Director, Capital Innovation

Director, Capital Innovation

Capital Programs

Move forward with us! At NJ TRANSIT, youll join us in transforming the third-largest transportation agency in North America. We are committed to delivering safe, reliable service that gets our customers to their destinations on time-and we're looking to hire talented folks with a love of learning to make it all possible.

The Director of Capital Innovation serves as the department lead for digital transformation, performance management, and process optimization across the Capital Delivery (or successor) organization. This role establishes a data-driven operating model to improve capital program outcomes thereby enhancing resource allocation, schedule adherence, cost control, delivery speed, and organizational transparency. The Director partners closely with the SVP, functional Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs to institutionalize KPIs, implement systems, tools, and processes to drive continuous improvement across the full program lifecycle.

Roles & Responsibilities:

• Lead the design and implementation of a standardized performance management framework across Capital Delivery
• Establish enterprise KPIs (resource, cost, schedule, risk, throughput, asset readiness) aligned with SVP priorities
• Partner with each Chief (Planning, Engineering, Construction, Program Support) to define function-specific metrics
• Develop executive dashboards and reporting for SVP, CEO, and Board visibility
• Serve as the principal owner of Capital Delivery digital ecosystem (PMIS, Primavera P6, ERP interfaces, EAM integration)
• Drive data standardization, governance, and interoperability across systems
• Identify and implement technology solutions that enhance project controls, forecasting, and decision-making
• Ensure alignment between project controls, financial systems, and asset management platforms
• Identify systemic bottlenecks across planning, design, procurement, and construction phases
• Benchmark against leading U.S. transit agencies and infrastructure delivery organizations
• Lead redesign of workflows to reduce cycle times, improve estimate reliability, and strengthen cost controls
• Drive implementation of best practices (stage gates, estimating rigor, schedule discipline, change management)
• Establish a structured pipeline for identifying, prioritizing, and implementing innovation initiatives
• Monitor industry trends (delivery models, digital tools, regulatory changes) and translate into actionable improvements
• Lead pilot programs and scale successful innovations across the organization
• Partner with multiple organizations like Finance (CFO), Procurement (CAO), HR, IT, Legal, and Operations, to align capital delivery processes end-to-end (project intake to planning, design, procurement, public engagement, construction, project closeout and asset handover)
• Ensure integration between capital planning, funding strategy, and project execution
• Support development of enterprise-wide standards for capital program governance
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the SVP on organizational performance, transformation priorities, and delivery risks
• Lead special initiatives and cross-cutting programs as directed by the SVP
• Represent Capital Delivery in executive forums, committees, and external engagements as
• required

This Position Supervises:

• Senior Manager, Capital Innovation

Education, Experience & Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Planning, Data Science, Business, Finance, Economics, Analytics, or related area.
• A minimum of seven (7) years of experience managing technology, process improvement, reporting, dashboards, data analysis, analytics or digital transformation tools in the Capital Delivery or related context.
• Experience working across functional teams
• Experience presenting to executive leadership

Knowledge & Skills:

• Strong knowledge and understanding of transit agencies required
• Must have excellent oral and written communication skills in order to explain projects, gain understanding and obtain support from stakeholders.
• Must be detail oriented
• Ability to work with diverse group of mangers and senior leadership
• Ability to manage teams and projects
• Ability to meet deadlines

At NJ Transit, you will enjoy a competitive salary and excellent benefits package:

• Comprehensive Family Health Insurance - Medical, Prescription, Dental, Vision
• Flexible Spending Account
• Life Insurance
• Paid Leave
• Tuition Assistance
• Pre-Tax Commuter Benefits Plan
• Retirement Plans
• 401(a) - Retirement plan with a 6% employer contribution
• 401(k) - Retirement saving plan with up to an 3% company match
• 457(b) - Deferred Savings Plan

NJ TRANSIT is an Equal Opportunity Employer

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