AND WE DO THAT WITH CLARITY AND PURPOSE.

A KEY ELEMENT OF OUR STRATEGY IS THE INTENTIONAL USE OF THOUGHT LEADERSHIP.

BY ELEVATING EXPERT VOICES PUBLISHING FORWARD LOOKING INSIGHTS AND FRAMING COMPLEX GRID ISSUES IN ACCESSIBLE WAYS, WE STRENGTHEN OUR POSITION AS A TRUSTED AUTHORITY IN THE POWER SECTOR THROUGH CONSISTENT AND STRATEGIC MESSAGING.

WE NOT ONLY INFORM OUR STAKEHOLDERS, WE SHAPE THE CONVERSATION, WE ANTICIPATE CONCERNS AND DEMONSTRATE LEADERSHIP IN RELIABILITY, INNOVATION, AND PUBLIC TRANSPARENCY.

OUR PLAN PROVIDES A STRUCTURE TO ENSURE THAT EVERY MESSAGE WE DELIVER REINFORCES CONFIDENCE IN OUR MISSION AND HIGHLIGHTS THE EXPERTISE THAT DEFINES WHO WE ARE.

AS AN ISO, I'D LIKE TO TURN IT OVER TO MARK MINOR, UH, SO THAT HE CAN, UH, OUTLINE OUR 2025 ACTIVITIES AND, UH, LOOKING FORWARD TO 2026.

THANKS.

THANK YOU, GILBERT.

BEFORE WE BEGIN TODAY, I WANTED TO TAKE A MOMENT, UH, TO RECOGNIZE A COLLEAGUE OF OURS WHO PASSED AWAY, UH, LATE FRIDAY.

AMY LOFTON WAS OUR MANAGER OF DIGITAL CONTENT.

UH, SHE PASSED AWAY SUDDENLY FRIDAY.

UM, THE WHOLE COMMUNICATION TEAM'S REALLY IN SHOCK RIGHT NOW.

AMY WAS A KEY PILLAR IN OUR COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT.

EVERYTHING WE DO INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY RAN THROUGH DIGITAL, FROM DASHBOARDS TO THE GRAPHICS AND PRESENTATIONS TO THE NEW APP THAT WAS REDESIGNED RECENTLY TO THE UPCOMING ERCOT REDESIGN.

AIM WAS REALLY AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE COMMUNICATION TEAM AND IS GONNA BE MISSED.

I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THAT WE WERE NOTIFIED, UH, EARLY SATURDAY ERCOT EMPLOYEES WERE NOTIFIED, UH, SATURDAY AFTERNOON.

AND THIS WILL BE A TREMENDOUS LOSS, UH, FOR THE COMMUNICATION TEAM AND THE DIGITAL TEAM.

THANK YOU.

OKAY.

UH, 2025 HAS REALLY BEEN AN EXCITING YEAR TO BE IN COMMUNICATION.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT, WHEN YOU TAKE A STEP BACK AND REALLY LOOK AT EVERYTHING WE'RE DOING, EVERYTHING GOING ON.

YOU KNOW, ERCOT EITHER DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IS IN THE NEWS EVERY SINGLE DAY.

FROM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS TO THE LARGE LOADS, TO DATA CENTERS.

EVERY DAY WE'RE IN THE NEWS AND PEOPLE ARE LISTENING.

IT'S KINDA LIKE THAT.

EF REMEMBER THE EF HUTTON FINANCIAL.

WHEN ERCOT TALKS, PEOPLE LISTEN.

UH, DECISION MAKERS, THE MEDIA INFLUENCERS, THE ENERGY INDUSTRY, THE FINANCIAL COMMUNITY ARE ALL LISTENING AND WATCHING EVERYTHING WE SAY.

EVERY REPORT, EVERY STATEMENT, EVERY SOCIAL MEDIA POST.

WITH THIS INCREASED VISIBILITY, WE ALSO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY, AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE SHAPING WHO WE ARE, WHAT WE DO, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, POSITION ERCOT AS THE MOST RELIABLE AND INNOVATIVE GRID IN THE WORLD.

WE MUST CONTINUE TO BE PROACTIVE AND STRATEGIC WITH HOW WE COMMUNICATE, WHAT WE COMMUNICATE, AND WHERE WE COMMUNICATE WITH OUR STAKEHOLDERS.

IN 2025, WE CONTINUED TO USE DATA AND ANALYTICS TO GAUGE OUR INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL EFFECTIVENESS, AND ENSURE WE ARE COMMUNICATING WITH A PURPOSE AND ACHIEVING DESIRED RESULTS.

WE'VE INCREASED OUR EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION EFFORTS THROUGH EDITORIAL BOARD MEETINGS, TRENDING TOPICS, GRID INSIGHTS, THE LAUNCH OF AN ANNUAL REPORT, SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS, MEDIA INTERVIEWS, AND SOCIAL MEDIA.

INTERNALLY, WE INCREASE OUR COMMUNICATION EFFORTS THROUGH POWERED BY, POWERED BY ERCOT, POWERED BY PEOPLE.

OUR INTERNAL PROGRAM, THE CONNECT, UH, COMMUNICATION MECHANISM WE USE TO COMMUNICATE WITH EMPLOYEES INTERNALLY, WAYS OF WORKING AND EMPLOYEE SUMMIT QUARTERLY MEETINGS, OUR INTERNAL SHAREPOINT SITES AND INTERNAL VIDEOS.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY OF 2025 WAS THERE WAS A VERY LOW WEATHER EVENT.

