Joel S. Austin is the Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Officer for Oncor, the largest electric utility in Texas, and the fifth largest electric Transmission and Distribution Company in the United States. Joel is the senior technology officer, and leads the company’s Technology, Measurement & Billing, Market Relations & Customer Engagement functions.

Previously, Joel served as Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Oncor, where he carried responsibility for strategy, cyber security, new platform development, IT/ OT production operations, inclusive of all networks and field telecommunications, and management of Oncor’s global operating model.

Under his leadership, Oncor’s grid, one of the nation’s most advanced smart grids, safely communicates billions of bits of data through a secure network while its power lines move electricity to 11 million customers across Texas. His customer engagement and market relations teams fulfill Oncor’s market mandate, facilitating Texas’ competitive electricity market, while ensuring customers and stakeholders have the data and information they need, and are pleased with Oncor’s service. This and other data is also the foundation for higher-end Analytics, helping Oncor maintain its assets to more reliably deliver electricity to its customers.

Joel has more than 32 years of experience in the energy, finance and software industries at Informix, ENSERCH, Deloitte & Touché and the Texas Utility companies, where he has held a number of business operations, IT and leadership roles.

Austin serves on several educational and civic boards, including the Information Technology Operations Management Advisory Board at Southern Methodist University, The Samaritan Inn, and as Board Chair for the North Texas Business Council for the Arts.
Austin holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Business Administration from the University of Kansas and a Masters in Business from the University of Missouri.