Director of Risk Managament

Dean Transportation•Lansing, MI

About The Position

The Director of Safety and Risk Management provides company leadership for safety strategy, operational performance, and regulatory compliance across student, public and motor coach operations. This role is accountable for protecting passengers, employees, and stakeholders by designing and executing safety and training programs, driver performance management systems, and operational readiness initiatives across a large, geographically distributed footprint in Michigan. The leader partners with executive and field leadership to reduce accidents and injuries, strengthen driver qualification and route coverage, and ensure consistent compliance with state and federal requirements governing transportation operations.

Requirements

Demonstrated senior leadership experience in safety and/or operations in transportation, logistics, fleet, public transit, or regulated multi-site services.
Preferably 10+ years of industry experience with bachelor’s or master’s degree.
Proven experience designing and implementing company safety programs, training frameworks, and compliance systems.
Track record of using data, technology, and operational controls to drive measurable risk reduction and performance improvement.
Experience leading cross-functional initiatives (operations, HR/recruiting, legal/compliance, and communications).
Strong command of incident response, root cause analysis, corrective/preventive action planning, and executive stakeholder communication.

Nice To Haves

Experience in student transportation and familiarity with state and federal requirements governing pupil transportation and commercial vehicle operations.
Experience with safety telematics/video programs, behavior-based coaching programs, and complaint management systems.
Experience interacting with regulatory bodies, investigators, and customer governance structures.
Safety leadership and culture-building
Executive presence and stakeholder management
Operational discipline and continuous improvement
Data-driven decision making and KPI governance
Crisis management and calm under pressure
People leadership, coaching, and accountability
Policy development, training effectiveness, and compliance execution

Responsibilities

Company Safety Leadership Lead company safety program ensuring the safety of passengers and employees and protecting company and stakeholder interests.
Establish and continuously improve safety policies, procedures, and audit regimes that reinforce safety as a core value and priority in all aspects of work.
Design and implement driver performance management practices (including speed management, driver evaluation, and corrective action standards) across all operations.
Develop and manage safety campaigns, training initiatives, and compliance programs to improve safety performance and reduce incidents and injuries.
Partner with other company departments and customers to resolve safety concerns, improve service outcomes, and support contract performance requirements.
Support risk assessment and customer contract efforts, including service readiness, compliance commitments, and customer expectations.
Regulatory, Agency, and Critical Incident Management Serve as company liaison with external agencies during incidents or investigations, ensuring timely coordination, documentation, and responsiveness.
Develop and execute company response and action plans to address investigative findings, ensuring closure of actions and sustained compliance improvements.
Safety Technology, Analytics & Continuous Improvement Lead deployment and governance of safety technology programs (e.g., smart camera/video safety platforms) across large fleets, including vendor management, policy alignment, and performance measurement.
Create and maintain driver risk identification tools (e.g., a Driver Safety Scorecard) to identify drivers needing coaching, retraining, corrective action, or removal from service.
Direct complaint and incident management processes, including implementation of centralized, cloud-based complaint management systems to ensure timely review, tracking, and closure.
Child Safety / Student Protection Controls Establish, implement, and audit child-check and student protection procedures to ensure no child is left unattended and that oversight controls are consistently followed across locations.
People Leadership & Accountability Manage and develop training team, setting clear goals, performance expectations, and accountability for safety and operating outcomes.
Build consistent training and risk management standards across operating locations through leader coaching, field engagement, and operational reviews.