Career Opportunity

Assistant Operations Manager II (9172) - Transit Division, SF Municipal Transportation Agency - (155016)

Recruitment: RTF0155015-01152813

Published: February 10, 2025

Apply using SmartRecruiters, the City and County of San Francisco's application portal.

About:

The purpose of this announcement is to create an eligible list which will be used to fill future vacancies in this classification within the Transit Operations Division.

This is a San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Position-Based Test conducted in accordance with CSC Rule 411A.

Application Opening: Monday, February 10, 2025
Deadline to Apply: Apply immediately. Application filing will be open at least through Monday, February 24, 2025 and will close anytime thereafter.
Recruitment ID: PBT-9172-155016

The SFMTA, a department of the City and County of San Francisco, oversees Muni (the historic Municipal Railway), parking and traffic, bicycling, walking and taxis. Over one million people get around San Francisco and rely on us to ensure safe and reliable travel.

Our Vision: Excellent transportation choices for San Francisco.
Our Mission: We connect San Francisco through a safe, equitable, and sustainable transportation system.

Role description

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) is looking to fill several 9172 Manager II positions throughout the Transit Operations Division. Under general direction of the Operations Manager of the unit, the 9172 Manager II will assist in the management of a variety of transit activities in the respective units. The eligible list resulting from this recruitment will be used to fill current and future vacancies within the Transit Operations Division.

The Transit Division of the SFMTA provides ongoing planning, operation, and maintenance of the public transportation network, connecting San Francisco communities at every step in the process. The Transit Division works collaboratively with other SFMTA Divisions and city departments to provide services to our customers by operating and maintaining an extensive network of routes and dedicated transit lanes and over 1,000 vehicles including motor coaches, trolley coaches, light rail vehicles, historic and vintage streetcars, and cable cars.

Nature of work: Work schedule varies and due to demand of the job, incumbents may be required to work rotating shifts, evenings, holidays, and weekends.

Positions can be in any of the following units within Transit Operations Department.

Transit Services: Under general direction of the Operations Manager for Transit Services, the Assistant Rail/Subway/Street Operations Manager (9172) plays a vital role in managing, planning, monitoring, and supervising day-to-day operations. This includes direct oversight of Rail/Subway/Street Operations staff. The Assistant Operations Manager will assist in developing, implementing, and maintaining policies and standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure smooth and effective operations.

Key responsibilities include coordinating the work activities of Transit Services staff, facilitating training, and enhancing programs or services. The Assistant Operations Manager administers and oversees the daily functions of the unit, manages complex special projects, and may substitute for other Assistant Operations Managers or act as the Operations Manager of Transit Services (9174) in their absence, performing related duties as necessary.

Additional responsibilities consist of overseeing division and agency reports, analyzing staff overtime, and preparing monthly and annual reports. The Assistant Operations Manager is tasked with gathering and analyzing information to document and evaluate processes, identifying and recommending improvements or changes, and negotiating resolutions to complex issues within transit operations. Furthermore, they are responsible for leading the implementation of division and agency goals, administering discipline, leading/participating in special projects, objectives, policies, and priorities of the unit, serving as the liaison for both internal and external stakeholders. The position is subject to twenty-four (24) hour call-back during emergency situations.

Transit Management: Under general direction of the Division Manager, the Assistant Division Manager aids in overseeing various transit service activities within the bus and rail divisions. This position involves supervising, training, evaluating, and assigning tasks to division staff, which typically ranges from 100 to 500 employees. The Assistant Division Manager plays a key role in maintaining morale, providing motivation, and administering discipline among staff.

In addition to these responsibilities, the Assistant Division Manager administers and manages the daily operations of the division, oversees complex special projects, and may substitute for other Assistant Division Managers or act as the Manager IV, Division Manager in their absence. The role also includes performing related duties as required.

The Assistant Division Manager may be assigned to any bus or rail division and may also be tasked with special projects or other responsibilities that align with the Manager II, MTA position's level of responsibility. This position is subject to a twenty-four (24) hour call-back during emergencies.

Dispatch Operations: Under general direction of the Dispatch Operations Manager, the Assistant Dispatch Operations Manager is responsible for supporting the planning, monitoring, and daily management of service through direct oversight of Dispatch Operations.

This position involves assisting in developing, implementing, and maintaining policies and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). The Assistant Manager coordinates the work activities of Dispatch Operations staff and aids in training to ensure compliance with rules and SOPs and administer discipline.

Additionally, they review service delivery and employee leave trends, drafting recommendations and reports as needed. They also lead and participate in special projects. In the absence of the Dispatch Operations Manager, the Assistant Manager serves as the liaison for both internal and external stakeholders while also assisting in implementing the division's and agency's goals, objectives, policies, and priorities related to Dispatch Operations.

Transportation Management Center (TMC): Under the general direction of the TMC Operations Managers, the Assistant TMC Operations Manager plays a vital role in supporting the planning, monitoring, and management of daily operations through direct oversight of service and TMC staff.

