OVERALL DESCRIPTION

We are seeking to hire our first Chief Officer - Culture Transformation will report to the Assistant General Manager of Culture and Social Impact.

The Chief Officer of Culture Transformation is a senior executive leader responsible for shaping and advancing a high-performing, values-driven organizational culture aligned with SEPTA’s strategic and operational priorities. This role leads large-scale culture change within the Authority that strengthens how work gets done—guiding shifts in mindset, leadership practice, and daily behaviors to support safety, accountability, trust, belonging, and organizational effectiveness. 

This position drives culture transformation through the design and implementation of culture operating systems, data-informed insights, and sustained change management and adoption strategies. The role influences the Board, union and SAM leaders at all levels, integrates engagement, belonging, and inclusion into core business practices, and ensures culture change is measurable, durable, and embedded into operations. 

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES

• Culture Strategy & Design: Assess existing culture and design a roadmap to shift organizational norms, behaviors and rituals toward values of a desired "target culture". 


• Transformation Leadership: Lead enterprise-scale change management initiatives, often focusing on high-impact areas and strategic priorities  


• Leadership & Manager Enablement: Coach executives to "model" the culture and train managers to be agents of culture change within their divisions. 


• Measurement & Data-Driven Insights: Utilize sentiment data, employee engagement surveys, and predictive analytics to track organizational culture health, identify risks and measure processes that reduce or engineer out risks. 


• System Alignment: Collaborate with redesigning HR processes—such as hiring, performance management, and onboarding—to reinforce the desired cultural shifts. 


• Complies with all Authority and departmental safety and security policies and procedures, as well as all applicable job safety responsibilities. Reports any safety concerns, compromises, or hazards in the hazards affecting self and other employees is responsible for the individual’s own safety and is encouraged to promote the safety of others.


• Performs other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s degree  in organizational psychology, business, public administration, or a related field required.


• Professional Experience: 10–15 years of progressive leadership experience in enterprise transformation, organizational effectiveness, operational culture, or related strategic roles within large, unionized, or service‑driven organizations. 


• Executive Leadership in Public or Regulated Environments: Demonstrated success leading large‑scale, enterprise‑wide culture or organizational transformations within public transit, transportation, infrastructure, or similarly regulated, safety‑critical environments. 


• Culture, Change, and Safety Alignment: Deep expertise in organizational change, culture design, leadership development, and behavior‑change strategies, with a strong ability to align culture transformation to safety outcomes, operational excellence, workforce reliability, and public service mandates. 


• Operational and Workforce Influence: Proven ability to influence senior leaders, frontline leadership, and cross‑functional stakeholders—including labor‑represented workforces—within complex, matrixed organizations where operational continuity and public trust are paramount. 


• Strategic Communication and Engagement: Exceptional communication, facilitation, and strategic storytelling skills, with experience connecting culture initiatives to day‑to‑day operations, safety practices, and accountability at every level of the organization. 


• Data‑Driven Decision Making: Strong analytical and digital fluency, including the ability to leverage workforce, safety, engagement, and operational data to identify trends, shape strategy, and measure the impact of culture and change initiatives. 


• Leadership in Complexity and Ambiguity: High comfort navigating political, regulatory, and operational complexity, with the judgment and adaptability to lead culture transformation in environments with competing priorities and high public visibility. 

IDEAL QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• 10–15 years of progressive leadership experience driving organizational or culture transformation within large, regulated, transportation, or operationally complex environments.  


• Proven background in Enterprise Change, Organizational Effectiveness, or Just Culture Principles, and Human Factors.  


• Advanced degree (Master’s or Doctorate) in organizational psychology, business, public administration, or a related field preferred, or equivalent executive‑level experience.