Director of Capital Program Management

Department: Charlotte Area Transit System Department

Salary: $145,541.00 - $209,213.74 Commensurate with Experience

Thank you for your interest in joining the team that keeps Charlotte moving, at a very exciting time for our organization. At the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS), we’re committed to delivering safe, reliable, and innovative transit services for our growing community, and we value employees who bring professionalism, passion, and a commitment to public service.

This position is currently employed by CATS, a department of the City of Charlotte. With the passage of the PAVE Act and last year’s sales tax referendum, CATS is preparing to transition from a City department to the newly created Metropolitan Public Transit Authority (MPTA). The MPTA was established to strengthen regional transit governance, improve accountability, and support long‑term investment in mobility. It’s an important and exciting step forward for transit in our region.

Employees hired into this role will remain City employees through December 31, 2026, and will transition to MPTA employment on January 1, 2027. Benefits and compensation will follow City provisions through 2026 and shift to MPTA provisions in 2027, with clear information shared in advance. Your core duties, reporting structure, and daily responsibilities will remain consistent, with no break in service. If anything delays the transition, your City employment, including compensation and benefits, will remain in place until the move to the MPTA occurs.

The creation of the MPTA positions us for a more modern, sustainable, and efficient transit system, one that can better support the Charlotte region for decades to come. We’re excited about what’s ahead and appreciate your interest in being part of it.

SUMMARY

The Director of Capital Program Management serves as the executive leader of CATS’ capital program management function, with authority over capital portfolio governance, capital planning, project controls, performance reporting, and related program support systems. Reporting to the Chief Development Officer, this role holds responsibility for the strategic direction, organizational design, governance frameworks, and operational performance of the Capital Program Management department, including capital planning and prioritization, grant strategy, transit asset management alignment, project controls, capital reporting, PMIS administration, and other enterprise functions supporting disciplined capital delivery.

The Director ensures that CATS’ capital portfolio is planned, prioritized, monitored, and governed in a manner that is transparent, fiscally responsible, data-informed, and aligned with agency strategy, asset condition needs, regulatory requirements, and delivery capacity. This position exercises executive judgment over capital investment governance, capital prioritization, project controls standards, risk and performance reporting, and the systems and processes used to support consistent capital program execution across the organization.
Operating through subordinate managers, analysts, coordinators, technical staff, and external partners, the Director leads continuous improvement and long-range development of CATS’ capital program management capability.
The role serves as a senior representative of CATS with executive leadership, governing bodies, federal and state oversight entities, regional partners, and other stakeholders on matters related to capital portfolio performance, investment strategy, and capital governance, and is accountable for helping ensure that the agency’s capital resources are directed and managed in a disciplined manner that supports organizational sustainability and public trust.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

The following duties are standard for this position. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the classification if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment for this classification.

Capital Program Leadership

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Exercises decision-making authority within established policy, budget, and governance frameworks.

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Provide executive leadership and strategic direction for CATS’ Capital Program Management function, including capital planning, project controls, transit asset management alignment, PMIS stewardship, and related enterprise capital support activities.

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Ensure capital program management practices are aligned with CATS’ strategic priorities, approved budgets, delivery capacity, asset stewardship needs, and long-term infrastructure objectives.

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Translate executive and Board priorities into effective capital portfolio governance structures, performance expectations, and implementation strategies.

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Exercise authority over capital planning frameworks, governance standards, and portfolio support processes within established fiscal and policy parameters.

Strategic Capital Planning and Investment Governance

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Lead development and oversight of the Capital Investment Plan across short-, mid-, and long-range horizons, ensuring alignment with asset needs, service planning objectives, operational priorities, and funding constraints.

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Establish executive oversight and accountability for capital prioritization methods, evaluation frameworks, and investment decision support processes.

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Ensure capital planning decisions are data-informed, transparent, and aligned with agency strategy, state-of-good-repair needs, and long-term system development goals.

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Recommend capital investment strategies and prioritization approaches to executive leadership based on condition, risk, readiness, financial capacity, and organizational priorities.

Project Controls and Capital Performance Oversight

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Hold enterprise-level accountability for project controls standards, capital performance reporting, and related governance mechanisms across the capital portfolio.

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Establish and maintain capital program expectations related to cost control, schedule management, risk reporting, contingency oversight, change control, documentation discipline, and performance monitoring.

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Ensure consistent use of project controls methodologies, capital reporting tools, and PMIS platforms across the organization.

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Authorize and prioritize improvements to capital controls, forecasting methods, reporting structures, and related support systems.

Transit Asset Management and Lifecycle Integration

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Ensure capital planning and capital reporting practices appropriately incorporate transit asset management principles, lifecycle considerations, reliability needs, and state-of-good-repair priorities.

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Establish alignment between capital investment decision-making and asset condition, replacement cycles, long-term reinvestment needs, and lifecycle cost considerations.

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Support integration of TAM, capital planning, and capital reporting processes to improve visibility into future infrastructure and asset needs.

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Promote disciplined use of asset information and lifecycle thinking in capital investment decisions.

Regulatory, Grant, and Capital Compliance Oversight

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Ensure capital program reporting and supporting processes comply with applicable federal, state, and local requirements, including grant conditions, oversight expectations, audit requirements, and related capital reporting obligations.

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Serve as the executive leader for capital governance and performance reporting related to audits, federal oversight reviews, external reporting, and similar compliance activities.

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Establish accountability for maintaining audit-ready records, defensible governance processes, and disciplined documentation across the capital program management function.

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Escalate significant capital compliance, reporting, or governance risks to the Chief Development Officer and recommend mitigation strategies.

Risk Management and Executive Decision Support

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Lead capital portfolio risk identification, assessment, and mitigation