Job Alert! Cost Allocation Manager (Finance Project Manager) – Amtrak @ New York City (or) Washington, DC

April 14, 2017 at 1:41 pm
English: An Amtrak train on the NEC in NJ, as ...

Photo credit: Wikipedia

Summary of duties

This position will be responsible for supervising the annual allocation of operating and capital costs among the nine passenger railroads that operate on the Northeast Corridor rail line. This annual process was adopted by the Northeast Corridor Commission in September 2015 and is described in the NortheastCorridor Commuter and Intercity Rail Cost Allocation Policy.

The selected candidate will be responsible for overseeing a complex project that is repeated on annual basis and involves the ongoing participation of Amtrak and public transportation agencies from the northeast states. The role requires both technical competency and exceptional communication skills that are necessary to work through complex disputes among participating stakeholders. Specific activities include managing the collection and processing of financial data from nine operating railroads and multiple infrastructure owners; managing multiple consultant teams that serve as an extension of staff with responsibility for performing key project tasks; performing ongoing stakeholder outreach to collect necessary data; supporting resolution of multi-agency disputes; and identifying and implementing initiatives to improve the allocation process.

This position will also support the Commission’s response to an annual external review of the cost allocation process conducted by an independent auditing firm. The selected candidate may also support other Commission activities, including, but not limited to, the ongoing reporting of operating and capital costs and the continued refinement and development of the Commission’s policy.

Those applying for the position should have experience working with financial data and managing complex projects with multiple stakeholders. Experience working in public transportation or passenger rail is beneficial, but not essential.

This position is intended to be located in New York, NY. However, there may be flexibility to locate the position in Washington, DC.

Essential Functions

• Supervise the annual cost allocation process, with assistance and oversight from other Commission staff, including collecting data, overseeing all cost allocation procedures, performing quality assurance and control, and preparing financial reports
• Manage consultant contracts to perform key tasks related to cost allocation and other Commission activities
• Consultant management activities including the development of scopes of work, estimation of project budgets, oversight and/or participation in the consultant selection process, and day-to-day management of consultant teams to ensure that projects are delivered on-time and on-budget
• Perform frequent coordination with stakeholders, including organizing ongoing, multi-agency meetings and webinars, delivering presentations to technical staff and agency leadership, identifying, documenting, and supporting the resolution of multi-agency disputes, and performing one-on-one briefings
• Support and oversee staff participation in the external financial review of the cost allocation process, including providing data, supporting documentation of the cost allocation process, and responding to questions posed by the external review team
• Participate in the development of any modifications of the Policy desired by the Commission

Required Work Experience

• Some professional level experience with the public or private sector
• Demonstrated experience working with financial data or financial systems
• Demonstrated experience managing complex projects
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills
• Ability to solve problems independently and work collaboratively with staff at all levels
• Attention to detail
• Strong working knowledge of Access, Excel and/or other database programs

Preferred Work Experience

• Experience working with the financial data of a passenger railroad or public transportation agency
• Direct experience managing consultants in the delivery of professional service related projects
• Direct experience as the leader of a team
• Knowledge of the rail infrastructure and operations along the Northeast Corridor

Preferred Education

Masters degree in Business, Public Administration, Public Policy, or a related field

Communication and interpersonal skills

Must have excellent oral and written communication skills

How to apply

The Commission is administratively hosted by Amtrak. Please file an application at the Amtrak Jobs site, Position ID 90214009.

Training Opportunity: Register for Eno Center’s Public Private Partnership Training Course

February 13, 2014 at 8:01 am
Use Code  “Transportgooru” and receive a $150 discount during registration.
 
The Eno Center for Transportation has developed a new training course titled Partnering with the Private Sector.  This online course is 40 hours long, and is delivered over a four week span beginning on March 10th. Despite being entirely online, students interact with others, including course mentors/instructors Roy Kienitz and Dr. Michael Meyer.  Students “learn by doing,” and take on the role of a P3 project manager.  After learning the basics of P3s, students are given exercises in developing project scope and managing the work of private sector partners.  This course is appropriate for mid and senior level professionals, and provides Professional Engineers with 40 PDH (other types of professional education credit may be available).
Registration:  

The course fee is $3,000.  To register, click hereUse Code  “Transportgooru” and receive a $150 discount during registration. 

