Sr Dir Corp Strategy Ext Partnerships - 90362325 - New York

Your success is a train ride away!

As we move America's workforce toward the future, Amtrak connects businesses and communities across the country. We employ more than 20,000 diverse, energetic professionals in a variety of career fields throughout the United States. The safety of our passengers, our employees, the public and our operating environment is our priority, and the success of our railroad is due to our employees.

Are you ready to join our team?

Our values of 'Do the Right Thing, Excel Together and Put Customers First' are at the heart of what matters most to us, and our Core Capabilities, 'Building Trust, Accountability, Effective Communication, Customer Focus, and Proactive Safety & Security' are what every employee needs to know and do to be most impactful at Amtrak. By living the Amtrak values, focusing on our capabilities, and actively embracing and fostering diverse ideas, backgrounds, and perspectives, together we will honor our past and make Amtrak a company of the future.

SUMMARY OF DUTIES:

The Sr. Director External Partnerships position is responsible for understanding and planning for all third party agreements needed to support the pipeline of Capital Delivery projects; development of negotiating strategies and positions; building consensus both within and outside of Amtrak; taking a lead role in negotiations of agreements, contract amendments and other third party contracts; and administration of existing and new contracts and assistance with agreements.

This position is responsible for contracts and relationship management for Capital Delivery projects involving third parties, including but not limited to, transit agencies, freight operators, state and local governments, Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJ), and utility companies.Areas of responsibility include strategic development and implementation of and policy compliance and modification with the NECC, commuter access agreements for Amtrak-owned assets, for-profit commuter operating agreements, utility agreements, and coordination of engineering and real estate issues related to these partners.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Supports the AVP, Project Development and Commercial Management in the development, oversight, and coordination of third-party agreements.
• Provides consulting services to support third party agreement development, negotiations (as needed) and synthesizes recommendations to company leadership for decision making purposes.
• Supports the development of third-party agreement and contract language for both traditional and alternative delivery procurements in accordance with latest regulatory regulations/requirements.
• Leads, manages and develops a team of employees that support the external partnerships function.
• Leading discussions, as needed, with third parties on existing access and operating agreements and coordinate with Real Estate, State/Local Partnerships, and Planning teams to ensure proper coordination of all required internal and external partnership agreements.
• Leading the negotiation of agreements with Amtrak Law, Finance, Operations, Strategy & Planning, and other relevant departments, to ensure appropriate remuneration and compliance with Amtrak legal and financial requirements and objectives, as well as with Mechanical, Engineering, Labor Relations and Human Resources regarding the negotiation of and compliance with specific corporate requirements;
• Tracking and achieving financial targets, access commitments, review timelines and other performance measures associated with third party agreements;
• Managing development and implementation of creative service offerings to meet growing customer needs;
• Engages with Project Delivery teams and reports on agreement status, Amtrak and third-party performance to AVP, Project Development and Commercial Management. Monitors and supports the resolution, as needed, of all third-party and contract performance issues. Provides monthly performance and compliance reporting to senior leadership as needed. Supports contract compliance and reviews what agreement terms are meeting/exceeding agreement effectiveness expectations, as well as, taking lessons learned from active agreements and incorporating them in future commercial term development.
• Coordinate Amtrak activities with third parties as required to support the delivery of Capital Delivery projects as well as non-Amtrak-led third-party projects. Represent Amtrak on multi-agency Working Groups as required by providing technical expertise as a subject matter expertise;
• Brief and provide recommendations to Amtrak leadership on beneficial strategic options, Policy positions, and related issues;
• Engage and lead discussions with third parties to formulate constructive decision-making and aim to resolve any potential conflict with amicable solutions;
• Close coordination with Amtrak Project Development and Planning Services (PDPS) team members responsible for providing services and infrastructure access to third parties;
• Prepares monthly reports on services, including tracking of financial and operating performance;
• Coordination of activities of other Amtrak departments involved in providing services to third parties, including Real Estate, Government Affairs, Procurement and Materials Management;
• Directing internal cross-departmental efforts to improve Amtrak's service offerings and customer satisfaction.
• Responsible for departmental planning, performance goals, operating and capital budgeting, forecasting and variance explanation, and other cross-account and global issues.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree in business, transportation, Law, or related field with at least 13 years of relevant business and planning experience. OR the equivalent combination of education and training/experience, with 13 years minimum work experience.
• Superior quantitative and analytical skills, along with strategic, business and political savvy.
• Demonstrated experience and ability to produce results within a team environment, to develop productive working relationships with external and internal stakeholders and to appropriately challenge or influence decisions.
• Demonstrated experience with contract and commercial language development.
• Mastery of critical thinking/problem solving, written and verbal communication, business acumen, and decision-making abilities.
• Demonstrated ability in customer service and contract negotiations and administration.
• Experience in PC based applications, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, financial planning/reporting systems, and other technology-based systems.
• Strong advocacy and communication skills, including experience in making presentations to senior management, 3rd parties and the Board of Directors (or similar). Strong verbal and written communication skills, including ability to articulate complex transportation issues and interact with outside stakeholders as well as all levels of Amtrak employees.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Master's degree in business, law, transportation, or related field with at least 15 years relevant business experience, including at least five years in the transportation industry.
• Demonstrated experience with business development and/or market research/analysis
• Demonstrated experience in working with governmental agencies or commuter agencies.
• Demonstrated experience in negotiating complex issues and drafting appropriate contract terms with federal, state and local officials and private industry representatives.

