Planning Manager presso San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA), CA

About the Department

OPEN UNTIL FILLED 

Led by a Board of Directors made up of elected officials from each of the 24 cities and towns and the five county supervisorial districts, San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA) staff is focused primarily on freeway, interchange, and transit enhancements to the region that first and foremost benefit the taxpayer of San Bernardino County.  Coupling that effort with various non-transportation related objectives from the Council of Governments role of the agency brings the mission of providing quality of life improvements to the residents, business operators, and commuters of our region to the forefront.

For more than four decades, SBCTA (previously known as SANBAG) has taken pride in delivering on its commitment to the voters through the implementation of Measure I.  This half-cent sales tax that generates transportation dollars that are from the region and for the region is a critical element in the agency's goal to keep people and goods moving effectively.  SBCTA calls the historic San Bernardino Santa Fe Depot home.  Our headquarters not only positions the agency in the heart of the county but is symbolic of our longstanding commitment to transportation.   

Under general direction, plans, organizes, coordinates, manages, and provides general direction for transportation planning and sustainability functions in the Planning and Regional Programs Department; coordinates with other departments and with other outside agencies; fosters cooperative working relationships among department staff and with intergovernmental and regulatory agencies and various public and private groups; provides highly responsible and complex professional assistance to the Deputy Director and Director of Planning and Regional Programs in areas of expertise; and performs related duties as assigned.

Supervision Received and Exercised
Receives general direction from the Deputy Director and Director of Planning and Regional Programs. Exercises direct supervision over supervisory, professional, technical, and administrative support staff through subordinate levels of supervision.  
 
Class Characteristics 
This is a Planning Manager classification in the Planning and Regional Programs Department. The incumbent oversees and participates in major activities involving transportation planning and sustainability functions, and is responsible for providing professional-level support to the Deputy Director and Director in a variety of areas. The Planning Manager participates in short- and long-term planning, development, and administration of department policies, procedures, and services. Successful work performance requires applying advanced management principles as well as skills in coordinating work with other departments, consultants, and outside public and private agencies. Responsibilities include overseeing the varied activities of assigned functions, projects, and programs.

Position Duties

Management reserves the right to add, modify, change, or rescind the work assignments of different positions and to make reasonable accommodations so that qualified employees can perform the essential functions of the job.
 

• Assists the Deputy Director and the Director in managing the Planning and Regional Programs Department; assumes management responsibility for transportation planning and sustainability functions, including regional transportation and corridor studies on highways, transit, freight, active transportation, and multimodal components, growth forecasts, sustainability programs related to housing, air quality, equity, climate, resilience, health, and energy. 
• Positions SBCTA projects for competitive funding programs, in collaboration with other departments, and oversees preparation of the associated grant applications.
• Helps member agencies address countywide and interagency transportation challenges, and coordinates preparation of agendas for the Transportation Technical Advisory Committee
• Tracks and responds to transportation program developments at the regional, state, and national level.
• Maintains familiarity with the Measure I Strategic Plan and its policies and updates the Strategic Plan, where appropriate, in collaboration with other SBCTA departments. Also coordinates with Fund Administration and other departments on updates to the Measure I 10-Year Delivery Plan. 
• Prepares scopes of work and assigns tasks to consultants from the SBCTA/SBCOG consultant bench to accomplish the scopes of work. Manages expenditures by consultants and reviews/approves invoices. 
• Writes and prepares planning-related agenda items for the SBCTA/SBCOG Board of Directors and committees, which meet on a monthly basis. 
• Participates in the development and implementation of goals, objectives, policies, and priorities for assigned functions and recommends and administers department policies and procedures.
• Develops and standardizes procedures and methods and continuously monitors and evaluates the efficiency and effectiveness of assigned functions, service delivery methods, and procedures; assesses and monitors workload, administrative and support systems, and internal reporting relationships; identifies opportunities for improvement and reviews with the Deputy Director and Director; directs the implementation of improvements.
• Selects, trains, motivates, and evaluates assigned personnel directly or indirectly; works with employees on performance issues; makes discipline recommendations to the Director.
• Assists in developing the annual department budget; directs the forecast of additional funds needed for projects, equipment, materials, and supplies; researches and applies for grant funding; monitors expenditures; implements adjustments as necessary.
• Manages requests for proposals for professional and/or contracted services; prepares contract specifications, scopes of work, budget, and timeline; evaluates proposals and recommends award; negotiates contracts; manages contracts, supervises the work of consultants, and ensures compliance with specifications and SBCTA/SBCOG service quality and regulatory requirements; approves invoices within signature authority.
• Manages, oversees, and participates in regional planning studies; analyzes technical data and recommends policy alternatives for planning and programming local, state, and federal transportation funds.
• Designs and oversees technical studies to support the development of transportation policy and prioritization of infrastructure projects, including transportation planning, corridor investment, financial and cash-flow analyses, traffic impact analyses, detour route evaluation, model runs, sustainability analyses, and technical support for funding applications and legislative efforts.
• Meets and confers with contractors, planners, engineers, developers, architects, various outside agencies, and the general public in acquiring information and coordinating programs and project matters; provides information regarding SBCTA/SBCOG program and project requirements.
• Manages coordinating and facilitating various local and regional board, committee, and advisory group meetings; prepares and presents agenda items; provides strategic guidance on project, program, and policy issues. 
• Provides complex staff assistance to the Deputy Director and Director of Planning and Regional Programs; conducts various organizational and operational studies and investigations; and recommends modifications to programs, policies, and procedures as appropriate.
• Prepares, reviews, and presents reports, various management and information updates, and reports on special projects as assigned by the Director; presents reports to the Board of Directors and various commissions, committees, and boards.
• Manages the organization and maintenance of accurate and detailed databases, spreadsheets, files, and records; verifies accuracy of information and ensures compliance with established records retention policies, procedures, and schedules.  
• Attends, participates, and represents SBCTA/SBCOG at interdepartmental, interagency, and professional meetings; monitors legal, regulatory, technology, and societal changes, and court decisions and stays abreast of new trends and innovations in transportation planning and programming and regional programs.
• Receives, investigates, and responds to requests for information and/or questions in a professional manner; refers matters requiring policy interpretation to supervisor for resolution.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Knowledge of:
 