WE HAVE ISSUED, UH, I THINK THERE WERE THREE, UM, WEATHER WATCHES.

THOSE WERE IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY.

THE REST OF THE YEAR, WE DID NOT HAVE ANY, UH, TYPE OF WEATHER EVENTS, KNOCK ON WOOD, UM, WHICH ALLOWED US THESE LACK OF WEATHER EVENTS ALLOWED US TO UTILIZE OUR COMMUNICATION EFFORTS TO TALK ABOUT GRID POLICIES, ISSUES, AND PROCEDURES THAT ALLOWED US TO CONTINUE FOCUSING ON ESTABLISHING ERCOT AS THE INDUSTRY LEADER.

IT ALLOWED US TO CONTINUE BUILDING EDU, CONTINUE EDUCATING, CONTINUE BUILDING TRUST AND CREDIBILITY AMONG OUR STAKE, OUR STAKEHOLDERS MAIN OBJECTIVES

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CONTINUE TO PROACTIVELY EDUCATE AND INFORM OUR TARGET AUDIENCES, WHAT DOES AND WHAT WE DON'T DO.

DEFINING ISSUES AND POLICIES THROUGH CONTENT, UTILIZING AND EXPANDING, UH, COMMUNICATION RESOURCES, RESOURCES TO REACH STAKEHOLDERS THROUGH STRATEGIC CONTENT, PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT, AND KNOWLEDGE SHARING.

WE ARE CONTINUING TO BUILD TRUST AND CREDIBILITY AMONG OUR STAKEHOLDERS, AND WE'RE POSITIONING ERCOT AS A GLOBAL LEADER AND AUTHORITY AND GRID INNOVATION, RELIABILITY.

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE'RE CONTINUING TO PREPARE FOR CRISIS SITUATIONS BY THE NUMBERS.

WE HAD OUR ANNUAL REPORT WE RELEASED THIS YEAR.

WE DID, UH, 12 ERCOT MONTHLY REPORTS.

WE CONTINUED OUR EDUCATION CAMPAIGN ON SOCIAL MEDIA, WHICH IS REALLY AN ERCOT 1 0 1, JUST THE BASICS OF WHO ERCOT IS, WHAT WE DON'T DO, CONTINUE THAT EDUCATION PROCESS.

WE CONTINUE TO PUSH OUT, UM, PUBLISH GRID INSIGHTS, TRENDING TOPICS, AND WE HAD 171 SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS AMONG SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS, THE EXECUTIVE TEAM IN TEXAS, THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, AND REALLY THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.

WE HAD, UH, ERCOT EMPLOYEES, UH, SPEAKING ON ISSUES IMPACTING THE GRID.

UM, OUR SOCIAL MEDIA NUMBERS HAVE SEEN EXPLOSIVE GROWTH SINCE 2021.

UM, IN 2025, EVEN WITHOUT THE WEATHER EVENTS, WE CONTINUE TO SEE, UM, AUDIENCE GROWTH.

UH, WE POSTED MORE.

WE SAW INCREASED VIDEO VIEWS.

UH, SO EVEN THE AUDIENCE GROWTH, WHICH IS OUR MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT OF, YOU KNOW, EDUCATING AND GETTING TO PEOPLE.

WE CONTINUE TO SEE TREMENDOUS, UH, AUDIENCE GROWTH THIS YEAR JUST BY THE CONTENT WE'RE PUSHING OUT ON WHAT WE'RE DOING AND THE POLICIES AND ISSUES IMPACTING THE GRID.

AND WE ALSO, UH, JUST AS IMPORTANT CONTINUE TO CONTINUE TO SEE A NEGATIVE, A DECREASE IN NEGATIVE COMMENTS AND ENGAGEMENTS.

SO IT'S ALL POSITIVE NEWS, UM, ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

AND AGAIN, THE, UH, DECREASE IN NEGATIVE COMMENTS.

IF YOU LOOK BACK THREE YEARS AGO, THEY'RE TREMENDOUS AND THEY'VE STEADILY OVER THE YEARS HAVE GONE DOWN.

I THINK WE'RE JUST TIRING PEOPLE OUT ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

UM, THIS CONTINUES TO SHOW THAT, YOU KNOW, OUT OF ALL THE ISOS AND RTOS AROUND THE COUNTRY, WE CONTINUE TO HAVE A MUCH HIGHER FOLLOWING THAN EVERY OTHER ISO, UM, IN THE COUNTRY, OTHER THAN LINKEDIN.

UH, BUT WE'RE STILL CONTINUING TO GROW ACROSS ALL CHANNELS.

THIS GRAPH SHOWS, I THINK YOU'VE SEEN THIS BEFORE WHEN LEGEND LABS CAME IN AND DEMONSTRATED, YOU KNOW, THE HOT TOPICS AND HEADLINES DEMONSTRATE HOW THE ISSUES AND POLICIES HAVE DOMINATED OUR MEDIA COVERAGE THIS YEAR.

UM, WITHOUT THE WEATHER EVENTS, AGAIN, IT ALLOWED US TO TALK ABOUT ISSUES AND POLICIES.