WORK ENVRIORNMENT:

• Position may be based in New York, Philadelphia or Washington DC and will require frequent daily travel between these, other Mid Atlantic cities as well as across the Amtrak network.
• Travel: 25-35%
• Constantly works in fast-paced, time sensitive environment with frequently changing priorities.
• Frequently resolves problems with conflicting priorities in cognitively demanding situations.
• Ability to work under pressure and with minimum direct supervision.
• Office environment, however, candidate will need to attend field visits as needed.

COMMUNICATIONS AND INTERPERSONAL SKILLS:

Must have excellent oral and written communication skills.

The salary/hourly range is $181,250 - $234,900. Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to education, work experience, certifications, internal equity, etc. Depending on an employee's assigned worksite or location, Amtrak may consider a geo-pay differential to be applied to the employee's base salary. Amtrak may offer additional incentive and pay programs to recognize and reward our employees, including a short-term incentive bonus based upon factors such as individual and company performance that is commensurate with the level of the position and/or long-term incentive plan compensation. In addition to your salary, Amtrak offers a comprehensive benefit package that includes health, dental, and vision plans; health savings accounts; wellness programs; flexible spending accounts; 401K retirement plan with employer match; life insurance; short and long term disability insurance; paid time off; back-up care; adoption assistance; surrogacy assistance; reimbursement of education expenses; Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility; Railroad Retirement sickness and retirement benefits; and rail pass privileges. Learn more about our benefits offerings here.

Requisition ID:159311

Posting Location(s):New York

Job Family/Function:Research & Strategy

Relocation Offered:No

Travel Requirements:Up to 50%

You power our progress through your performance.

We want your work at Amtrak to be more than a job. We want your career at Amtrak to be a fulfilling experience where you find challenging work, rewarding opportunities, respect among colleagues, and attractive compensation. Amtrak maintains a culture that values high performance and recognizes individual employee contributions.

Amtrak is committed to a safe workplace free of drugs and alcohol. All Amtrak positions requires a pre-employment background check that includes prior employment verification, a criminal history check and a pre-employment drug screen.

Candidates who test positive for marijuana will be disqualified, regardless of any state or local statute, ordinance, regulation, or other law that legalizes or decriminalizes the use or possession of marijuana, whether for medical, recreational, or other use. Amtrak's pre-employment drug testing program is administered in accordance with DOT regulations and applicable law.

In accordance with DOT regulations (49 CFR § 40.25), Amtrak is required to obtain prior drug and alcohol testing records for applicants/employees intending to perform safety-sensitive duties for covered Department of Transportation positions. If an applicant/employee refuses to provide written consent for Amtrak to obtain these records, the individual will not be permitted to perform safety-sensitive functions.

In accordance with federal law governing security checks of covered individuals for providers of public transportation (Title 6 U.S.C. §1143), Amtrak is required to screen applicants for any permanent or interim disqualifying criminal offenses.

Note that any education requirement listed above may be deemed satisfied if you have an equivalent combination of education, training and experience.

Amtrak is an EOE/Affirmative Action Minority/Female employer, and we welcome all to apply. We consider candidates regardless of race/color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related conditions), national origin/ethnicity, age, disability (intellectual, mental and physical), veteran status, marital status, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, genetic information, citizenship or any other personal characteristics protected by law.