Facilities Management Lead

Chicago Public Schools•Chicago, IL

3d•Onsite

About The Position

The Department of Facilities is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of CPS schools, modular buildings, annexes, and administrative offices. The department ensures that the district’s schools and facilities are clean, safe, heated and cooled, and dry. Under the direction of a Regional Facilities Manager, the Facilities Management Lead is the primary CPS contact for district School Principals regarding operational issues in the field. The Lead maintains daily communications with the Regional Manager, direct reports, and the Facilities Management Organization (FMO) Facilities Managers and is focused on tactical operations and Principal satisfaction. This role represents CPS Facilities at the school level, helps develop a vision for school facilities and strategic goals, leads weekly work plan reviews with the FMO Facility Manager and supports the FMO team to remove roadblocks. This is a full-time, exempt position that will be paid for time worked on a salary basis.

Requirements

High School Diploma or equivalent is required.
Minimum of seven (7) years of engineering, operations/maintenance, construction, project controls, or asset management experience.
Minimum of two (2) years of supervisory or management experience.
In-depth knowledge and experience of facility operations maintenance and building systems.
Strong communication skills (speaking - including presentations - listening and writing).
Ability to multi-task and effectively organize responsibilities to achieve assigned facility goals and objectives.
Ability to develop productive working relationships with key stakeholders and work collaboratively with client personnel and other third parties in order to enhance the experience of facility users.
Capable of collaborating with internal and external teams to meet department objectives and managing large teams to achieve operational goals.
Ability to understand and dissect building operational issues, develop mitigation plans and engage vendors or internal resources to address and resolve, all the while focused on root causes and final resolution of the problem and not just the symptom(s).

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university is preferred.
Project Management Professional (PMP) is preferred.

Responsibilities

Execute CPS quality and compliance requirements, ensuring schools consistently meet established operational standards.
Recruit, onboard, train, direct, and mentor Facilities & Custodial Field Leads consistent with the CPS values and mission. Oversee performance management, annual RISE reviews, and operational quality expectations.
Validate vendor quality and ensure suppliers honor scope of work and contractual obligations. Manage escalating vendor issues, collaborating with FMO, CPS Procurement, and the Regional Manager as needed.
Review monthly KPIs, establish corrective action plans with FMO Facilities Managers to address gaps, eliminate performance barriers, and report critical issues to leadership.
Lead continuous improvement initiatives focused on cost and reliability. Develop business cases and cost-benefit analyses for proposed projects alongside the delivery team.
Collaborate with FMO Managers to identify capital needs, estimate equipment end-of-life, provide long-term budget forecasts, and manage projects within approved limits.
Approve purchase requests and manage work orders through Corrigo/CrowdComfort in accordance with CPS processes, escalating issues to the Regional Manager when necessary.
Drive technical maintenance strategies and quality standards across assigned schools in collaboration with key stakeholders.
Assist the FMO team during emergency situations, keep CPS leadership informed, and ensure all site-specific documentation and reports are completed accurately and on time.
Other duties as assigned