UH, WE DID A TOTAL OF SIX PRESS RELEASES THIS YEAR.

UM, THREE.

SO WE HAD THREE WEATHER EVENTS.

WE DID, UH, THREE IN ENGLISH, THREE IN SPANISH.

WE CONTINUE TO CON, WE CONTINUE TO COMMUNICATE IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH.

SPANISH FAVORABLE AND NEUTRAL COVERAGE.

AS YOU CAN SEE FROM 2021 TO 2025 AS CONTINUE TO STAY STEADY, UH, THROUGHOUT THE YEARS, THAT GREEN IS WHERE WE WANT TO BE, AND IT'S GETTING CONTINUOUS, UH, NEUTRAL AND POSITIVE COVERAGE THIS YEAR AND LAST YEAR.

AGAIN, THE LACK OF WEATHER EVENTS HAVE REALLY ALLOWED US TO TALK ABOUT THE ISSUES IMPACTING THE GRID.

AGAIN, NOTHING MORE IMPORTANT THAN CRISIS PREPARATION.

UH, NOTHING WE DO IS MORE IMPORTANT.

WE HAD THIS YEAR, WE HAD, UM, THE GOVERNOR HAD AN EXECUTIVE ORDER.

WE DID A BLACK START TRAINING PROGRAM, UH, HERE AT THE MET EVERY STATE AGENCY GOT TOGETHER HERE AND RAN THROUGH A BLACKSTAR DRILL.

UH, IT WAS REALLY KIND OF BLACKSTAR 1 0 1.

A LOT OF THE AGENCIES DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHAT BLACKSTAR WAS, SO IT WAS KIND OF AN EDUCATION SLASH DRILL.

UH, WE DID A GRID X, UH, DRILL HERE LAST WEEK.

UM, WITH EXECUTIVE TEAM.

WE'VE ALSO ENGAGED LEGEND LABS, WHO'S BEEN DOING OUR MONITORING, UH, OF OUR, OUR MESSAGING AND OUR WEEKLY MONITORING ON DATA AND ANALYTICS.

THEY'RE GONNA BE OUR CRISIS COMMUNICATION TEAM.

WE'RE ONBOARDING WITH THEM RIGHT NOW, AND THEN WE'LL HAVE THEM AT OUR DISPOSAL AS WE START GOING THROUGH ALL OF OUR POLICIES AND DOCUMENTS TO ENSURE WE HAVE EVERYTHING IN ORDER, UH, IF A CRISIS DOES HAPPEN.

SO THEY WERE JUST ENGAGED.

THEY'RE GONNA BE AN INTEGRAL PART OF WHAT WE DO.

SETTING UP, UM, UH, INSTANT, UH, DATA MONITORING AND IF WE EVER TO GO INTO AN EMERGENCY, HAVING, FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM, A WAR ROOM SET UP WHERE WE CAN WATCH, UH, REAL TIME INFORMATION COMING IN AND MAKE DECISIONS BASED ON ANALYTICS AND DATA.

SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THEM ON, UH, CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS, SOME OTHER, UH, PROJECTS AS WELL.

EVENTS.

THIS YEAR WE HAD OUR ER, POWERED BY PEOPLE EMPLOYEE SUMMIT.

UH, THIS IS THE THIRD YEAR WE'VE DONE IT.

630 ATTENDEES THIS YEAR.

TREMENDOUS GROWTH OVER PREVIOUS YEARS.

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UH, WE HAD 850 VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON LAST YEAR.

WE HAVE ANOTHER ONE COMING UP IN MARCH.

UH, CONTINUE.

WE ALREADY HAD, UH, 400, ALMOST 400 PEOPLE, UM, REGISTERED TO ATTEND IN THE FIRST DAYS OF JUST ANNOUNCING THE NEXT INNOVATION SUMMIT.

AND WE ALSO DO OUR GRID TRANSFORMATION SPEAKER SERIES AS WELL, EMPOWERING OUR PEOPLE, INCREASING THE USE OF VIDEOS, SPOTLIGHTING EMPLOYEES AND EVENTS CONTINUE TO GROW ERCOT POWER BY PEOPLE.

WE USE OUR INTERNAL RESOURCES CONNECT, AND THEN INTERNAL ANNOUNCEMENTS, DIGITAL CHANNELS.

WE LAUNCHED A NEW VERSION OF THE MOBILE APP THIS YEAR.

WE'RE ALSO HAD TO MAKE SOME CHANGES TO BECOME A DA COMPLIANT.

SO THOSE, UH, PROCEDURES WERE PUT IN PLACE.

WE DESIGNED AND LAUNCHED THE GRIT WEBSITE.

UH, THE BIG PROJECT FOR THIS YEAR.

UM, IT'S ALREADY BEEN STARTED AS A RE COMPLETE REDESIGN OF OUR ERCOT.COM WEBSITE.

UH, WE ALSO HAVE INTERNAL SHAREPOINT DESIGNS GOING ON, AND WE'LL BE ADDING, UH, IN OTHER WORDS, A REQUEST FROM THE BOARD TO ADD, UH, CURRENT INFORMATION TO THE APP THAT SHOULD BE DONE IN THE NEXT COUPLE WEEKS.

UH, SO WE'RE GONNA PUT, UH, TRENDING TOPICS AT GRID SITES ON THE MOBILE APP TO KEEP THAT, UH, CURRENT AS WELL.