This position involves developing, implementing, and maintaining policies and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), as well as coordinating the work activities of TMC personnel. Additionally, the Assistant Manager supports training and compliance with procedures to minimize delays in service and improve the customer experience. The incumbent is responsible for recommending and implementing improvements, leading/participating in special projects, administering discipline, serving as the TMC liaison for internal and external stakeholders in the absence of the Operations Manager, and assisting in implementing the division and Agency goals, objectives, policies, and priorities.

Note: It is also necessary for the TMC incumbent to obtain Bus Controller and Automatic Train Control System (ATCS) certifications within 12 months of notification, and no later than 16 months from the appointment, while maintaining these certifications throughout their employment.

Transit Operations Training and Instruction: Under the general direction of the Operations Training and Instruction Manager, the Assistant Manager is responsible for developing, organizing, and implementing training programs that pertains to all areas across the Transit Operations Division which includes but not limited to: bus, rail, administrative, and other technical areas at the San Francisco Municipal Transit Agency.

This position may involve placement within Bus or Rail Training or in administrative functional areas, where the individual will supervise assigned staff and/or training programs. Additionally, the Assistant Manager plays a key role in training both new and experienced operations employees, including operators, Station Agents, Transit Supervisors, Transportation Controllers, Transportation Operation Specialists, and Division Managers. This includes providing support and expertise for retraining, re-certification, and ensuring safety compliance.

In the absence of the Operations Manager and/or Assistant Operations Manager at one of the other Operational Units, the Assistant Training Manager may be required to act on their behalf and oversee staff and respective functions of that unit to ensure continuity of operations.  

Note: It is also necessary for the incumbent to obtain Transportation Safety Institute (TSI) certification within 12 months of notification and no later than 16 months from the appointment while maintaining these certifications throughout their employment. 

How to qualify

Minimum Qualifications

1. Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university; AND

2. Three (3) years of experience in transportation related operations such as operations training, rail operations, subway operations, street operations, train control systems, military responsible for air and/or sea transportation, or Airport/airline operations experience at a commercial aviation airport; AND

3. Two (2) years of above experience must include supervising staff; AND

4. Possession of a valid, unrestricted class C Driver License at the time of appointment.

Substitution: Additional qualifying experience as specified above may be substituted for the required education on a year-for-year basis. One-year (2000 hours) of qualifying experience will be considered equivalent to thirty (30) semester units/forty-five (45) quarter units.

Applicants must meet the minimum qualification requirement by the final filing date unless otherwise noted. One year of full-time employment is equivalent to 2000 hours.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Some positions may require the following:

• Possession of a valid Class B California Driver License with a valid DMV Medical Examiner’s certificate, Passenger (P) endorsement and no restrictions prohibiting the operation of SFMTA public transit vehicles.
• A driving record with no preventable incidents resulting in property damage or bodily injury or preventable collisions (in accordance with the California Vehicle Code) within the past three years prior to the date a position is certified to the eligible list.
• Verification of active Transit Training (VTT) certification (VTT certification must be obtained within 6 months of being hired).

Desirable Qualifications:
The stated desirable qualifications may be considered at the end of the selection process when candidates are referred for hiring.

• Knowledge of federal, state, and local legislation and regulations pertaining to transit service delivery and operations.
• Experience within a union environment involving contract negotiations and resolution of grievances.
• Possess verbal and written communication skills with the ability to assist in producing (written and statistical) reports and presentations.
• Principles and practices of supervision, training, and personnel management.
• Experience with regulatory agencies in a transit environment (CHP, FTA, FRA, and CPUC). 
• Ability to effectively train, coach, mentor, and evaluate staff on work performance.
• Capability and adaptability to work in a fast-paced operational environment, responding quickly and effectively to unforeseen events and emergencies while providing guidance to subordinates during crisis situations.
• Experience in identifying problems and developing solutions.
• Comprehensive understanding of all aspects of transit operations, including safety principles and policies, service planning, scheduling, and workforce coordination.
• Effective leadership skills that cultivate a collaborative team environment by establishing clear responsibilities and accountability.
• Demonstrated skills and advanced knowledge in working with office programs and software, such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, Access, and Outlook.

Verification of Education and Experience
Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process.

Every application is reviewed to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications as listed in the job ad. Please review our articles on Employment Application and Minimum Qualifications and Verification of Experience and/or Education for considerations taken when reviewing applications. 

Selection Process: After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

Exam Components: (General Exam Process Information)
Basic Supervisory Written Examination (Weight 100%) 
Candidates will be administered a written multiple-choice examination that includes test items that relate to various supervisory practices and procedures (e.g., directing subordinates, delegating tasks to subordinates, providing customer service, demonstrating appropriate supervisory/leadership behavior, addressing and/or evaluating subordinate issues, behavior and performance, etc.) as well as reading comprehension items. This is a standardized examination, and therefore, test questions and test answers are not available for public inspection or review.
The examination is administered via computer or in paper format. Qualified candidates will be notified of the particular format to be used in their test appointment notification.

