Manager - Grounds Maintenance

The Chronicle Of Higher Education, Inc.; Nacogdoches (TX); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

The Chronicle Of Higher Education, Inc. is seeking a manager to oversee university grounds maintenance at Stephen F. Austin State University. The role oversees planning, scheduling, and supervision of landscaping, irrigation, turf care, tree maintenance, and related services.

Responsibilities include directing staff, managing budgets, coordinating with vendors, and ensuring safety and regulatory compliance across campus. Strong leadership and administrative skills are essential for success.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree is required.
• Five years of progressively responsible experience in grounds, landscaping, or related field is required.
• Pesticide applicator license is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provides leadership and management of the grounds maintenance department, including planning, directing, and evaluating operations and services.
• Oversees grounds maintenance activities: irrigation, landscaping, turf care, tree maintenance, and trash pickup when applicable.
• Directs, supervises, and evaluates staff performance; assigns daily work and monitors productivity and quality.
• Manages hiring, training, scheduling, payroll oversight, and administrative tasks for assigned staff.
• Develops and implements maintenance schedules and operation plans for campus-wide service delivery.
• Manages department resources, budgeting, procurement, inventory, and equipment maintenance.
• Oversees vendor and contract services, procurement, coordination, and performance monitoring of external contractors.
• Ensures compliance with safety, environmental, and regulatory requirements including chemical handling and pesticide use.
• Coordinates with campus stakeholders on projects and service requests; ensures timely response to university needs.
• Oversees work order management, data accuracy, and billing or cost tracking.

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

SUMMARY

This is a managerial position responsible for managing all aspectsof university grounds maintenance. Responsible for establishingcontracts for specific jobs when necessary, purchasing equipmentand supplies for the grounds maintenance department, andsupervising the beautification duties for landscaping services.Supervises the university grounds maintenance employees. Reports tothe Director for Facility Support Services.

JOB DESCRIPTION

This is a managerial position responsible for managing all aspectsof university grounds maintenance. Responsible for establishingcontracts for specific jobs when necessary, purchasing equipmentand supplies for the grounds maintenance department, andsupervising the beautification duties for landscaping services.Supervises the university grounds maintenance employees. Reports tothe Director for Facility Support Services.

QUALIFICATIONS

Bachelor’s degree is required. Degree in horticulture, landscapemanagement, or related field is preferred.

Five years of progressively responsible experience in grounds,landscaping, or related field is required. Pesticide applicatorlicense is preferred.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

1. Provides overall leadership and management of the groundsmaintenance department, including planning, directing, andevaluating operations and services.
2. Oversees the effective execution of all grounds maintenanceactivities, including irrigation, landscaping, turf care, treemaintenance, and trash pickup when applicable.
3. Directs, supervises, and holds staff accountable for workperformance, including assigning daily work, monitoringproductivity and quality, conducting evaluations, and proactivelyaddressing performance issues.
4. Manages personnel processes for assigned staff, includinghiring, training, scheduling, payroll oversight, and ensuringcompletion of required administrative functions.
5. Develops and implements maintenance schedules and operationalplans to ensure efficient and consistent service delivery acrosscampus.
6. Manages department resources, including budgeting, procurement,inventory control, and maintenance of equipment and materials,ensuring responsible stewardship of university funds andassets.
7. Oversees vendor and contract services, including procurement,coordination, and performance monitoring of externalcontractors.
8. Ensures compliance with all applicable safety, environmental,and regulatory requirements, including chemical handling andpesticide use.
9. Coordinates with campus stakeholders on projects, events, andservice requests, ensuring timely and customer-focused response touniversity needs.
10. Oversees work order management processes, ensuring dataaccuracy, timely submission, and appropriate billing or costtracking

NON-ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

1. May assist with student-group projects for academiccourses.
2. Performs special projects and other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

The individual must possess the following skills and abilities orbe able to demonstrate that he/she can perform the essentialfunctions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodations,using some other combination of skills and abilities.

1. Knowledge of, or the ability to learn, university policies andprocedures.
2. Knowledge of applicable safety requirements.
3. Organizational skills in managing projects simultaneously whilemaintaining a satisfactory work product.
4. Skill in personnel management through motivating, developing,and directing people as they work, identifying the best people forthe job.
5. Skill in decision making by considering the relative costs andbenefits of potential actions and choosing the most appropriateone
6. Ability to communicate effectively in both oral and writtenform.
7. Ability to problem-solve a variety of situations.
8. Ability to train and supervise others.
9. Ability to maintain effective interpersonal relationships.
10. Ability to plan and delegate the work of otherseffectively.
11. Ability to analyze complex information and develop plans toaddress identified issues.
12. Ability to work effectively within a complex organizationstructure.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

Safety Statement

Stephen F. Austin State University recognizes the potential foraccidents in performing job-related tasks. SFA promotes a safeworking environment. Employees will be responsible for completingassigned tasks safely and efficiently. Employee evaluations willinclude safe job performance.

This is a security-sensitive position subject to criminal recordcheck.

This is an IT-sensitive position subject to Computer and NetworkSecurity policy.