LOOKING AT 2026, THOUGH, WE'VE DEVELOP A COMMUNICATION PLAN, YOU KNOW, PROVIDES THE COMMS PLAN, PROVIDES GUIDANCE, STRUCTURE AND GOALS FOR 2026.

CONTINUE TO BUILD ON THE FOUNDATION WE'VE BUILT OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS.

CONTINUE PROACTIVELY AND STRATEGICALLY POSITIONING ERCOT AS A GLOBAL LEADER IN GRID INNOVATION, RELIABILITY, AND ERCOT AS THE MAIN RESOURCE FOR FACTUAL AND RELIABLE INFORMATION CONCERNING THE GRID, UH, PROACTIVELY AND STRATEGICALLY UTILIZING SPEAKING EVENTS, MEDIA INTERVIEWS, COMMUNICATION CHANNELS TO ADVANCE OUR POLICIES, EXPERTISE, AND KNOWLEDGE.

UH, ONE THING THAT GILBERT, GILBERT, UH, TOUCHED ON IS THIS DEVELOPMENT OF THE THOUGHT LEADERSHIP PROGRAM.

AND THAT'S REALLY PACKAGING EVERYTHING WE'RE DOING, UH, THE TRAINING TOPICS TO GREAT INSIGHT, THE INNOVATION OF SUMMIT, EDITORIAL BOARD MEETINGS, MEDIA INTERVIEWS, SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS, ALL WAYS TO SHARE FORWARD THINKING, IDEAS AND EXPERT PERSPECTIVES.

THE SALT LEADERSHIP PROGRAM WILL HELP POSITION ERCOT AS A GLOBAL AUTHORITY AND TRUSTED VOICE ON GRID INNOVATION, RELIABILITY, MANY OF THE THINGS WE'RE ALREADY DOING, BUT PACKAGING THIS INTO A, A MORE OF A STRUCTURED PROGRAM WITH THAT THOUGHT LEADERSHIP PROGRAM.

WE'RE ALSO GONNA ANNOUNCE AND LAUNCH A PODCAST NEXT YEAR TO FIT INTO THIS.

THAT'LL GO IN LINE WITH THE TRENDING TOPICS, THE GRID INSIGHTS, EVERYTHING WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, AND LAUNCHING A, UH, A PODCAST HOPEFULLY BY Q2 OF NEXT YEAR.

AGAIN, TO SHARE THAT EXPERTISE, SHARE THAT KNOWLEDGE ON, UH, THE GRID, UH, ERCOT.COM.

REDESIGN, AS I MENTIONED, WILL BE AN OKR NEXT YEAR.

THAT'S A HUGE PROJECT THAT WE'LL BE MAKING.

THE WEBSITE, I MEAN, THE WEBSITE IS REALLY THE FIRST PLACE PEOPLE SEE ERCOT.

IT'S THEIR FIRST INTRODUCTION TO ERCOT, SO WE'RE GONNA BE REDESIGNING THAT, MAKE IT MORE ACCESSIBLE, EASIER TO USE, AND MUCH MORE INNOVATIVE AND, UH, USER FRIENDLY.

UH, OVER THE NEXT YEAR, UH, WE'RE ALSO DOING MORE IMPORTANT, UH, DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION WITH GRIT, ESTABLISHING EXPERTISE AND POSITIONING ERCOT AS THE INNOVATION LEADER WITH GRIT AND EVERYTHING VENCAT'S GROUP'S DOING.

AND THE OTHER GROUPS ARE DOING AROUND, UH, ERCOT.

AND WE'RE GOING TO ALSO DO THE ERCOT BRANDING ROLLOUT OF OUR NEW VISION, MISSION AND CORE VALUES THAT'S ALREADY BEGUN, PACKAGING THAT.

AND, UM, A LOT OF THE REBRANDING AROUND, UM, THE VISION, MISSION, CORE VALUES.

WE'RE ALSO GONNA LAUNCH A, UH, MEDIA PRESENTATION TRAINING PROGRAM.

WE'RE GONNA BRING IN A THIRD PARTY TO HELP, UH, AS WE IMPLEMENT THE THOUGHT LEADERSHIP PROGRAM.

AS MORE EMPLOYEES OR SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS ARE OUT THERE SPEAKING, WE WANT THEM TO BE PREPARED, UH, TO GIVE PRESENTATIONS TO SPEAK BEFORE EITHER THE MEDIA OR THE LEGISLATURE OR WHATEVER EVENT THEY'RE AT.

WE'RE GONNA OFFER, UH, MEDIA TRAINING FOR EMPLOYEES, UH, STARTING NEXT YEAR.

CRISIS PREPAREDNESS, AGAIN, LEGEND LABS WE BROUGHT ON TO BE OUR, UH, OUTSIDE CONSULTANT TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE ALL OF OUR, UH, PROCEDURES IN PLACE.

AND THEN ALSO, YOU KNOW, IMPROVE OUR STRUCTURES AND PROCEDURES.

THIS IS OUR THIRD COMMUNICATION PLAN, UM, AND JUST MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE ALL THE PROPER PROCEDURES AND STRUCTURE IN PLACE.

