Manager, Commercial Strategy

Summit School Services companies share a strong commitment to provide the highest level of transportation safety, quality transportation, outstanding customer service and positive employee relations. Our corporate headquarters, located in Warrenville, Illinois, houses the administrative and corporate support functions for the organization. Our 250+ local customer service centers (CSCs) are supported by regional operations teams located throughout North America.

Responsibilities Include:

• Preparing financial models (discounted cash flow analyses, market rate comparables), and develop pricing recommendations, strategy, and deal structuring for new and existing business opportunities;
• Support, oversight, and quality control of assigned portfolio of pricing recommendations;
• Maintaining and improving Summit's core pricing model, including owning / validating key cost assumptions and updating annual rate changes based on analysis of operational cost increases, capital and staffing plans, and projected financial return thresholds;
• Generating deal summaries to drive bid decisions with executive team;
• Supporting internal commercial reporting, including but not limited to monthly commercial Board-related documents, ongoing history of bid results, retention and new business strategic planning support, ad-hoc reporting, etc.;
• Interfacing with all areas of the organization (Operations, Marketing/Proposals, FP&A, HR, Legal, Maintenance, and Business Development);
• Leading training and developing new employees or other functional areas;
• Conducting market research and competitive assessments, including tracking competitor pricing strategies, service offerings, contract structures, and market positioning to inform bid strategy, pricing decisions, and long-term commercial planning;
• Synthesizing market intelligence from third-party data sources, industry publications, and internal operational data to determine target markets and identify trends, opportunities, and risks; and
• Supporting M&A activity, with a focus on commercial due diligence and post-close planning related to retaining and growing the target company’s portfolio

• BS/BA in Finance, Business Administration, Accounting, or a related field; CPA, CFA, or MBA a plus;

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in professional / public accounting, banking, FP&A, or equivalent;

• Experience in the financial analysis field including experience with modeling, presentations, and reporting systems;

• Working knowledge of modeling software to prepare reports and conduct financial analyses;

• Technically proficient in Microsoft Office Suite and other MS-Based applications with particular reference to MS Excel and MS PowerPoint;

• Ability to adapt to shifting priorities, demands, and timelines through analytical and problem-solving capabilities;

• Must be able to build and sustain productive relationships with all business functions and be comfortable interacting with senior management;

• Highly organized with a logical and methodical approach; and

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and attention to detail.

Summit School Services has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with its policies and values, including sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. Summit School Services is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children and passengers.

We offer medical, dental, vision, basic life insurance coverage, holiday pay, and PTO accrual. Additionally, employees are able to enroll in a retirement savings plan.

At Summit School Services our goal is to be a diverse workforce that is representative of the communities we serve. All employment decisions are based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy (including childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), national origin, age, physical and mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information (including characteristics and testing), military and veteran status, and any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Summit School Services LLC’s independent subsidiaries and affiliates are an equal employment opportunity (EEO) employer

The pay rate range, along with most all of the other terms and conditions of employment, vary between different sites, geographical markets, customer/ contractual terms and positions.