Manager Joint Facilities Contract & Compliance-US

CN; Homewood (IL); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

CN seeks an experienced finance professional to manage all financials for joint facility contracts across its U.S. territory, collaborating with Operations, Marketing, Business Development and Real Estate to support customer-centric, data-informed decisions.

You will analyze contracts, draft and negotiate operating agreements, lead annual budgets, and provide strategic guidance to drive cost savings and carload growth while maintaining strong stakeholder relationships.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of railroading experience.
• Experience in railroad operating agreements.
• Experience in finance or accounting.
• Candidates with equivalent practical experience, education, or training will be considered.

Responsibilities

• Analyze, produce, and audit financial aspects of joint facility agreements within the assigned territory.
• Perform monthly and annual financial audits on joint facility contracts in the United States (U.S.), including Western Canada payables.
• Research and interpret existing operating agreements and amendments with foreign carriers and customers.
• Manage monthly closing by analysing financials and ensuring CN is properly reported.
• Produce the annual joint facility budget.
• Negotiate and draft new operating agreements and amendments.
• Collaborate with senior management on operational strategy development.
• Provide guidance on requests from Operations, Marketing, and Business Development pertaining to joint facility operating and interline agreements.
• Oversee derailment financials and liability.
• Suggest operational changes to drive cost savings.
• Establish relationships with current and prospective partners to grow CN carloads.
• Amend existing shortline operating agreements to drive additional carload revenue.
• Analyse the financials of new third-party, interplant, and shortline initiatives to drive additional carload revenue.

Skills

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Coordination

Conflict management

We Care About Each Other

We Strive for Excellence

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Business, Law, Finance, or Accounting

Tools

SAP

SRS

GIS

Business Objects

Railinc

E-business

Job description

Job Summary

The incumbent serves CN's strategic and financial needs, focusing on customer-centricity by collaborating with stakeholders on joint facility operating agreements between CN, foreign railroads, and customers across the CN network. The position manages all financials related to their territory, and aids in writing and analyzing new operating agreements as well as interpreting, amending, and researching existing agreements. The incumbent works closely with and is a key point of contact for CN functions, including Operations, Marketing, Business Development, and Real Estate.

Main Responsibilities

Joint Facility Contract Compliance

• Analyze, produce, and audit all financial aspects of joint facility agreements within the assigned territory
• Perform monthly and annual financial audits on payable and receivable joint facility contracts in the United States (U.S.), including Western Canada payables
• Research and interpret existing operating agreements and amendments with foreign carriers and customers
• Manage monthly closing by analysing financials and ensuring CN is properly reported
• Produce the annual joint facility budget

Network Joint Facility Contracts

• Manage joint facility contracts within the assigned territory
• Negotiate and draft new operating agreements and amendments
• Research and interpret existing operating agreements and amendments with foreign carriers and customers, including Interchange, Interlocking, Trackage, Rights, Shared and Joint Tracks, Haulage, Switching, Diamonds and Crossings, Track Leases, Short Line Operations, Horsepower Hours (HPH) Locomotive, Re-Route, Short-Term Locomotive Leases, Detours, Customer Sidetracks, Blocking, Terminal, and Right of Entry for Transloading

Operations Planning and Strategy

• Collaborate with senior management on operational strategy development
• Provide guidance and feedback on requests from Operations, Marketing, and Business Development pertaining to joint facility operating and interline agreements
• Oversee derailment financials and liability
• Suggest operational changes to drive cost savings

Customer Centricity and Business Development Responsibilities

• Establish relationships with current and prospective partners to grow CN carloads
• Amend existing shortline operating agreements to drive additional carload revenue
• Analyse the financials of new third-party, interplant, and shortline initiatives to drive additional carload revenue
• Cooperate with Marketing and Operations to address customer operating concerns to retain existing carloads
• Collaborate with and guide Marketing and Operations to assist in new customer initiatives that create new carloads

Working Conditions

The role has standard working conditions in an office environment with a regular workweek from Monday to Friday with some night and weekend work expected and is eligible to participate in CN's hybrid work model. The role involves managing priorities and delivering work within established timelines, with support from the team to ensure sustainable and effective workload management. The role requires minimal travel (10%) within the U.S. and Canada.

Requirements

Experience

Railroading

• Minimum 5 years of railroading experience
• Experience in railroad operating agreements*
• Experience in finance or accounting*
• Candidates with an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience will be considered
• Any requirement marked with (*) will be considered an asset (not mandatory)

Education/Certification/Designation

• Bachelor's Degree in Business, Law, Finance, or Accounting
• Candidates with equivalent practical experience, education, or training will be considered

Competencies

• We Care About Each Other
• We Strive for Excellence
• We Succeed Together
• We Lead Responsibly
• Compliance
• Negotiation
• Stakeholder management
• Coordination
• Conflict management

Technical Skills/Knowledge

• Knowledge of railroad operating agreements and CN operations
• Proven analytical skills and strategic thinking
• Intermediate to advanced mathematical proficiency
• Knowledge of Systems, Applications and Products (SAP), Service Reliability System (SRS), Geographic Information System (GIS), Business Objects, Railinc, and E-business
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint, and Word)
• Knowledge of railroad landscape, geography, and layout of CN's operations