PART OF THAT STRUCTURE IS GONNA EVOLVE, HIRING AN AV MANAGER, WHERE WE'RE GONNA HAVE COME IN AND BE A PRODUCER FOR OUR PODCAST, OUR QUARTERLY MEETINGS, JUST MAKING SURE WE'RE PRESENTING ALL THESE A PROFESSIONAL, UM, THE CAPABILITY WE DIDN'T HAVE IN-HOUSE.

SO THIS WILL BE A NEW POSITION THAT WE'VE CREATED TO HAVE, UH, SOMEONE COME IN AND REALLY MAKE SURE THE TECHNICAL SIDE IS BEING COVERED ON ALL OF OUR EVENTS, INCLUDING BOARD MEETINGS.

UM, PART OF THAT ALSO IS GONNA BE DESIGNING A MEDIA ROOM.

UH, REALLY IT'S GONNA BE A CONFERENCE ROOM, BUT ALSO OUR ROOM WHERE WE CAN USE FOR PODCASTS, ROOMS WE CAN USE IN CRISIS SITUATIONS.

[00:30:01]

UH, AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO USE AND EXPAND OUR ANALYTICS, ENGAGE AND MONITOR OUR COMMUNICATION EFFECTIVENESS.

WE'LL CONTINUE TO, UM, INCREASE THE USE OF ANALYTICS AND THEN ALSO AI UTILIZATION, SOMETHING THAT THE COMMUNICATION TEAM'S LOOKING INTO, HOW CAN WE BETTER UTILIZE AI, YOU KNOW, THE COMPANY OBVIOUSLY IS, IS USING IT TO MANAGE THE GRID WE WANNA LOOK AT AND MAKE SURE WE'RE UP TO DATE AND USING THE MOST INNOVATIVE AND PROPER TECHNOLOGY FROM A COMMUNICATION OR PUBLIC RELATIONS PERSPECTIVE AS WELL.

WITH THAT, HAPPEN TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, CHRIS? UH, FIRSTLY A COMMENT MARK, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.

I THINK IT'S, UM, IT'S VERY CLEAR AND IT'S, UM, A VERY IMPORTANT TOPIC FOR US.

SO THANK YOU.

UH, I JUST WANNA SAY, UM, GILBERT, YOUR, YOUR STATEMENT ABOUT POSITIONING AS A THOUGHT LEADER, I THINK IS TREMENDOUSLY, TREMENDOUSLY IMPORTANT.

VERY GOOD FOR US.

THE BENEFITS THAT I CAN IMAGINE THAT COME WITH THAT SORT OF PUBLIC POSITIONING ARE TREMENDOUS.

SO, SO COMPLIMENTS.

UH, I THINK THAT'S A VERY, VERY GOOD STEER.

THANK YOU, BILL.

UH, SO ONE MINOR COMMENT, UH, IN THE, UM, NEW TEMPLATE ROLLOUT THAT YOU'VE GOT COMING, UH, LOOK HARD AT THE COLORS FOR THE GRAPHS.

.

I'VE USED, I THINK GILBERT, YOU'VE HEARD ME SAY THIS BEFORE, BUT I'VE USED SOME OF THE, UH, ERCOT PRESENTATIONS IN THE PAST.

AND THE CURRENT REALLY PASTEL COLOR SCHEME WASHES OUT REALLY BADLY FOR GROUP SETTINGS.

SO USE VI BRIGHT, VIBRANT COLORS IF YOU CAN.

YEAH, I DID SEE, DID SEE THAT IN A, UH, IN AN EARLIER PRESENTATION TODAY, HOW THEY FADE OUT TOWARD THE BOTTOM.

SO YEAH, WE'LL BE, WE'LL BE LOOKING AT THAT AGAIN.

OKAY.

IT'S A MINOR THING.

I'M NOT TRYING TO TELL YOU HOW TO DO YOUR WORK, BUT JUST, JUST SOME OBSERVATIONS.

THANK YOU.

I I HAD A QUICK CLARIFYING QUESTION, UH, ON YOUR COMPARISONS.

UH, FOR INSTAGRAM, WE HAVE ERCOT IS NUMBER ONE, BUT SBP HAS NINE 15 VERSUS 8 62 FOR ERCOT.

IS THERE A REASON WHY YOU CHANGED THE ORDERING THERE? UH, PARDON.

CAN YOU REPEAT THE QUESTION? I'M SORRY.

SURE.

SO, UH, IF YOU TAKE A LOOK AT, UH, THE SLIDE THAT COMPARES SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWERS UNDER IN, YOU HAVE, UH, ERCOT BASICALLY LEADING THREE OF THE FOUR.

UH, LOOKING AT INSTAGRAM THOUGH, SPP HAS NINE 15.

I I IS, WAS THERE SOME OTHER METRIC THAT WAS USED HERE TO DO THAT RANKING TO EXPLAIN THE DIFFERENCE THERE? I CAN LOOK INTO THAT.

I DON'T HAVE, UM, IT, IT WAS JUST, JUST A SIMPLE LOOK AT THE NUMBERS OF, UM, SUBSCRIBERS OR PARTICIPANTS IN EVERY ONE OF THOSE, UM, THOSE VARIOUS SOCIAL MEDIA.

COOL.

THANK YOU.

THERE ARE NO FURTHER COMMENT.

UH, KATHLEEN? YES, I HAVE.

YEAH.

THANK YOU.

YEAH.

UM, GREAT PRESENTATION, EXCITING WORK.

