Manager of Operations

Manager of Contract Operations

The Boston Public Schools is the largest school district in Massachusetts with approximately 50,000 students and a $1.3B budget. The Office of Transportation within BPS is one of the largest departments in the district overseeing a $180M annual budget (~12% of total spending). On a daily basis, our 740+ buses drive ~19,000 students to 200 schools across the Boston area - not just Boston Public Schools but also local parochial, private, and charter schools.

The core mission of the position is to ensure compliance with the terms of our yellow bus operations and fleet management contract, one of the largest vendor contracts in Boston Public Schools. The Manager will do this primarily through performance management of the contractor grounded in the contract terms, liaising with the contractor, coordinating communication and meeting with the contractor, tracking and reviewing contractor-required reporting, and audits of contract performance.

As needed, the Manager will work with finance and other members of the BPS DOT team to support procurement by BPS of any yellow bus operations or maintenance services. This role includes working through the contractor to ensure management of the BPS DOT yellow bus and supporting white fleet vehicles.

Critical to this role is careful management of documentation related to the contract, ensuring contractor compliance with all reporting obligations under the contract, and physical audits of documentation, parts, and facilities for contract compliance throughout the years on an ongoing basis. The Manager will support fleet/real estate management.

This position will directly impact the lives of the 19,000 students who rely on safe buses, running on time, and affordably across the district each day.

• Support BPS DOT’s management of the Department’s ~$100M+ annual contract for the operation and maintenance of its buses, fueling infrastructure, and bus yard facilities.
• Lead coordination of Monthly Performance Reviews and other performance management related meetings and communications with the contractor.
• Ensure collection, production, and organization of all notes and documentation for performance management of the yellow bus contract, including any compliance related topics.
• Audit and verify contract performance using appropriate current technology (or alternative future technologies), including but not limited to narrative reports, spreadsheets, and shared digital systems such as:
  Zum, Lytx, Geotab, Hexagon, Basware, Power
  
  BI, Fueling Infrastructure Portal, RMV Inspection Portal, Freshdesk Tickets for Service Complaints Portal, Insurance Claims Portal;
• Document review, bus-yard-based audits of physical assets, observations and walkthroughs at bus yards, interviews of contractor employees;
• Any additional useful sources of information as identified/appropriate.
• Attend and contribute substantively to operations through daily, weekly and monthly meetings to review yellow bus vendor performance.
• Use information gained from performance oversight activities to contribute to development and implementation of strategies, processes, and tools to improve operational performance, including:
  • Daily on time performance – every minute a bus is late is lost learning time for students.
  • Safety – meeting or exceeding established safety standards.
  • Customer service to families and schools.
  • Budget efficiency – any dollar spent on transportation could be invested in student learning.
  • Other KPIs such as reduction of bus idle time to reduce carbon emissions.
• Ensure that the school bus contractor is upholding all commitments as laid out in the contract – including abiding by all federal, state, and local regulations.
• Contribute to the preparation of reports and materials for external audiences such as school committee, city council, and other stakeholders as needed.
• Track contractor performance against performance incentives and liquidated damages detailed in the yellow bus operator contract.
• Oversee the day-to-day administrative work of the yellow bus auto liability insurance program and elevate appropriately…