Umatilla Electric Cooperative Engineering Manager Robert Echenrode has been promoted to general manager and CEO of Umatilla Electric Cooperative. He will begin his new duties on March 8.
Echenrode, 54, has worked at UEC since March 2013 and has worked for rural electric cooperatives since 1988.
UEC’s Board of Directors hired a recruiting firm and conducted a national search for a new manager as longtime General Manager and CEO Steve Eldrige will retire March 8 after 44 years with UEC.
The Board reviewed the resumes of 22 candidates from eight states that were provided by the recruiting firm. The Board interviewed eight candidates before making the final decision.
“Robert brings 25 years of experience with electric cooperatives to this position, along with a dedication to members and employees,” Board President Jeff Wenholz said. “From the beginning, we were impressed with his work ethic and devotion to the cooperative, and how quickly he learned our system.”
Echenrode will become only the fourth general manager in UEC history. The previous general managers were Ray Woolley, hired in 1939; Russ Dorran, promoted in 1971; and Eldrige, promoted in 1990.
“It was an honor to be considered to follow such a distinguished group of leaders,” Echenrode said. “I want to help build on the past that our employees have achieved.”
Echenrode has a bachelor’s degree in electrical Eengineering from Ohio State University and an MBA from Oklahoma State University. In his role as engineering manager, he has been involved in UEC’s recent efforts to accommodate large industrial expansions at the ports of Morrow and Umatilla, and build and upgrade substations and transmission and distribution lines throughout the UEC system.
Echenrode and his wife, Judy, a dental hygienist, have been married since 1989. Their son Evan, 20, is a sophomore at Oklahoma State studying hotel and restaurant administration. Son Avery, 18, will soon graduate high school at Vinita, Okla., and has already been accepted by Oregon State and Portland State.
As general manager and CEO, Echenrode will lead UEC in serving more than 14,000 accounts on about 2,200 miles of power lines in service territory from Boardman to the Blue Mountains. UEC has 80 employees and recorded about $87.25 million in revenue in 2015.
