Regional Director of Operations, Real Estate

Company Description

Uncommon Schools is a nonprofit network of high-performing, public charter schools providing an outstanding K-12 education in historically under-resourced communities. We have proudly built schools that reflect our student population, with more than 60% of our teachers and staff across our network identifying as a person of color. Uncommon currently manages 53 schools serving 20,000 students in five cities: Boston, Camden, New York City, Newark, and Rochester. We are proud that Uncommon graduates persist in and graduate from college at five times the rate of their peers nationally. We achieve this by offering strong academic, co-curricular, and social-emotional learning that prepares students for success in college and beyond.

Job Description

Uncommon’s Real Estate Team is responsible for ensuring the leasing, acquisition, development, financing, renovations and ongoing maintenance/compliance of high-quality facilities for Uncommon’s schools.

The Regional Director of Operations, Real Estate (RDO RE) will serve as the primary contact between school operations and REF, improving communications, attending all building council meetings to surface and help resolve facilities issues region-wide. The RDO RE will own the regional facilities budgets working in collaboration with FMs and schools, and will maintain monthly budget trackers. The RDO RE must demonstrate successful experience in general facility management; leadership and mentorship of more junior staff; contract negotiation, fiscal management and compliance; excellent project management skills, monitoring, and reporting; and superior communication skills.

The Regional Director of Operations, Real Estate oversees the project management, administrative, technical, and supervisory work related to the operation of school facilities in New Jersey.

The Regional Director of Operations, Real Estate will lead a team of Regional Facility Managers and General Maintenance Workers in Camden and Newark, NJ. The team’s overall responsibility is to monitor and respond to daily facility needs as well as to develop and implement – in conjunction with the Home Office Real Estate and Facilities team (REF) – a short, medium, and long-term plan for effective maintenance and upgrade of our facilities to best serve our students and staff. The RDO RE will be responsible for helping to develop and then implement a strategic plan, working closely with REF, school RSOs and DOOs, Finance, and external professionals, monitoring all facets of the team’s and schools’ facility and capital upgrade budgets. This position will report directly to the Chief Real Estate Officer.

Management of School Facilities Managers

Lead a facilities team in the development and execution of a facilities management and preventive maintenance program; ensure appropriate expertise and resources are in place to meet requirements and respond to requests in a courteous, timely, and highly effective manner; manage the team for the repair, maintenance, and continuous operation of all building systems including: fire/life safety, Mechanical (HVAC, plumbing), Electrical (lighting control equipment, bulb replacement, UPS, light construction (painting, doors, locks), digital systems (fire alarm, card access, CCTV security access systems), elevator control, Building Maintenance System (BMS)(DDC), and audio-visual systems, etc.

• Manage facilities team (8-10 people or more) and establish / enforce communication chain of command
• Oversee the completion of preventive maintenance and reactive repair maintenance activities
• Develop an effective approach to use of the online CMMS ticketing system (SchoolDude) and monitor and implement that approach. 
• Ensure the facilities team is managing and responding to the building staff requests in a timely manner through SchoolDude.
• Ensure timely response to general maintenance requests and emergency situations
• Manage facilities team in ensuring compliance with local, state, and federal regulations, which includes maintaining up-to-date building documentation and certifications

Building Compliance Management

• Manage facilities team in coordinating required governmental inspections, and to ensure that regular inspections of all areas of the building are being completed as expected
• Ensure compliance with local regulations regarding vendor procurement
• Manage the school’s janitorial contracts, lawn care contracts, snow contracts, and HVAC contracts to include periodic in-term reviews, ensuring outcomes are met at a value acceptable to the organization

Financial & Annual Planning

• When necessary, oversee and assist facilities team in obtaining and leveling bids for recommendation to School Staff and Real Estate Team 
• Develop and manage a 3-5 year fac