Director of Services and Standards - 90377728 (Hybrid)
Washington, DC, US, 20001 Wilmington, DE, US, 19801 Wilmington, DE, US, 19801
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.
This hybrid position can be based out of Washington DC and/or Wilmington, DE.
SUMMARY OF DUTIES:
The Director of Services and Standards leads a dynamic team responsible for supporting and empowering Amtrak’s frontline employees. This role reports to the AVP of Product Development and Customer Experience and partners closely with Operations. The role focuses on ensuring that employees have access to the tools, information, training, and support needed to deliver exceptional customer service in a variety of situations. They are responsible for developing, maintaining and communicating service standards, policies, service guides and operational changes to onboard and station employees. The team seeks to adopt innovative approaches, leveraging industry best practices from hospitality, travel, airline, and transportation sectors.
This position plays a pivotal role in advancing Amtrak’s goal of transitioning to a hospitality-focused culture. The Director is responsible for establishing a strategic roadmap for continuous improvement while addressing immediate operational needs. This includes driving digitalization efforts to eliminate reliance on paper-based processes and ensuring that communication and service standards are accessible, actionable, and aligned with organizational goals.
The Director collaborates with cross-functional teams to design service delivery standards, guide policy development, and ensure consistent and exceptional customer experiences. This leader will foster a forward-thinking, customer-centered approach that aligns with Amtrak’s strategic priorities.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
1. Service Standards and Policies:
• Lead the development, communication, and maintenance of system-wide station and onboard service standards.
• Oversee the creation and updates of service manuals, policy manuals and procedures, user guides, and delivery guides for frontline staff.
• Act as the primary liaison between frontline operations management and internal stakeholders to ensure alignment on service delivery expectations.
2. Innovation and Strategic Vision:
• Identify and implement best practices from the hospitality, travel, and transportation industries to enhance service delivery.
• Develop and execute a long-term roadmap to transform Amtrak’s culture into one that prioritizes hospitality excellence.
• Advocate for the adoption of tools, technologies, and performance metrics to improve frontline operations.
3. Digital Transformation:
• Spearhead efforts to modernize communication processes by reducing reliance on paper and adopting digital tools for real-time updates.
• Lead the development of IT requirements for frontline support systems, such as customer service tools, baggage handling systems, and performance tracking platforms.
4. Frontline Support and Training:
• Ensure that frontline employees have the resources, training, and policies and procedures necessary to provide outstanding customer service.
• Provide direct support to crew bases, addressing specific needs and challenges to enable frontline success.
5. Collaboration and Continuous Improvement:
• Use data and insights from customer satisfaction surveys (e.g., CSI) and operational performance metrics to drive service improvements.
• Design service standards and procedures that align with new menu offerings, product launches, and service innovations.
6. Operational Oversight:
• Oversee the national employee uniform program.
• Provide oversight for ancillary products and policies such as excess luggage, pets, and bikes to ensure seamless customer experiences.
• Manage station and on-board signage program.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
• Bachelor’s degree in hospitality management, business or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Proven experience in customer service, hospitality management, service design, and performance improvement in the Retail, Hospitality, Travel or Transportation industry.
• Must have excellent oral and written communication and organizational skills, and proven experience in drafting and maintaining policies and procedures and service standards manuals.
• Demonstrated ability to manage and operate in a matrix organization.
• Knowledge of industry trends in hospitality, customer satisfaction metrics and operational / customer service best practices.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
• 11+ years of proven experience in customer service, hospitality management, service design, and performance improvement in the Retail, Hospitality, Travel or Transportation industry.
• Experience with digital platforms and document management systems like Comply365 and customer feedback tools like Medallia.
• Experience in culture transformation and employee engagement and ability to drive initiatives that enhance frontline staff satisfaction.
WORK ENVRIORNMENT:
• This role can be filled in a hybrid capacity.
• Combination of office, virtual, and field environment, with occasional travel to stations, crew bases, and operational sites.
• Occasionally required to lift or move objects weighing up to 25 pounds and set up equipment
• Up to 25% travel may be required to meet with stakeholders.
COMMUNICATIONS AND INTERPERSONAL SKILLS:
Must have excellent oral and written communication skills.
The salary/hourly range is $163,000-$211,140, 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:163734
Posting Location(s):District of Columbia; Delaware; Maryland; Virginia
Job Family/Function:Customer Service
Relocation Offered:No
Travel Requirements:Up to 25%
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.