Deadline to Apply: Wednesday, February 26

For more information and registration, visit: https://www.enotrans.org/course/p3
Instruction Method and Mentors
This course is conducted online, but features interactivity with other students and course mentors.  Eno developed a course portal that houses all course content.  To see how our online portal works, please click here.  Students in this course learn by doing.  After learning the basics of P3s, students complete mock assignments leading to the delivery of a P3 project.The learning experience is enhanced by two qualified course mentors:Roy Kienitz, Principal of Roy Keinitz LLC, is the former Under Secretary for Policy at the United States Department of Transportation. He also served as former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell’s Deputy Chief of Staff. Currently Mr. Keinitz works on major project development and implementation strategies, drawing on his diverse transportation policy experience.Dr. Michael D. Meyer is a consultant with Parsons Brinckerhoff. Prior to this position he was a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He also served as Director of Transportation Planning and Development for Massachusetts where he was responsible for statewide planning, project development, traffic engineering, and transportation research.

Who Should Attend
A wide variety of individuals should consider signing up for the course, including: Mid- to senior level professionals and State/City Departments of Transportation, transit agencies, metropolitan planning organizations, and local governments; Federal employees involved in P3s for transportation; and Professionals from the private sector who assist public sector agencies implementing P3s.

Professional Development Hours
Through the course students will be able to earn up to 40 Pofessional Development Hours (PDH). Other types of professional education may be available. To inquire contact Alex Bond, abond@enotrans.org or 202-879-4714.

Course Dates and Schedule
The course will run from March 10 through April 4. Each week has a distinct lesson plan and assignments, although most course activities are flexible or available on-demand. Students should be prepared to devote 8-12 hours per week to course activities.  To see examples of how students receive course material, view these screen captures.

Future Course Offerings
This course will be offered 4-5 times each year. To learn more about future course offerings please contact Alex Bond at 202-879-4714 or abond@enotrans.org

Q: What previous experience do I need to take this course?
A: This course is intended for established transportation professionals who want to expand their knowledge on P3s. No prior experience with P3s is required. However, the course assumes a moderate level of knowledge of transportation systems.

Q: Is this course only about toll roads?
A: This course was designed to be multimodal.

Q: What do I receive upon completion of the course?
A: You will receive a certificate of completion. In addition, your course fee provides you with one year of individual regular membership to the Eno Center (up to a $200 value). Licensed Professional Engineers will receive forty Professional Development Units (PDU). If you are interested in another type of continuing education credit, such as AICP-CM or IACET Continuing Education Units (CEU), please contact Alex Bond at 202-879-4714 or abond@enotrans.org. Eno is in the process of partnering with other organizations that offer P3 professional credentials. All students who have taken the course will be eligible for any credentials established in the future. For more information on P3 credentialing, visit the Institute for Public Private Partnerships.

Q: How much time per week is needed to complete the course? Are times flexible?
A: The course is designed to be flexible, but also keep you on task. You should expect to spend ten hours per week on the course. There are weekly topics and assignments that you are expected to complete. Only an hour or two per week are on a fixed schedule. The remainder will be spent viewing on-demand recorded content, interacting with the course mentors, reading at your own pace, and preparing assignments for review.

Q: What if I need help?
A: Course mentors are available by phone, video chat, and email to provide you as much assistance and advice as you need. They are available by email at any time. You will have tools available to reserve appointment times for deeper discussion with the mentors.

Q: What if I get too busy and cannot complete the course?
A: If you find that you cannot continue, please notify the mentors and CTL staff.  In certain circumstances, extensions can be granted, particularly in the final week of the course. Eno is not able to offer refunds. However, you can enroll in another offering of the course at a later date (the course if offered 4-5 times per year) on a space-available basis.  When re-enrolling, you may be required to begin the course from the start

Q: Why is this course offered online, and over such a long time frame?
A: By offering the course online, you will not incur travel expenses and disruptions to your daily routine.  By offering it over a four-week span, you will be able to keep up with most of your regular work duties. In the future, a compressed version of the course may be offered. Please let us know if you are interested in this type of class. 

Infographic: United States Has More Broken Bridges Than Golden Arches

November 14, 2011 at 3:25 pm
(Source: Visual.ly)

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