UH, QUESTION FOR THE FUTURE, AND I APPRECIATED YOUR SLIDE SHOWING, UM, THE HOT TOPICS AND THE TREND ON POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE, UH, REACTION.

IT MIGHT BE INTERESTING, I KNOW YOU HAVE CERTAIN OBJECTIVES FOR THE FUTURE IN TERMS OF, UH, COMMUNICATION AREAS YOU WANT TO TARGET.

I THINK IT MIGHT BE INTERESTING TO SEE THE TRENDS ON THE ENGAGEMENT ON THE VARIOUS PLATFORMS, UH, IN TERMS OF THE TOPICS THAT, THAT YOU'RE LOOKING TO FOCUS ON AND PROMOTE.

THAT'S GREAT.

DEFINITELY.

GOOD DEAL.

THANK YOU.

OKAY, THANK YOU MARK AND GILBERT.

UH, NEXT IS MARA.

[11. Human Resources Operations Report]

GOOD MORNING.

TODAY I'LL BE PROVIDING YOU AN UPDATE ON OUR HR OPERATIONAL ACTIVITIES THROUGH OCTOBER, 2025.

UM, WE'VE, THOSE HAVE REMAINED VERY ACTIVE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.

AND THEN I'LL ALSO BE GIVING YOU AN UPDATE ON A LOT OF OUR MAJOR STRATEGIC EFFORTS THAT WE'VE HAD IN 2025.

SO LABOR COSTS ARE TRACKING SLIGHTLY BELOW BUDGET.

YEAR DATE ACTUALS AS OF OCTOBER, 2025 WE'RE 177.2 MILLION VERSUS THE BUDGETED AMOUNT OF 180 6 0.3 MILLION.

TOTAL HEAD COUNT IS 9 97

[00:35:01]

NOW, THIS WAS THROUGH THE END OF OCTOBER.

WE ACTUALLY JUST REACHED OVER THE THOUSAND EMPLOYEE HEADCOUNT MILESTONE RECENTLY.

9 97 IS A NET INCREASE OF 43 EMPLOYEES SINCE 2024.

AND OUR LARGEST DEPARTMENTS ARE DEVOPS AND GRID TRANSFORMATION SYSTEM OPS.

AND IT, THERE WERE 24 POSITIONS BELOW BUDGETED HEADCOUNT AS OF THE END OF OCTOBER WITH 41 ROLES BEING ACTIVELY RECRUITED AT THAT TIME.

MARA, ON, ON THIS ONE, I WAS HAVING TROUBLE WITH THE COLOR, COLOR SCHEME.

UH, SO THE 25 POSITIONS, WHERE ARE THEY THAT WE'RE RECRUITING FOR WHAT DEPARTMENT? THE 41 POSITIONS ACTIVELY RECRUITED FOR 25.

25.

THE LARGE OH, ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE.

YES.

SORRY.

THAT'S, UH, THE CCO GROUP.

THE WHAT GROUP? CHIEF COMPLIANCE OFFICER.

OH, OKAY.

THANK YOU.

OKAY.

WITH ONBOARDING, UM, WE'VE ONBOARDED 103 EMPLOYEES.

YEAR TO DATE, OUR HIGHEST HIRING HAS BEEN IN SYSTEM PLANNING AND WEATHERIZATION AND THE COMMERCIAL OPERATIONS TEAMS AND OUR TIME TO FILL IMPROVED BY 21% IN 25 COMPARED TO 20 24, 70 9% OF OUR LEADERSHIP HIRES WERE INTERNAL.

AND WE HAD A TOTAL OF 20,577 APPLICANTS YEAR TO DATE IN 2025.

AND SIMILAR TO WHAT WE SAW IN 2024, OUR TOP SOURCES FOR HIRING WERE FROM THE ERCOT WEBSITE, DIRECTLY LINKEDIN.

AND INDEED WE ALSO ACCELERATED, UH, SOME OF OUR POSITIONS THAT ARE BUDGETED FOR 2026 AND STARTED RECRUITING FOR THOSE IN 2025.

AND YEAR TO DATE THROUGH OCTOBER, 56% OF THOSE HAVE BEEN FILLED AS WELL AND WILL BE OPENING ANOTHER 82 POSITIONS IN 2026 THAT WE'RE PLANNING FOR 78% OF OUR APPLICANTS AND 58% OF NEW HIRES IN 2025 ARE ETHNICALLY DIVERSE.

29% OF OUR APPLICANTS IN 26% OF NEW HIRES ARE FEMALE AND 60 EMPLOYEES AND 20 INTERNS OFF BOARDED.

YEAR TO DATE, 43% OF THOSE TERMINATIONS HAD A TENURE OF LESS THAN THREE YEARS AT ERCOT BEFORE THEY LEFT.

FROM AN ATTRITION STANDPOINT, OUR ERCOT ATTRITION REMAINS FAR BELOW THE TEXAS AVERAGE, AND THE LEADING REASON CITED FOR EMPLOYEES TERMINATED IN 2025 WERE FOR RETIREMENT AND ALSO TO EXPLORE OTHER EXTERNAL OPPORTUNITIES AT OTHER COMPANIES.

VOLUNTARY ATTRITION IS AT ITS LOWEST THAT WE'VE SEEN IN 12 MONTHS.

AND HISTORICALLY GOING BACK, THIS IS A GREAT ATTRITION RATE.