The score you achieve on this examination shall be valid and "banked" for three years, starting from the date of the examination. This means that, during this three-year time period, you will not be required to take this test again should you apply and be found eligible for a future announcement for which this particular test is used. Please note this test is used for other supervisory classes therefore your test score may be applied to one or more of these classes if you choose to apply to future recruitments. If the test for this future announcement is held within one year of the date of this examination, your score will be automatically applied to that announcement. However, after one year, you have the option to either (a) apply your test score to the other announcement or (b) re-take the test. Re-testing is permitted no sooner than one year from the date of the examination and only in association with your eligibility for another announcement for which this test is used. Please note that, should you re-test, your re-test score would become your official score since it is the most recent.

For your reference, a Multiple-Choice Test Preparation Manual is available on the DHR website:  DHR Website   

Eligibility List/Score Report: 
A confidential eligible list of applicant names that have passed the civil service examination process will be created and used for certification purposes only. An examination score report will be established, so applicants can view the ranks, final scores and number of eligible candidates. Applicant information, including names of applicants on the eligible list, shall not be made public unless required by law. However, an eligible list shall be made available for public inspection, upon request, once the eligible list is exhausted or expired and referrals resolved. The eligible list/score report resulting from this civil service examination process is subject to change after adoption (e.g., as a result of appeals), as directed by the Director of Transportation or the Civil Service Commission.

The duration of the eligible list resulting from this examination process will be 12 months and may be extended with the approval of the Director of Transportation.

To find Departments which use this classification, please see https://sfdhr.org/sites/default/files/documents/Forms-Documents/Position-Counts-by-Job-Codes-and-Department-FY-2023-24.pdf.

What else should I know?

Drug Testing:
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has determined that Class 9172 Assistant Operations Manager II is a “safety-sensitive” position, under regulations issued by the Federal Transit Administration (49 CFR Part 655). Federal law requires that all transit employees who perform safety-sensitive functions be subject to random, post-accident, reasonable suspicion, return-to-duty and follow-up drug and alcohol testing. All applicants for Safety-Sensitive positions shall undergo urine drug testing prior to employment and within 90 days prior to performing Safety-Sensitive functions for the first time. Receipt by the SFMTA of a negative test result is required prior to the employee being placed on the payroll. A positive, adulterated, negative dilute or substituted test will result in a decision not to hire, and the applicant’s name will be removed from the list of eligibles for Safety-Sensitive positions. The SFMTA will not consider hiring any person who tested positive, adulterated, substituted or refused to submit to testing for a minimum of two years following the positive test.

In addition, each applicant who has worked for a Department of Transportation (DOT) – regulated employer(s) within the last two years will be required to sign a consent form, prior to appointment, authorizing SFMTA to obtain information from their prior employers concerning their drug and alcohol test history. Each applicant will also be required to provide SFMTA with information regarding whether, during the last two years, the applicant tested positive or refused to test on any pre-employment drug or alcohol test administered by an employer to which the applicant applied for, but did not obtain, safety-sensitive transportation work covered by DOT drug and alcohol testing rules. SFMTA will not hire any applicant for a safety-sensitive position who fails to provide this information or fails to provide written consent for the release of information from prior employers.

Terms of Announcement and Appeal Rights:
Applicants must be guided solely by the provisions of this announcement, including requirements, time periods and other particulars, except when superseded by federal, state or local laws, rules or regulations. [Note: The correction of clerical errors in an announcement may be posted on the Department of Human Resources website at Careers with Purpose | City and County of San Francisco (sf.gov)]

The terms of this announcement may be appealed under Civil Service Rule 411A.36.1. The standard for the review of such appeals is “abuse of discretion” or “no rational basis” for establishing the position description, the minimum qualifications and/or the certification rule. Appeals must include a written statement of the item(s) being contested and the specific reason(s) why the cited item(s) constitute(s) abuse of discretion by the Director of Transportation. Appeals must be submitted directly to the Executive Officer of the Civil Service Commission within 5 business days of the announcement issuance date. Information concerning other Civil Service Commission Rules involving announcements, applications and examination policies, including applicant appeal rights, can be found on the Civil Service Commission website at http://sfgov.org/civilservice/

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco: 

• Information About the Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview  
• Equal Employment Opportunity 
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Seniority Credit
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement
• SFMTA Employee Wellness Program

How to Apply
Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process.

1. Visit Careers with Purpose | City and County of San Francisco (sf.gov)
2. Type "9172" in to the "Search by class or keyword" field.
3. Click the link containing "(155016)" in the title to open the Job Announcement.
4. Select the “Apply Now” button and follow instructions on the screen.

Applicants will receive a confirmation email from notification@careers.sf.gov that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

Exam Analyst Information: If you have any questions regarding the Exam Process, please contact the exam analyst, Patty.Wong@sfmta.com PW I PBT-9172-155016 I CPE

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.