Via is using technology to transform transportation around the world. From changing a single person’s daily commute to reducing humanity’s collective environmental footprint — we’ve got huge goals.
As a General Manager in Residence, you will start with a 2-month onboarding sprint in NYC. After that, you will spend your first year running a transit network transformation; taking full ownership of service performance, partner relationships, a 30+ frontline team, and $15M+ P&L. You will be deployed on Via's newest services in high-visibility markets that require building new operational systems from the ground up, not just managing existing ones. The decisions you make here will shape how the market runs for years.
At the end of this deployment, you will transition into a General Manager role in one of Via's major markets: New York City, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, or Dallas. These are complex portfolios, generally with larger partner organizations, and strong strategic scope. You'll arrive with the credibility and operational fluency to lead at that level from day one.
This is a unique leadership and operating opportunity for anyone who is eager to lead and manage a high-stakes, high-visibility, and high-impact new market at Via.
What You’ll Do:
- Service Performance
- Own and manage the end-to-end operating strategy of Via’s service on behalf of our partner
- Define and manage against KPIs spanning on-time performance, rider satisfaction, safety, and cost efficiency
- Translate weekly and monthly performance data into decisions
- People Leadership
- Lead a 30+ team of field operators and drivers, including hiring, coaching, performance management, and culture setting
- Build an operation where people feel accountable, supported, and proud of what they're delivering
- Develop frontline leaders within your team who can grow into expanded roles
- Partner & Stakeholder Management
- Own Via's relationship with the transit agency partner, a public entity with its own board, elected officials, and community accountability
- Represent Via to community stakeholders, local officials, and riders
- Operational Excellence
- Drive continuous improvement across vehicle operations, maintenance protocols, and service delivery
- Identify and execute cost and efficiency improvements that strengthen margin without compromising service
- Product Development
- Influence the product roadmap for Via's newest Fixed Route products
Who You Are:
- Leadership instinct and experience: You know how to motivate and inspire individuals, from drivers all the way to a transit agency’s CEO
- Ownership mentality: You can build systems that prevent things from going wrong and, if they still do, you find what’s going wrong, own it, and fix it
- Analytical rigor and operational judgment: You use data to make decisions, not just to describe situations. You're equally comfortable in a spreadsheet as in the field
- Partner and stakeholder sophistication: You know how to manage relationships that are complex, high-stakes, and not fully in your control
- Mission alignment that goes beyond the talking points: You embrace that Via's partners are public agencies serving communities that often don't have other options
- Flexible and adaptable: You love the challenge of adapting to change rapidly and making things work on the fly
- Effective at managing multiple tasks simultaneously: You can delegate, prioritize, and take responsibility
Qualifications:
- MBA preferred
- 5+ years of pre-MBA experience in operations, consulting, strategy, tech or a field with meaningful P&L or client accountability
- Demonstrated ability to lead and develop teams
- Willingness to be based in a specific location for the first year of the program, with relocation to a major metro market thereafter
- Full on-site presence required
Compensation and Benefits:
- Final salary will be determined by the candidate’s experience, knowledge, and skills. Salary reflected does not include equity or variable pay, where applicable
- Salary Range: $140,000 - $175,000 / year
- We are proud to offer a generous and comprehensive benefits package, including free medical plans and 401K matching
There has never been a more exciting time to be on the cutting edge of public mobility. Ready to join the ride?
Via is an equal opportunity employer.