HOW DOES IT COMPARE? YOU KNOW, JUST LOOKING BACK AT THE HIGHEST WE SAW SEVERAL YEARS AGO, I THINK, UM, IT WAS ALMOST 14% FOR TOTAL ATTRITION AND A LITTLE OVER 12% FOR VOLUNTARY.

THAT'S THE HIGHEST WE SAW.

AND WAS THAT AFTER, RIGHT AFTER YURI OR IT WAS, YEAH.

OKAY.

WE TEND TO RUN BELOW TEXAS HIGH TECH AND THE ENERGY, OR RIGHT AROUND THE ENERGY.

SO MUCH OF OUR MAJOR HR INITIATIVE WORK THIS YEAR HAS BEEN TO SUPPORT, ESPECIALLY THE THIRD PILLAR OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, TO REALLY ELEVATE ERCOT AS AN EMPLOYER OF CHOICE AND ALSO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE EMPOWERING OUR PEOPLE ON AN ONGOING BASIS TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, THEY CAN BE THE INDUSTRY EXPERTS IN THEIR FIELD.

AND SO IN 2025, WE LAUNCHED IN SEPTEMBER A NEW SAP SUCCESSFACTOR SYSTEM, AND THIS REALLY HELPED US WITH OUR, UH, SUCCESSION PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES.

AND SO YOU MAY RECALL IN A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, WE WORKED REALLY HARD TO REALLY ELEVATE OUR SUCCESSION PLANNING, HOW WE IDENTIFY SUCCESSORS, HOW WE ARE COMMITTED TO DEVELOPING, AND THEN HOW WE TRACK THEIR PROGRESS AND THEIR READINESS.

AND SO WE PILOTED PILOTED WITH THE EXECUTIVE TEAM IN 2024, AND THEN THIS YEAR WE ACTUALLY ROLLED IT DOWN TO THE DIRECTOR AND THE SENIOR DIRECTOR LEVEL TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD SUCCESSION CANDIDATES IDENTIFIED AT THE DIRECTOR AND SENIOR DIRECTOR.

AND THEN IN 2026, WE'LL ACTUALLY BE GOING EVEN FURTHER INTO THE ORGANIZATION FOR MANAGEMENT AS WELL.

AND SO THIS LAUNCH REALLY ENABLED US TO IMPROVE OUR SUCCESS AND DEVELOPMENT FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL AND ELEVATED THE USER EXPERIENCE FOR EVERYONE THAT

[00:40:01]

AND IT ALSO PROVIDES US MUCH GREATER VISIBILITY INTO IDENTIFYING SUCCESSION GAPS AT ALL ORGANIZATIONAL LEVELS.

AND THAT'LL BE REALLY IMPORTANT AS WE GO FORWARD AND CONTINUE TO EXPAND THEIR SUCCESSION POOL.

MARA, I KNOW THIS IS A BIG INITIATIVE.

HOW FAR DOWN IN THE ORGANIZATION NOW DO YOU HAVE DEVELOPMENT PLANS? THIS YEAR WE IDENTIFIED, UM, SUCCESSION CANDIDATES FOR DIRECTOR AND SENIOR DIRECTOR, AND WE'RE WORKING ON BUILDING THOSE DEVELOPMENT PLANS NOW IN 2026, WE'LL ROLL IT DOWN TO MANAGEMENT AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT.

WE ALSO REALLY LOOKED AT THE EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE AND WE HAD A TASK FORCE THAT WAS CREATED TO CREATE, UM, AN EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE ROADMAP.

AND WE'RE THINKING THAT THIS WILL REALLY HELP IMPROVE OUR ONBOARDING AND RETENTION EFFORTS AT ERCOT, BOTH AT THE EMPLOYEE AND THE MANAGEMENT LEVELS TO IMPROVE THE ACCLIMATION OF EMPLOYEES INTO THE COMPANY QUICKER, AND ALSO BETTER PREPARE THEM WITH INFORMATION SOONER AND THE TOOLS THEY NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THEIR ROLES.

WE ALSO CREATED A THREE YEAR HR AI ROADMAP, AND WITH THAT, WE LOOKED AT DIFFERENT SYSTEMS THAT WILL HELP US TO ENHANCE OUR HR OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCIES IN THE COMING YEARS AND REALLY ELEVATE THE EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE AS WELL.

AND THE FUTURE ENHANCEMENTS WILL PROVIDE OUR EMPLOYEES WITH A PATH TO REALLY DEVELOP A PERSONALIZED CAREER PATH FOR THEMSELVES AND ALSO PROVIDE THEM QUICKER ACCESS TO A MULTITUDE OF RESOURCES.

IN THE SPRING OF 2025, WE ANNOUNCED AND LAUNCHED A NEW RECOGNITION PROGRAM CALLED ACHIEVERS.

AND WE SAW A REALLY HIGH ADOPTION RATE ACROSS THE COMPANY, BOTH AT THE MANAGER LEVEL AND THE EMPLOYEE LEVEL.

AND WHAT ACHIEVERS ALLOWS EMPLOYEES TO DO IS TO SEND A NON-MONETARY QUICK KUDOS TO SOMEONE, UH, TO RECOGNIZE 'EM FOR SOMETHING, AND THEN IT'S PUBLISHED ON A COMMUNITY FEED SO THAT ALL EMPLOYEES CAN SEE THAT.

