Service Manager

We are conducting a confidential search on behalf of a commercial vehicle manufacturer for a Senior Manager of Service.This leader will build the service systems, documentation, processes, and partner network required to deliver an exceptional post-sale customer experience. The initial focus will be the West Coast, with the potential to support expansion of the service network nationally. Reporting directly to executive leadership, the Senior Manager will establish an end-to-end service, warranty, charging, and customer-support ecosystem for a growing fleet of electric and hybrid commercial vehicles serving transit agencies, municipalities, and commercial fleet operators. This is an outstanding opportunity for a hands-on leader who can define strategy, build scalable infrastructure, and execute effectively in a growing organization. Key Responsibilities Design and build a regional service network that includes authorized dealer service centers, mobile-service capabilities, and regional service hubs. Establish service standards, technician-certification programs, and tooling and equipment requirements. Develop service-partner agreements, service-level frameworks, and performance metrics for dealer and independent service providers. Oversee parts-distribution strategy, depot inventory positioning, and spare-parts forecasting to support vehicle-uptime commitments. Partner with engineering and software teams to develop remote diagnostics and telematics-enabled predictive-maintenance capabilities. Warranty Strategy and Management Define warranty policies, including coverage tiers, terms, exclusions, and claims-adjudication processes for vehicle systems and high-voltage components. Build the warranty-administration infrastructure, including claims processing, dealer reimbursement, and fraud-control workflows. Partner with engineering and supply chain to manage supplier warranty recovery and root-cause analysis. Track warranty cost per unit, emerging failure trends, and field-reliability data to support product improvement and liability forecasting. Ensure warranty programs meet or exceed relevant competitive benchmarks. Charging Infrastructure and Support Develop the customer charging-support strategy, including depot-design guidance, EVSE partner recommendations, and fleet charging management. Build relationships with charging hardware and software providers, charging-platform companies, and utility programs. Guide customers through charging infrastructure deployment—from site assessment and load planning through commissioning and ongoing support. Define charging-related service protocols, remote-monitoring processes, fault-resolution procedures, and escalation pathways. Track charging uptime, grid-interaction performance, and customer-experience KPIs. Customer Support and Technical Assistance Build and lead a customer-facing Technical Assistance Center capable of managing Level 1 through Level 3 escalations. Develop customer onboarding programs, operator-training curricula, and service documentation, including manuals, technical service bulletins, and diagnostic guides. Establish customer-satisfaction measures such as CSI, NPS, and first-call resolution. Oversee the service components of the digital customer experience, ensuring information is prompt, accurate, and current. Create escalation protocols for critical field issues, safety-related events, and recall coordination. Build the team, tools, and knowledge-management systems required to scale support as the deployed fleet grows. Additional Leadership Responsibilities Align Service, Engineering, Sales, Supply Chain, and Finance around service readiness for new-model launches. Develop and manage the service and warranty P&L, including annual budgets, warranty-reserve modeling, and cost-reduction initiatives. Represent the organization’s service capabilities to fleet customers, transit agencies, and other buyers during sales and procurement processes. Provide executive-level reporting on service operations, warranty performance, customer satisfaction, and field reliability. Recruit, develop, and mentor a high-performing service organization capable of scaling with the business. Maintain current knowledge of commercial EV service trends, relevant FMCSA, CARB, and EPA requirements, and competitive service benchmarks. The Ideal Candidate The successful candidate will combine strategic perspective with a builder’s mindset and a strong bias toward execution. This individual: Has built or led a service organization within the commercial vehicle, electric vehicle, automotive, transit, or transportation-equipment industry. Understands the requirements of supporting vehicles operating in demanding duty cycles. Can think strategically about network design, customer experience, and cost management while remaining operationally engaged. Understands the service implications of high-voltage systems, battery management, and charging infrastructure. Is comfortable creating programs, policies, systems, and teams from the ground up. Communicates credibly with technicians, customers, business partners, and C-suite executives. Brings a customer-first mindset and considers uptime, reliability, safety, and responsiveness non-negotiable. Is energized by the opportunity to launch and scale a new service ecosystem. Candidate Qualifications Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, Operations, or a related discipline; an advanced degree is preferred. At least 12 years of progressive experience in service, aftersales, or technical operations within commercial vehicles, automotive OEMs, transit, or transportation equipment. Demonstrated experience building service networks, warranty programs, and technical-support infrastructure—ideally in support of a new product launch or growth-stage organization. Strong knowledge of electric and hybrid vehicle systems, high-voltage safety protocols, battery technology, and EV charging infrastructure. Experience managing dealer or distributor service relationships and developing authorized-service programs. A record of developing warranty policy, managing warranty cost, and partnering with engineering on field-quality improvement. Familiarity with telematics, remote diagnostics, and connected-vehicle platforms. Experience with government and fleet procurement environments, including transit agencies, municipalities, and commercial fleets, is highly desirable. Strong financial acumen, including experience managing budgets, modeling warranty reserves, and developing business cases. #J-18808-Ljbffr