Senior Subject Matter Expert - Rail Infrastructure Maintenance & Asset Management

Department: Consulting, Infrastructure Domain

Reports to: Senior Manager

Location: Laguna Niguel or Sacramento, CA (Hybrid)

Tasks & Responsibilities:

• Lead and support consulting engagements in rail infrastructure maintenance, infrastructure management, and asset management.
• Advise clients on the development and implementation of maintenance strategies, asset management strategies, and long-term infrastructure management approaches.
• Develop maintenance concepts covering preventive, predictive, condition-based, and corrective maintenance, including inspection regimes, intervention planning, maintenance frequencies, and resource requirements.
• Support clients in optimizing asset lifecycle performance, including renewal and replacement planning, investment prioritization, lifecycle costing, and long-term capital planning.
• Assess existing maintenance organizations, processes, standards, systems, and capabilities and develop practical recommendations and implementation roadmaps.
• Develop organizational concepts, roles and responsibilities, governance structures, processes, procedures, performance standards, and KPIs for infrastructure maintenance and asset management.
• Evaluate maintenance and asset management practices against industry standards, international best practices, and relevant benchmarks.
• Analyze the interaction between infrastructure condition, maintenance activities, railway operations, reliability, availability, safety, and lifecycle cost.
• Lead technical workstreams and coordinate multidisciplinary teams and subject matter experts.
• Develop clear, actionable recommendations based on technical analysis and translate complex technical topics into decision-making material for senior and executive audiences.
• Prepare and deliver client presentations, reports, proposals, and other consulting deliverables.
• Build and maintain relationships with key client stakeholders and industry partners across the rail and transit sector.
• Support business development activities, including identification of client needs, development of technical approaches, preparation of proposals, and participation in client discussions.
• Contribute to the development of the Infrastructure Maintenance & Asset Management consulting practice, including reusable methodologies, tools, benchmarks, frameworks, and client offerings.
• Leverage Deutsche Bahn's technical expertise and international experience and adapt relevant practices to the needs of North American rail and transit clients.
• Mentor and coach consultants and junior team members and contribute to the development of technical capabilities within the Infrastructure team.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in engineering, transportation, asset management, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience in rail infrastructure maintenance, infrastructure management, asset management, or a closely related field.
• Strong practical understanding of railway infrastructure assets and their maintenance requirements, ideally across several asset classes such as track, civil structures, signaling, communications, traction power, stations, and associated systems.
• Excellent understanding of rail infrastructure maintenance strategies and maintenance planning, including preventive, predictive, condition-based, and corrective maintenance approaches.
• Excellent understanding of asset lifecycle management, renewal and replacement planning, investment planning and prioritization, lifecycle costing, and long-term capital planning.
• Strong knowledge of infrastructure asset management frameworks, maintenance organizations, governance structures, processes and procedures, performance management, and industry benchmarks.
• Experience developing, implementing, or reviewing maintenance plans, asset management plans, maintenance standards, inspection regimes, maintenance frequencies, and resource requirements.
• Strong understanding of the relationship between infrastructure maintenance, railway operations, system reliability and availability, safety, and customer performance.
• Experience leading complex technical projects or workstreams involving multidisciplinary teams and senior stakeholders.
• Ability to combine technical expertise with a strategic and business-oriented perspective and develop practical, implementable solutions.
• Experience in management consulting, advisory services, or a comparable client-facing environment is preferred.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills and the ability to structure complex and ambiguous problems.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate complex technical matters clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Excellent presentation skills and experience presenting recommendations to senior client stakeholders.
• Strong client orientation and ability to develop trusted relationships with technical and executive stakeholders.
• Ability and willingness to contribute to business development and the continued growth of the Infrastructure Maintenance & Asset Management practice.
• Independent, structured, collaborative working style with a strong sense of ownership and the ability to drive initiatives forward.

Working Conditions and Travel:

Minimal overnight travel by land and air. 

Physical Requirements, with or without a reasonable accommodation: 

• Ability to work at a computer workstation for periods up to 4 hours at a time 
• Ability to speak on the telephone for a total of up to 3 hours per day 
• Ability to sit for up to 3 hours without breaks at meetings 
• Ability to walk and stand for up to 4 hours without breaks at program site visits and meetings

We offer an annual gross salary between $165,000 and $193,000 + bonus (USD) for full-time employment, depending on professional qualifications and experience.