Operations Manager

Tranzit Group; Taupo; On-site; NZD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Career development

Competitive package

Employee benefits and discounts

Company vehicle for work travel

Laptop and phone provided

Supportive team with family culture

Job summary

Tranzit Group in Taupō seeks an experienced Operations Manager to lead the Taupō urban and school transport services. You will manage the local driving team, own service reliability, customer outcomes and compliance, with on-call duties and occasional driving support when needed.

You will lead from the front, build strong client relationships, and drive continuous improvement in operations while balancing budgets and safety requirements.

Qualifications

• Previous operational leadership or people management experience.
• Strong customer service and delivery focus.
• Ability to understand contract requirements and use data to improve service delivery.
• Proven ability to lead, motivate and work with a team.

Responsibilities

• Lead and support the local operations and driving team, including recruitment and development.
• Own operational delivery across school and public transport contracts and meet KPIs.
• Plan driver and vehicle allocations and ensure fleet readiness.
• Maintain accurate contract reporting and audit-ready records.
• Communicate with Waikato Regional Council and clients about service disruptions and actions.
• Develop new customer relationships and identify growth opportunities for Taupo operation.
• Manage quotes and pricing requests with timely, commercially sound responses.
• Promote health and safety and ensure training and compliance.
• Monitor costs with the Area Manager and optimise utilisation within budgets.

Skills

Operational leadership

People management

Customer service

Contract delivery

Relationship building

Job description

Taupo, New Zealand

Reference: 6944009

About Us

Tranzit is an award-winning, family-owned transport and tourism provider with 100 years of experience delivering quality services across New Zealand. With more than 2,000 team members nationwide, we are proud to keep communities connected through safe, reliable and high-quality transport. This is an exciting opportunity to lead our busy Tranzit Coachlines Central operation in Taupō.

About You

You are a confident and practical operations leader who enjoys bringing people, service delivery and the details together. You will be comfortable making sound decisions in a fast-moving environment, building strong relationships and supporting your team to deliver safe, reliable services. You will lead from the front, stay calm under pressure and take pride in creating a positive, accountable team culture.

About The Role

With our current Operations Supervisor retiring at the end of the year, we are looking for our next leader to take the reins of our Taupō operation.

As Operations Manager, you will work closely with the off-site Area Manager and wider Central team, taking accountability for the day-to-day delivery of our urban and school transport services in Taupō. You will lead the local driving team and own service reliability, customer outcomes and operational compliance. This is a hands-on operational leadership role, with some flexibility in hours required to meet operational needs, including participation in an on-call roster and occasional driving support when required. The role also involves pitching in across the wider Central business as operational needs arise.

This is an opportunity to take ownership of an established operation, lead a great local team and play an important role in the continued growth and development of our Taupō business.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and support the local operations and driving team, including driver recruitment, onboarding and development.
• Take ownership of operational delivery across our school and public transport contracts, ensuring services meet agreed routes, timetables, service standards and contractual KPIs, while minimising disruption to customers.
• Plan driver and vehicle allocations, maintain effective relief cover and work closely with workshop and support teams to ensure fleet readiness and continuity of service.
• Ensure accurate and timely contract reporting, maintain audit-ready operational records and oversee route and bus-stop safety reviews, incident and complaint follow-up, and completion of corrective actions.
• Maintain proactive communication with school transport representatives and our partners Waikato Regional Council, keeping them informed of service disruptions, and following through on concerns and agreed actions.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with existing clients, schools and customers, proactively develop new customer relationships and identify opportunities to grow the Taupō business.
• Manage customer quotes and pricing requests, ensuring timely, accurate and commercially sound responses in line with approved rates.
• Lead a proactive health and safety culture and ensure driver training, child-safety requirements and operational compliance are maintained, working with our safety and training teams.
• Work with the Area Manager to monitor operational costs, improve driver and vehicle utilisation and deliver services efficiently within agreed budgets.
• Work closely with the Area Manager, customers and wider Central team to deliver high-quality transport services.

To Be Successful In This Position, You Will Need

• Previous operational leadership or people management experience.
• A strong customer service and delivery focus.
• The ability to understand contract requirements, use operational data to identify issues and follow through on actions that improve service delivery.
• The ability to build strong client relationships, identify sales opportunities and turn customer needs into new business and sustainable growth.
• Proven ability to lead, motivate and work collaboratively with a team.
• A positive, practical and balanced approach to problem solving and decision making.
• The flexibility to adapt as operational priorities change.
• Strong computer skills and confidence learning new systems and technology.
• A current Class 2 or 4 driver's licence and Passenger Endorsement, or the willingness and ability to obtain these.
• Previous experience within the tourism / transport industry would be an advantage.

We Offer

• Career development and professional growth opportunities.
• A competitive package.
• Employee benefits and discounts across Tranzit Group companies and industry partners.
• A laptop, phone and use of a company vehicle for work-related travel.
• A supportive, passionate team with a family-feel culture.

Applications for this position close on 23 November 2026

If you have any questions about the role, feel free to contact Ruth Osmond on 027 444 2582.

Applicants for this position should have NZ residency or a valid NZ work permit. Please note that successful applicants will be required to pass a drug and alcohol test and a police background check as part of the pre-employment screening process.

Applications Close: 23 Nov 2026