Candidate Experience Manager

The Candidate Experience Manager (CX Manager) leads and manages a team of CX Specialists, overseeing the entire onboarding journey for candidates (drivers, attendants, and other location staff). This role is responsible for ensuring that the onboarding process runs smoothly, efficiently, and in alignment with company goals and standards. The CX Manager acts as the primary liaison between the CX team and the Region CX Director and drives strategic improvements to enhance candidate experience, training readiness, and compliance.

Major Responsibilities

• Team Leadership and Management:
  • Directly manage the CX team, providing leadership, coaching, and support to ensure high performance and adherence to onboarding best practices.
  • Oversee daily operations of the team, including task allocation, workload balancing, and monitoring progress.
  • Serve as the main point of escalation for complex candidate onboarding issues and provide guidance for resolution.
• Candidate Onboarding and Support:
  • Ensure that the CX team guides candidates through their onboarding journey, from official offers to training initiation, while maintaining a high level of candidate satisfaction.
  • Oversee the scheduling of candidates for training (remote, onsite, or hybrid) and verify that they are prepared for their first day of in-person training at their designated location.
• Documentation and Compliance:
  • Ensure that the CX team maintains accurate and complete onboarding documentation, including background checks and compliance forms, in line with company policies and legal requirements.
  • Monitor compliance and documentation standards across the team to maintain uniformity and adherence to best practices.
• Coordination with Internal Teams:
  • Act as a key liaison between the CX team and Talent Acquisition, HR, Employment Standards, Training, Safety, and Operations to facilitate smooth onboarding and compliance processes.
  • Ensure effective communication between the CX team and other internal departments to maintain alignment and operational efficiency.
• System and Process Management:
  • Oversee the team's use of the ATS and other tools for managing candidate activity and progression throughout the onboarding process.
  • Stay informed about and implement updates to systems and processes related to onboarding, ensuring the team is trained and equipped to adapt to changes.
• Candidate Experience and Engagement:
  • Lead initiatives to foster strong relationships with candidates, ensuring timely communication and engagement.
  • Develop strategies to proactively address candidate concerns and maintain high levels of candidate retention until training commencement.
• Metrics and Reporting:
  • Monitor, analyze, and report on key performance indicators (KPIs), such as time-to-hire, onboarding completion rates, and training readiness.
  • Prepare and submit detailed reports to the Region CX Director, identifying trends and making recommendations for process improvements.
• Compliance and Best Practices:
  • Ensure that onboarding practices across the team comply with EEO legislation, Affirmative Action, ADA requirements, and company policies.
  • Develop and implement standardized onboarding practices to ensure consistency and compliance.
• Customer Service Excellence:
  • Champion exceptional customer service standards within the CX team, ensuring effective relationships with candidates and internal stakeholders.
  • Lead by example and provide guidance to team members on maintaining high standards of customer service and communication.
• Continuous Improvement and Professional Development:
  • Stay updated on industry trends and best practices in candidate experience and onboarding.
  • Identify opportunities for process improvements and implement changes to enhance team efficiency and candidate satisfaction.
  • Support the professional growth of CX Specialists through training and development programs.

Minimum Experience or Skills Required

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Human Resources, Management, Communications, or a related field or equivalent experience and/or education.3 years of experience in customer service, onboarding, recruiting, or a related HR function.
• 2 years of experience in a leadership or management role.
• Proven experience working in a metrics-driven environment.
• Proficiency in ATS or CRM systems and Microsoft Office Suite.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and organizational skills.
• High attention to detail and the ability to prioritize tasks effectively.
• Demonstrated problem-solving capabilities and decision-making skills.

Compensation ranges from $95,000 - $115,000 depending on experience.

Language Requirement
This role requires English proficiency. Federal, state, and local requirements, including U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations, require training, safety communications, company policies, employment documents, and other job-related communications be conducted in English.

First for a reason:

At First Student, we are a family of 60,000+ employees who take pride in safely transporting more than 5 million students and passengers to and from their destinations each day! Our family of brands include Transco, Total Transportation, Maggies Paratransit, and GVC II. Our employees are at the forefront of safety and innovation; they create and implement the most advanced training and technology the transportation industry has to offer.

In the state of Washington, all technician and driving positions, including but not limited to van drivers and any other position requiring employees to drive a company-owned vehicle, are considered safety-sensitive and are therefore subject to drug and alcohol testing, including cannabis.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status. First is also committed to providing a drug-free workplace. First will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Los Angeles Fair Chance Ordinance, and any other fair chance law. Philadelphia's Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Ordinance Poster is at this link or upon request https://www.phila.gov/media/20210423160847/Fair-Chance-Hiring-law-poster.pdf.

About us
An industry leader famous for our yellow school buses and service and safety excellence, we’ve provided student transportation services to schools for over 100 years. Continually investing in the services of the future, we’re proud to be part of FirstGroup America – the largest provider of safe, reliable and sustainable surface passenger transportation services in North America.

Industry leader
We safely operate more than one third of all contracted school buses in North America.
Together our 50,000 school buses travel nearly 600 million miles per year — the equivalent of 1,200 round trips to the moon.
We operate in around 550 locations throughout 38 U.S. states and 8 Canadian provinces.

Innovation
We were the first school bus company to utilize global positioning systems (GPS), so at any one time we know where all of our buses are and how fast they’re travelling.
Passionate about safety, we’ve installed Safety Crossing Gates on the front of all of our school buses and use the Child Check-MateTM electronic reminder system to make sure no sleeping children remain inside a bus at the end of each route.

Awards & recognition
We won the Occupational Excellence Achievement Award from the National Safety Council two years in a row.
Dedicated to safety, FirstGroup received the National Safety Council’s (NSC) Green Cross for Safety Medal - the highest award for safety in North America.

Teamwork and trust
It takes a diverse team of skilled professionals to provide a safe, effective and efficient student transportation system. From our school bus drivers and location managers to routers, dispatchers and fleet technician mechanics, the work we do every day makes a big impact on the daily lives of students, parents, local communities and school district partners.

We’re very proud of our elite team of over 55,000 dedicated, caring and diverse professionals. And they are the #1 reason we’re trusted by over 1,400 school districts - more than any other provider. Everybody here plays their part in creating a positive school bus experience.

Our culture
We live and breathe our vision and values. They are embedded in our culture and drive our commitment to our customers and communities. Our culture fosters growth and promotes respect, reliability, responsibility and safety. And we recruit people who share these values and will work together to build strong and trusting partnerships in the communities we serve.

Safety – Although our safety record is twice as safe as the industry average, we continually seek out opportunities to enhance our operational and safety initiatives.
Learning – Through our learning culture that spans over 550 locations, we receive and share insight from our people to enhance our service now and in the future.
Making a difference - By doing our job well, we make a positive impact on many lives – including the millions of students who travel with us every school day.
Careers for all – We’re an Equal Opportunity Employer and an Employer of Choice.
By consistently encouraging and supporting an open dialogue with our people and partners, we’re able to share new ideas and develop new ways to meet the needs of our customers and passengers. At First Student, you’ll feel empowered to serve your community. So join the team and start to make a difference.