The Spirit of the Position: The National Transportation Underwriter is responsible for evaluating, developing, and underwriting transportation and mobility contract opportunities throughout the United States. This position serves as a critical link between LAZ Regions, Business Development Teams, Operations, Finance, Safety, Fleet, Human Resources, and Legal to ensure proposed contracts are operationally achievable, competitively priced, financially sound, and appropriately structured before submission.
Location: Remote
Compensation: $120,000 annually with annual bonus
RESPONSIBILITIES:Contract & RFP Underwriting- Review transportation, shuttle, transit, mobility, and parking RFPs and bid opportunities.
- Analyze scopes of work and identify operational, financial, contractual, and compliance requirements.
- Develop detailed assumptions for each opportunity and identify requirements that could materially impact operating costs or profitability.
- Review customer-provided operating statistics, schedules, service levels, ridership data, fleet requirements, and performance standards.
- Identify unclear or conflicting RFP requirements and develop clarification questions.
- Maintain an underwriting checklist, Pipeline and approval process for major proposals.
- Develop and validate operating budgets for proposed contracts and calculate anticipated annual operating costs.
- Evaluate management fees, margins, contingency allowances, and escalation assumptions.
- Develop staffing and labor cost models, including wages, overtime, payroll taxes, workers' compensation, benefits, recruiting, training, and uniforms.
- Evaluate fleet acquisition, lease, maintenance, fuel, insurance, technology, and facility costs.
- Support operating models incorporating vehicle requirements, revenue and non-revenue hours and mileage, peak vehicle requirements, staffing, dispatch, maintenance, spare ratios, fuel or energy consumption, service hours, deadhead mileage, overtime, training, and facility requirements.
- Evaluate whether proposed operating plans can realistically meet contractual service requirements.
- Assist proposal team in developing financially and operationally competitive solutions.
- Review final pricing with region leadership before executive approval and ensure pricing assumptions align with the technical proposal.
- Participate in proposal strategy meetings and support Best and Final Offer (BAFO) negotiations.
- Identify and quantify risks related to liquidated damages, performance penalties, service guarantees, staffing, wage escalation, collective bargaining agreements, insurance, vehicle availability, fleet replacement, maintenance, fuel volatility, regulatory requirements, technology, customer-controlled operating changes, and unfunded scope increases.
- Recommend pricing contingencies or contract modifications to mitigate identified risks.
- Conduct pre-bid site assessments when appropriate, evaluating existing operations, vehicle condition, maintenance facilities, driver availability, labor markets, dispatch, customer service, route complexity, technology, parking, safety, and management staffing.
- Document findings and incorporate them into the underwriting model.
- Prepare a formal underwriting handoff to implementation and region teams for awarded contracts.
- Document assumptions used in the final pricing model and review approved staffing and fleet plans.
- Identify key contractual milestones and performance requirements and participate in startup meetings.
- Compare actual startup costs against underwriting assumptions and conduct post-award reviews to improve future underwriting accuracy.
- Transportation Operations: Strong understanding of bus, shuttle, transit, mobility, parking, or similar operations, including driver staffing, scheduling, dispatch, fleet utilization, maintenance, and service delivery.
- Financial Analysis: Ability to develop and analyze multimillion-dollar operating budgets, pricing models, labor projections, fleet costs, and profitability scenarios.
- RFP & Contract Analysis: Ability to read complex RFPs and contracts and translate requirements into operational and financial assumptions.
- Advanced Excel: Proficiency with pricing models, staffing models, operating budgets, scenario analysis, cost-per-hour and cost-per-mile calculations, margin analysis, and multi-year projections.
- Cross-Functional Leadership: Ability to work effectively with Business Development, Operations, Finance, Fleet, Safety, HR, Legal, Procurement, and executive leadership.
- Minimum 3-5 years of professional experience in transportation, mobility, parking, shuttle, transit, bus operations, or a closely related industry.
- Experience developing or reviewing transportation operating budgets.
- Experience with RFPs, bids, proposals, contracts, or transportation pricing strongly preferred.
- Experience working with multi-location or national transportation operations preferred.
- Bachelor's degree in business, finance, transportation, operations, or a related discipline preferred; equivalent transportation industry experience may substitute.
Financial & Pricing Analysis- Transportation Operations Analysis
- Contract Support
TRAVEL- Must be willing to travel within assigned region, as necessary. Spends 10-20% of time in the field.
PHYSCIAL DEMANDS- Ability to lift, push and pull at least ten pounds.
- The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with qualified disabilities to perform the essential duties/functions.
FLSA Status: Exempt
LAZ also provides additional optional benefits such as:- Optional life insurance
- Paid time off
- Holiday pay
- Reimbursement for approved travel expenses
