MARTA Chief
Executive Officer
The Metropolitan
Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) is a public transit authority that
provides heavy rail, streetcar route bus transit, and advance reservation paratransit
services in the Atlanta Metropolitan Area. Located in the largest metropolitan
area in the State of Georgia, MARTA is one of the top 10 largest transit agencies
in the United States, operating 48 miles of heavy rail track with 38 stations
and over 113 fixed bus routes.
MARTA was originally
proposed as a 5-county system consisting of DeKalb, Fulton, Clayton, Gwinnett
and Cobb counties through an act of the Georgia General Assembly in 1965. In
1971, voters in Fulton and DeKalb counties passed a 1% sales tax increase to
pay for MARTA operations. Construction of MARTA’s rail system began in 1975,
with rail service commencing in 1979. In June 2014, Clayton County voters
passed a 1% sales tax to join MARTA. In 2017, the City of Atlanta raised its
sales tax for MARTA to 1.5% to improve and expand MARTA.
In addition to
providing service to Fulton, Clayton, and DeKalb counties, MARTA operates rail
service to and from the Atlanta airport. MARTA has approximately 4,215 employees
that provide almost 450,000 rides per day to customers. In addition, MARTA has
its own police force with nearly 300 sworn officers.
MARTA is a
multi-county Authority that is governed by a Board of Directors consisting of 15
members, 3 from the City of Atlanta, 3 from Fulton County, 2 from Clayton
County, 4 from DeKalb County, and one appointee by the Governor of Georgia. In
addition, there is 1 non-voting member from the Georgia DOT and 1 non-voting
member from the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority.
MARTA plays a
significant role in the economic development of the greater Atlanta region and
is viewed as one of the greatest mobility assets the region has to offer. Community leaders from the business community,
government, non-profit, and academic communities desire for MARTA to have a
greater impact on the region’s mobility and economic growth. MARTA is currently
undertaking several studies for service expansion that may include new heavy
rail, light rail, and BRT. These include the Atlanta BeltLine, Atlanta
Streetcar, GA400 Corridor, Clifton Corridor, Clayton County expansion to name a
few. More details on expansion projects can be found at http://www.itsmarta.com/current-projects.aspx.
SCOPE AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
The Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) is responsible for overseeing
the daily operations of MARTA’s operations as well as any planned expansions.
The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of successfully managing a
large, complex and diverse organization that operates to provide the highest
quality of service to its customers while ensuring that the organization is
planning to meet future needs of the community while not compromising the
quality of service being delivered on a daily basis. Additionally, this
individual will have outstanding business skills as well as strong financial
management, strategic planning, public relations, community relations and
governmental relations skills.
MARTA’s CEO will be
integral to the future success of the Authority as it strives to provide the
highest quality of service possible to its customers and stakeholders and to find
innovative transportation solutions to improve mobility and provide greater
access to the region which will in turn lead to smart growth and increased
business opportunities, jobs and economic development. The ideal candidate will
have demonstrated a background and ability as grouped in the following areas:
GENERAL
TRANSIT MANAGEMENT
- Experience managing a customer-centric,
publicly-financed organization that provides year-round transit service to its
customers on a daily basis with an emphasis on safety, security, reliability,
cost competitiveness, and on-time performance.
-
Experience creating additional or new
sustainable revenue streams including public-private-partnerships for business
operations and planned growth and expansion.
-
Strong financial management skills overseeing
large and complex budgets and an ability to offer creative solutions to run the
organization efficiently and effectively.
-
Experience managing agency assets in order to
optimize the utilization of public-private partnerships, grant allocations,
farebox revenues and public funding.
-
Ability to oversee and implement effective
cost-control measures and ensure they are in place at all levels of the agency.
-
Experience overseeing the development of an
effective marketing plan to create a culture and strong public image that promotes
the agency, its services, and increases ridership.
- Experience executing system-wide expansion
and construction project implementation efforts with demonstrated results of
positive outcomes with on-time and on-budget performance.
- Ability to provide sound oversight and management
of short and long-term capital projects which include both the maintenance of
existing assets and infrastructure as well as new infrastructure projects of
considerable size and complexity.
INTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS
- Challenge the executive management team and
their departments to think “outside the box” and offer customer centric
solutions that are innovative and properly respond to customer needs.
-
Ability to evaluate, develop, mentor and hire
a senior executive management team that will ensure the agency is providing
exceptional service that is timely, safe and affordable and also meeting the
expectations of the community.
-
Provide strategic vision and guidance to
ensure that the agency has successful succession and employee development plans
in place and provide leadership to encourage employees to take initiative and
develop within the organization.
-
Advance the goals of MARTA’s Affirmative
Action/Equal Opportunity, Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Plans and ADA
Plans.
-
Delegate responsibilities and empower senior
management and employees to lead their departments and functions effectively
and efficiently.
