Magazine serving the bus and rail transit & motorcoach operations since 1904
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TOP 50 TRAITS OF A GREAT TRANSIT MANAGER 7 8 9 Skilled communicator. •Must be able to effectively communicate with both policy- makers and all levels of employees. •This includes listening, understand- ing and responding clearly, concisely and with substance. •Having the ability to effectively interact and communicate is essential. Good listener. •When you hear complaints from your customer base, you have to empathize with them and solve their problems. •Be receptive to good ideas from those working for the organization. •Listen to those willing to offer con- structive thoughts. •Listen more than you speak. Be Passionate. •Being passionate about the value of public transportation and for public service. •A great transit manager should be one who loves what he/she does and understands the importance of transit to the general public. It's more than a job; it's a calling. 10 11 44 Patience. •Patience is a much-needed asset, especially when deal- ing with the bureaucracy that has to be navigated for the public transportation industry. Being fl exible. •Have the ability to wisely make compromises. • Have the fl exibility to respond to market changes for the good of your customers and your agency. 12 14 13 15 16 17 18 19 20 < mETRO mAGAZINE SEPTEMBER • OCTOBER 2012 Be fair and respectful. •Whether it is with your employees, superiors, peers or the public. Knowledge of regula- tions. •It's crucial to stay current on rules and regulations. Hire good people. •Ability to hire excellent people for each of the func- tional areas and mold them into a team that has the same vision/goals for the organization that you do. Selfl essness. •A manager in public ser- vice should place their ser- vice, passengers', and employees' needs beyond their own and act as an agent toward helping others succeed. •Have a desire to serve others. Business acumen. •Know how to work with numbers, balancing budgets. Analytical skills. •Be able to drill down to the essentials of issues in all areas. Technology oriented. •Whether its exceptional computer and data skills, navigating the Internet or networking via social media, transit managers are called upon to use new and up-and- coming tech platforms to do their jobs more effectively. •Be up on new technologies and products for operations. Innovative. •Develop new ideas for the transit system. •Great transit managers do not rest on their laurels. Politically savvy. •Must be adept at navigat- ing the politics involved in the 22 23 24 25 26 Problem solver. •Great transit managers know how to identify prob- lems and implement solutions. Ability to make deci- sions. •Do so with assuredness, clarity and sound reasoning. •Use fairness and consistency with decision-making, particularly with re- gard to personnel. Have vision. •Must have a long-range strategic organization vision- ing, planning and execution. •Transit needs to be fl exible to meet the changing needs of the community; to do this you need to look and plan for the future of your organization. Confi dence. •Knowing when to stand strong and when to be quiet. •Not afraid to try new things. Leadership. •Need to set the culture for the organization, and to en- sure that staff receives needed resources and training to effectively and effi cient- ly do their job. •Ability to inspire and set the ex- ample you want your organization to strive for. •Be able to engage employees in the strategic vision for the agency so that they become champions for it. •Give employees authority to make decisions and support them in their decision-making. 27 Management skills. •Requires overseeing a vari- metro-magazine.com industry. •Be bipartisan. 21 Learn on the job. •Always remain open to developing more skills and knowledge related to the industry and your job.