AND THIS WAS ALSO REALLY, UH, IT HELPED US REALLY COMMUNICATE OUR CORE VALUES AS WELL THIS YEAR WHEN WE RECENTLY ANNOUNCED THEM, BECAUSE EMPLOYEES CAN SELECT A CORE VALUE AND THEN WRITE UP HOW SOMEONE THEY SAW A FELLOW COLLEAGUE DEMONSTRATED THAT CORE VALUE AND REALLY KEEP COMMUNICATING AND ELABORATING ON THOSE CORE VALUES AND EDUCATING EMPLOYEES ON THEM.

AS YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A 2025 OKR THAT WAS INSTATED TO PROMOTE BETTER TALENT IDENTIFICATION AND ACCLIMATION INTO ERCOT.

WE ALSO CREATED A TASK FORCE TO LOOK AT THIS AND TO LOOK AT TURNOVER FOR THE GROUP OF EMPLOYEES WHO HAD WORKED AT ERCOT LESS THAN THREE YEARS BEFORE THEY OFF BOARDED.

THAT TASK FORCE IDENTIFIED NO MAJOR TRENDS OR ISSUES, BUT AS A RESULT, WE DID TAKE ADDITIONAL STEPS TO REDUCE EARLY TURNOVER.

WE INITIATED NEW STAY INTERVIEWS SO THAT MANAGEMENT IS NOW MEETING WITH INTERVIEWS TO TALK, OR CANDIDATES, EXCUSE ME, NEW HIRES TO TALK ABOUT THEIR ONBOARDING EXPERIENCE, TO TALK ABOUT THEIR CAREER GOALS AND HOW THEY'RE REALLY BENEFITING AND FITTING INTO THE ORGANIZATION.

AND WE ALSO LOOKED AT HIRING REFINEMENTS IN THE COMING MONTHS.

I'LL BE TALKING TO YOU IN DEEPER DIVE ABOUT THE RECENT EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT SURVEY IN 2023.

WE LAUNCHED OUR FIRST EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT SURVEY THAT WE HAD IN SEVERAL YEARS, AND WE LAUNCHED ANOTHER ONE IN 2024.

WE RECENTLY CLOSED OUR 2025 AND SAW THAT OUR ENGAGEMENT SCORE HAD INCREASED THIS YEAR TO 83.2%.

UM, IT ACTUALLY EXCEEDS THE ALL INDUSTRY AND UTILITIES BENCHMARKS FOR THE COMPANY'S CLIENTS.

AND AS WELL, WE EXCEEDED THE 95TH PERCENTILE OF THEIR BENCHMARKS.

AND I'LL OPEN IT UP TO ANY QUESTIONS.

YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? THANK YOU, MARIN.

UH, NEXT YOU MARLE

[12. Future Agenda Items]

UH, FIRST THE COMMITTEE WILL REVIEW ETHICS AGREEMENT FORMS AS WELL AS CHARTERS OF THE BOARD COMMITTEES.

WE'LL DISCUSS THE COMPANY'S STRATEGIC PLAN, AND IN ADDITION, THE COMMITTEE WILL DISCUSS THE PERFORMANCE OF ERCOT PRESIDENT AND CEO PABLO VEGAS.

OKAY, APPRECIATE THE LOOK AHEAD MARA.

UH, LAST ITEM BEFORE WE MOVE INTO, WELL, LET ME JUST COMMENT ON THIS.

I DID ASK MAR TO LOOK AT THIS CALENDAR.

WE HAVE A, A COMMON, I THINK A PROBLEM A LOT OF THE HUMAN RESOURCE COMMITTEES HAVE IS THAT WE HAVE A VERY HEAVY EXECUTIVE SESSION DECEMBER MEETING.

[00:45:01]

IT'S, IT'S DIFFICULT GIVEN THE TOPICS, BUT, UH, SHE'LL BE LOOKING AT THAT.

THE LAST ITEM BEFORE WE MOVE INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION IS AGENDA ITEM 13, OTHER BUSINESS.

IS THERE ANY OTHER BUSINESS ANY COMMITTEE MEMBER WISHES TO RAISE? HEARING NONE AT THIS

[13. Other Business]

THE COMMITTEE WILL, UH, RECESS GENERAL SESSION AND CONVENING AN EXECUTIVE SESSION.

TWO VOTING ITEMS ARE ANTICIPATED COMING OUT OF THE EXECUTIVE SESSION, SO GENERAL SESSION WILL RECONVENE FOLLOWING THE CONCLUSION OF THE EXECUTIVE SESSION.

GENERAL SESSION IS, IS HEREBY RECESS.

LET'S TAKE A FIVE MINUTE BREAK.

THE GENERAL SESSION

[Reconvene Executive Session]

WE

[14. Vote on Matters from Executive Session]

I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE THE TWO PERSONNEL MATTERS DISCUSSED DURING AGENDA ITEM TWO, ES 2.7 AND E ES TWO POINT 10.

SO MOVED.

THANK YOU, KATHLEEN.

DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND.

THANK YOU, CHRIS.

ALL IN FAVOR? AYE.

ANY OPPOSED? TENTION, THE MOTIONS ARE UNANIMOUSLY PASSED.

THANK YOU.

THIS MEETING IS NOW ADJOURNED.