- Establish and maintain a healthy working
relationship with the collective bargaining units and all employees across the
organization.
- Treat all employees (represented and
non-represented) fairly and provide an open, collaborative, positive, professional
and safe work environment for all employee’s and contractors of MARTA.
EXTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS
- Experience engaging and working effectively
and persuasively with elected officials, local, state and federal agencies, the
business community, faith based community, disabled community, organized labor,
public constituencies, NGOs, educational and health leaders, the press, and
other stakeholders.
- Interact and communicate regularly with
employees, customers, the public, elected officials, the press and all other
stakeholders to provide transparency and insight into the agency’s
implementation of policies and agendas.
- Maintain on-going and effective communication
with governmental agencies and elected officials (state, local, and federal) to
assure maximum cooperation and to achieve the best possible transportation
system for the region.
- Provide a non-partisan outreach program that
addresses the needs of all community members and identifies common objectives
and goals which MARTA can work towards delivering.
- Work creatively with constituent groups to
address their concerns and generate new programs and instruments that
accommodate their needs.
- Meet, speak with and listen to stakeholders
in the community to generate new ideas and approaches to enhance not just MARTA,
but also mobility around the region.
- Listen, respond to and address all community
needs regardless of the origin in a fair, open, transparent, honest, sincere
and committed manner.
BOARD INTERACTION
-
Develop a strong working relationship with
the 15-member Board and Board Chair, including having effective two-way
communication.
- Keep the Board informed and assist the Board
in its policymaking duties and decisions including furnishing information and
support.
-
Implement Board policy via actionable
management plans and provide strategic direction to senior management that will
enable the effective execution of these policies.
-
Assist and advise the Board in generating and
achieving the Board’s short and long-term transit objectives.
- Advise, inform and keep the Board aware of
MARTA’s engagement and efforts at a local, state and national level to address
is state of operations, capital needs, financial state and funding needs.
- Engage and partner with board members to advocate
on MARTA’s behalf with elected officials at a local, state and national level
to ensure that MARTA continues to demonstrate its commitment to quality
service, increased mobility and regional growth and sustainable development.
PERSONAL
ATTRIBUTES:
The candidate should possess the following attributes:
- Professional
executive presence, mature, honest, even tempered, intelligent, trusting,
confident, charismatic and personable.
- Politically
savvy, persuasive, open minded, fair but firm manager.
- Adaptable
to change quickly and often.
- Inspiring
visionary who is passionate about transit and can be a champion of MARTA.
- High
energy level, sense of humor, gravitas, integrity and ethics above reproach.
- Innovative,
compassionate, transparent, inclusive in his/her decision-making process and
willing to delegate responsibility.
- Excellent
interpersonal communication, presentation and writing skills.
- Ability
to speak to large and small groups alike.
- Respond
in a timely and accurate manner.
- Results
oriented individual with a dedication to accuracy, sense of urgency, efficiency
and on-time delivery.
- Willing
to accept, embrace and adjust to criticism and make suggestions for change.
- Ability
to communicate with and treat all stakeholders with respect and equally.
- Ability
to facilitate, negotiate and provide realistic and strategic solutions to
problems and comfortable mediating
difficult situations and building consensus.
- Strategic
leader, open-minded communicator and critical thinker who is unwilling to let
challenges prevent success, but rather looks at challenges as opportunities for
success.
- Ability
to unify teams, communities and people during complicated times.
- Strong
mentor and teacher who is approachable, open-minded and treats all employees
with respect and dignity.
- Executive
leader who embraces diversity and inclusion and has the ability to attract
talent.
- Effective
manager who listens and encourages employees, teams and stakeholders to debate
and challenge ideas.
- Strong
manager and leader with team building skills and excellent problem solving and
conflict resolution skills.
- Creative
approach to problem solving with a proven track record of implementing
innovative initiatives in complex organizations.
- Success
managing and providing executive level guidance to a highly educated,
experienced and technical workforce, thereby empowering management to implement
and execute their departmental plans effectively.
- Experience
developing and implementing metrics used to evaluate individual and company
performance, budgets, cost effectiveness and returns on investments to increase
the bottom-line and operational performance.
- A
leader who has a strong financial orientation and who can identify
inefficiencies and areas of potential cost reduction.
- Demonstrated
track record of success during varying economic and business cycles.
EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
The successful candidate will have a minimum of 10 years’
executive management experience with a large complex operating organization, transit
agency or another public or private entity of comparable nature, complexity and
size to MARTA. While transit experience is preferred, candidates with
experience from other industries will be considered. A Bachelor’s degree in
transportation, transportation management, engineering, business management or
equivalent is required. An equivalent combination of education and experience
consistent with the required qualifications will also be considered.
For additional
information or to submit a resume, please contact Gregg A. Moser at gmoser@krauthamerinc.com.