John R. Bear joined MISO in 2004 and has more than 20 years of executive leadership in the utility industry. As President and Chief Executive Officer of MISO since January 2009, he leads MISO’s continuous efforts to create and deliver value for all customers through efficient, reliable market operations and system planning.
Prior to his current position, Mr. Bear was MISO’s President and Chief Operating Officer, overseeing the initial design, implementation and daily operation of MISO’s energy markets and transmission system planning.
Previously, Mr. Bear was President of Houston-based Reliant Resources, where he directed all operations and commercial activity for 14,000 megawatts of generation assets, as well as serving as Managing Director of European Operations.
He currently serves as an Advisory Board Member of Energy Systems Network (ESN), an initiative focused on bringing ‘clean technology’ solutions to market. Bear is also a member of the Governance Board of the Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana Chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation and served as Vice-Chair of the Indiana Regional Board in 2009 and 2010.
Previously, Mr. Bear served as the 2010 President of the GO 15, the world’s largest power grid operators and was the 2011 Vice President. The GO 15 shares knowledge on key issues representing more than 70 percent of the world’s electricity demand and 3.4 billion customers on six continents.
He is a former board member of NERC regional entity ReliabilityFirst, and a founding board member of the Amsterdam Power Exchange (APX).
Bear graduated from Southern Methodist University with a Master of Business Administration degree and a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. He attended the INSEAD Advanced Management Program for Senior Executives in 2009.