• Principles and practices of transportation planning, program and project development, implementation, and evaluation.
• The Regional Transportation Plan/Sustainable Communities Strategy (RTP/SCS) prepared by the Southern California Association of Governments.
• Regional, state, and federal funding and grant programs, such as the California Transportation Commission SB 1 programs, federal BUILD, INFRA, and Mega programs, and others that have potential for funding SBCTA multimodal transportation projects. 
• Transportation analysis tools that are typically employed in project evaluation, such as highway capacity analysis, VMT analysis, benefit/cost analysis, and travel demand forecasting. While SBCTA maintains the SBTAM travel demand model, the Planning Manager is not required to perform model runs. However, the Planning Manager should generally understand the modeling process, be able to formulate model requests,
•  and interpret/quality-check results. 
• Organization practices as applied to the development, analysis, and evaluation of programs, policies, and operational needs of assigned area of responsibility.
• Administrative principles, practices, and methods including goal setting, program development, implementation and evaluation, policy and procedure development, quality control, and work standards.
• Principles and practices of employee supervision, including work planning, assignment, review and evaluation, discipline, and the training of staff in work procedures.
• Principles and practices of leadership. 
• Principles and practices of budget and contract development and administration.
• Principles, practices, trends, and funding sources for transportation and land use planning 
• Recent and on-going developments, current literature, and sources of information related to sustainability, housing, transportation (multi-modal), energy, resilience, and land use planning.
• Record-keeping principles and procedures.
• Applicable federal, state, and local laws, codes, and regulations as well as industry standards and best practices pertinent to the assigned area of responsibility. 
• Techniques for providing a high level of customer service, by effectively working with the vendors and SBCTA/SBCOG staff. 
• The structure and content of the English language, including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Modern equipment and communication tools used for business functions and program, project, and task coordination, including computers and software programs relevant to work performed.

 
Ability to: 

• Assist in developing and implementing department goals, objectives, practices, policies, procedures, and work standards. 
• Provide administrative, management, and professional leadership for transportation planning, programming, and COG functions. 
• Plan, organize, oversee, and manage assigned staff, strategies, and programs. 
• Select and supervise staff, provide training and development opportunities, ensure work is performed effectively, and evaluate performance in an objective and positive manner.
• Assist in evaluating and developing improvements in program implementation procedures, policies, or methods.
• Assist in preparing and administering large and complex budgets; cost-effectively allocate limited resources.
• Research, analyze, and evaluate new service delivery methods, procedures, and techniques. 
• Analyze, interpret, summarize, and present technical information and data in an effective manner and draw sound conclusions. 
• Analyze problems, identify alternative solutions, project consequences of proposed actions, and implement recommendations supporting department goals.
• Prepare and present clear, concise reports, correspondence, policies, procedures, and other written materials. 
• Effectively represent the SBCTA/SBCOG in meetings with governmental agencies, community groups, various businesses, professional and regulatory organizations, and in meetings with individuals.
• Understand, interpret, apply, and explain applicable federal, state, and local policies, procedures, laws, and regulations.
• Direct the establishment and maintenance of various filing, record keeping, and tracking systems.
• Use tact, initiative, and independent judgment within general policy, procedural guidelines, and legal requirements.
• Independently organize work, set priorities, meet critical deadlines, and follow up on assignments.
• Communicate clearly and concisely, orally and in writing, using appropriate English grammar and syntax.
• Establish, maintain, and foster positive and effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work. 
• Effectively use computer systems, software applications relevant to work performed, and modern business equipment to perform various tasks.

 
Education and Experience:
Any combination of training and experience that would provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the required qualifications would be:
 
Equivalent to graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with major coursework in planning, public policy, engineering, environmental, or public administration, or closely related field and five (5) years of increasingly responsible professional experience, including one (1) year of supervisory or management experience.  
 
Licenses and Certifications: 

• Requires possession of a valid California Driver’s License, a satisfactory driving record, and a properly registered and insured vehicle, to be maintained throughout employment.

Other Qualifications

Physical Demands 
Must possess mobility to work in a standard office setting and use standard office equipment, including a computer; vision to read printed materials and a computer screen; and hearing and speech to communicate in person and over the telephone. This is primarily a sedentary office classification although standing in work areas and walking between work areas may be required. Finger dexterity is needed to access, enter, and retrieve data using a computer keyboard or calculator and to operate standard office equipment. Positions in this classification occasionally bend, stoop, kneel, reach, push, and pull drawers open and closed to retrieve and file information. Employees must possess the ability to lift, carry, push, and pull materials and objects up to 25 pounds.

Environmental Conditions
Employees work in an office environment with moderate noise levels, controlled temperature conditions, and no direct exposure to hazardous physical substances. Employees may interact with upset staff and/or public and private representatives in interpreting and enforcing policies and procedures.

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