Transportation Manager

First Student; Belton (MO); On-site; USD 73,000 - 94,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) with company contribution

Paid time off & holidays

Company-paid life insurance

Growth and internal advancement

Employee discounts via PerkSpot

Job summary

First Student seeks a Transportation Manager in Belton, MO. You will provide operational oversight, supervise staff, and manage financial performance to ensure safe, on-time passenger services.

The role emphasizes safety, customer service, and efficiency, with bonuses and a strong benefits package. Strong leadership and budget skills are essential for day-to-day operations and contract compliance.

Qualifications

• HS Diploma or equivalent; further education preferred but not required.
• 1 year experience in an Assistant Location Manager role or equivalent with management responsibility.
• 5 years operations experience, preferably in school bus transportation.
• Proficient with MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook).
• Experience with payroll and timekeeping software is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Ensure safe and timely transportation of passengers to and from destinations.
• Manage operational expenses to optimize cost per bus.
• Oversee contractual services including admin, IT, parts purchasing, and inventory control.
• Ensure purchases follow company processes and policies.
• Lead location in daily activities supporting operations, safety, maintenance, dispatch, fleet, payroll, routing, AR/AP.
• Maintain positive relationships with staff, school officials, parents, and the community.
• Oversee training and development needs for location staff and ensure policy compliance.

Skills

Staff supervision

Budget management

Operations oversight

Fleet management

Safety compliance

Contract management

Customer service

Communication

Education

High school diploma

Tools

Microsoft Office

Payroll/timekeeping software

Timekeeping systems

Smart technology

Job description

Now Hiring: Transportation Manager Location: Belton, MO Pay Rate: $73,000.00-$94,000.00 per year. Pay based on experience. This position is also bonus eligible.

Position Overview

At First Student, our Transportation Managers are a constant reflection of our company's commitment to safety and customer service. The Transportation Manager is responsible for providing operational oversight, day-to-day management, and directly supervising staff and financial performance.

Why Join First Student

• Competitive Pay!
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with company contribution
• Paid time off and paid holidays
• Company-paid life insurance
• Stable employment with a well-established organization
• Opportunities for growth and internal advancement
• Employee discounts on cell phone plans, vehicles, electronics, and more through PerkSpot

Major Responsibilities

• Ensures the safe and timely transportation of passengers to and from their destinations.
• Manages operational expenses to optimize all cost per bus.
• Manage all contractual services to include administrative functions, information systems, parts purchasing, and inventory control.
• Ensures purchases (including parts) follow company processes and policies.
• Leads the Location in managing the day-to-day activities to support operations, safety, maintenance, dispatch, fleet and facility management, payroll, routing/scheduling, AR/AP and other interrelated functions.
• Foster and maintain positive relationships within and outside of the Location, including senior management and customer contacts.
• Provide prioritization of work assignments and management of functional team resources and their activities as needed or required.
• Leads and oversees all aspects of customer contract compliance and management with a concentrated focus on retaining the customer.
• Includes adherence to all staff, driver, and vehicles requirements, as well as KPI, billing and budget management.
• Also, covers delivery of all contract-specific technologies and other requirements.
• Ensures delivery of training and other needs as per company, location, state and customer requirements.
• Builds and maintains positive relationships with employees, local school officials, parents and the community.
• Resolues concerns with employees, local school officials, parents, and the community.
• Implements fair and consistent recognition and/or corrective discipline.
• Communicates with customer by telephone, electronically or in regular face-to-face meetings.
• Responds promptly to customer inquiries, identifies and escalates priority issues, obtains and evaluates all relevant information to resolve inquiries and complaints.
• Follow-ups with customers as required.
• Develops action plans to ensure customer retention.
• Provides and promotes effective communication with customer and escalates issues if needed to AGM and/or Senior Management.
• Ensure services are provided within budget and action plans developed and implemented to improve operational efficiencies.
• Manages location budget through but not limited to: development, preparing and analyzing of the budget and forecast.
• Ensures any budget variances are identified and can be addressed.
• Provides accurate timely operational and financial reporting as requested by AGM and/or finance.
• Maximizes all charter revenue and supports AGM on identifying or biding on local commercial growth opportunities.
• Leads by example.
• Builds and maintains a strong Location team through effective recruiting, on-boarding, training, coaching, team building and succession planning.
• Prepare and participate in the preparation of staff development plans for each functional employee who is a member of the Location team.
• Assess the skills and skill levels necessary to achieve Location objectives.
• Ensures all on-line learning courses required have been completed by location staff including their own individual completion.
• Manages and monitors location compliance with federal, state, local, contractual, and company policies and procedures.

Minimum Experience or Skills Required

• HS Diploma or equivalent, further education preferred but not required.
• 1 year experience in an Assistant Location Manager role or equivalent experience with management responsibility
• 5 Years Operations Experience, preferably in school bus transportation
• Committed to Safety Lifestyle
• Proficient computer literacy essential with Microsoft Office products including Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
• Experience with other software such as timekeeping and payroll systems is preferred.
• Literacy in technology used to manage the operation to include but not limited to FGA approved Smart technology, Apps, encrypted drives, shared drives and other Smart technology
• Solid oral and written communications.
• Strong presentation skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills in dealing with customers, parents, and community.
• Solid financial and budgetary skills with ability to interpret and analyze P&L, budgets and forecasts.
• Strong business background in financial, strategic, and organizational analysis.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment with others in a team setting
• Demonstrated ability to train, coach and provide leadership

Language Requirement

This role requires English proficiency. Federal, state, and local requirements, including U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations, require training, safety communications, company policies, employment documents, and other job-related communications be conducted in English.

First Student & Culture

First for a reason: At First Student, we are a family of 60,000+ employees who take pride in safely transporting more than 5 million students and passengers to and from their destinations each day! Our family of brands include Transco, Total Transportation, Maggies Paratransit, and GVC II. Our employees are at the forefront of safety and innovation; they create and implement the most advanced training and technology the transportation industry has to offer. In the state of Washington, all technician and driving positions, including but not limited to van drivers and any other position requiring employees to drive a company-owned vehicle, are considered safety-sensitive and are therefore subject to drug and alcohol testing, including cannabis.

Safety & Drug Testing

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status. First is also committed to providing a drug-free workplace.

Fair Chance Hiring

First will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Los Angeles Fair Chance Ordinance, and any other fair chance law. Philadelphia’s Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Ordinance Poster is at this link or upon request https://www.phila.gov/media/20210423160847/Fair-Chance-Hiring-law-poster.pdf.

Mission

Provide unmatched care and the safest ride to school, so when students arrive, they start and end their day with an exceptional experience and are ready to achieve their full potential.

Focus on Safety

Safety is at the heart of everything we do.

Care for Our Students

Ensure our vehicles are welcoming and trusted places where students feel comfortable and secure.

Surpass Customer Expectations

Go the extra mile to deliver an extraordinary experience for our customers and communities.

Foster Teamwork

Work together, act with integrity, respect each other, champion diversity and inclusion.

Set the Highest Standards

Continually seek a better way to do things with innovation, sustainable practices, financial discipline, commercial excellence, and operational excellence.