Service Operations Excellence Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Altus Fire and Life Safety is a full-service fire and life safety provider committed to exceptional service, code compliance, and long-term client value. As we grow, we are looking for a Service Operations Excellence Manager to standardize service delivery, strengthen ServiceTrade adoption, and lead operational projects that make the business more consistent, efficient, and scalable.

The Service Operations Excellence Manager helps Altus scale high-quality service delivery across branches by improving the processes, systems, and data that support ITM, service, and repair work in the fire and life safety field. This role requires fire and life safety exposure, deep ServiceTrade expertise, strong data analytics, and disciplined process improvement.

This individual-contributor leadership role works closely with branch operations, scheduling, field technicians, inspections, estimating, inside sales, accounting, and leadership to move operational projects from idea to implementation. The role is field-based and multi-site, with approximately 70% travel across Altus branches and customer locations. ServiceTrade ownership includes configuration, workflow design, reporting, training, data governance, and ongoing process improvement.

Salary Range:  $100,000 - $120,000

Responsibilities The ideal candidate is practical, team-oriented, and disciplined in driving measurable operational improvement.

• Ownership — treat operational performance as your own scoreboard; see problems through to a measured, sustained fix.
• Systems Thinking — understand how inspections, scheduling, quoting, execution, and invoicing connect, and design changes that improve the whole chain rather than one step.
• Data & Analytics Discipline — turn ServiceTrade data into clear reporting, operational insight, and measurable action.
• Bias for Action — pilot, measure, and iterate quickly; a 70% solution in place this month beats a perfect one next quarter.
• Collaborative Influence — earn adoption from field, branch, and support teams by building practical solutions that make the work easier and more consistent.
• Continuous Improvement Mindset — identify waste and variation, test practical improvements, train to the standard, and audit adoption.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Operations Execution & Service Delivery

• Improve the end-to-end fire and life safety service workflow — from inspection and deficiency capture through quoting, scheduling, execution, close-out, and invoicing.
• Monitor daily operational throughput: open work orders, unscheduled work, technician utilization, first-time fix, and job aging; intervene before backlogs build.
• Partner with scheduling and dispatch to improve technician routing, job duration accuracy, and same-day/emergency response.
• Drive compliance discipline — ensure inspections are completed on schedule, deficiencies are documented correctly, and reports and certificates are delivered to customers on time.
• Identify and resolve the root causes of rework, missed appointments, incomplete job documentation, and delayed invoicing.
• Partner across field, inspections, inside sales, estimating, accounting, and branch leadership to resolve cross-functional operational issues.

Continuous Improvement

• Map current-state processes, quantify gaps with operational data, and prioritize improvements by impact on safety, compliance, margin, customer experience, and adoption.
• Design and document standard operating procedures (SOPs), checklists, and job aids so the work is repeatable across technicians and branches.
• Run structured problem-solving — root cause analysis, standardization, and before/after measurement — and report the realized result, not just the change.
• Train and coach field and office teams on new processes, then audit adherence and close the gaps you find.

Project Management

• Own operational projects end to end — scope, plan, schedule, stakeholders, risks, post go-live — with clear milestones and a defined definition of done.
• Lead system rollouts, process launches, new-service-line stand-ups, and branch integrations, coordinating the field, office, and vendor resources required.
• Keep stakeholders aligned on decisions, risks, next steps, and blockers, with recommended paths forward.
• Close every project with documented training, an owner for the ongoing process, and a measured outcome against the original business case.

ServiceTrade System Ownership

• Act as the internal subject-matter expert and administrator for ServiceTrade — configuration, service lines, job and deficiency templates, asset records, user setup, and permissions.
• Build and maintain ServiceTrade workflows, forms, and inspection templates that produce accurate, code-referenced deficiency data at the source.
• Improve data quality and hygiene: asset and location records, job coding, deficiency severity, technician time entry, and invoicing accuracy.

Data Analytics, Reporting & Insights

• Build and maintain dashboards and recurring reports using ServiceTrade and related data sources to track throughput, utilization, compliance, cycle time, rework, backlog, margin impact, and process adoption.
• Deliver a weekly operations review to leadership: what moved, what didn't, and the specific actions underway.
• Translate data into recommendations for capacity, process changes, ServiceTrade configuration, training, and tooling.

Multi-Site Scope & Travel

• Travel regularly across Altus branches and customer sites to observe field work, validate standards, and gather firsthand input before changing processes.
• Support branch-level rollouts on site during launch weeks, then follow up in person to confirm adoption held.
• Adjust travel cadence to the project portfolio; occasional overnight travel and after-hours or weekend support may be required during cutovers or emergency response events.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS Success is measured by throughput, compliance, data integrity, and the results of improvement projects.
KPI What It Measures On-Time Inspection Completion % of scheduled ITM inspections completed by their due date Deficiency-to-Quote Cycle Time Days from deficiency identified in the field to quote issued Technician Utilization Billable hours as a % of available field hours First-Time Fix Rate % of service calls resolved without a return visit Close-Out to Invoice Time Days from work completed to invoice issued ServiceTrade Data Integrity % of jobs with complete, accurate documentation and asset records Improvement Project Delivery % of committed projects delivered on schedule with measured results Targets for each KPI are determined by branch and executive leadership and reviewed weekly.
WHAT YOU BRING

• Strong data analytics capability, with the ability to turn ServiceTrade and operational data into dashboards, insights, and action
• Deep hands-on ServiceTrade experience, including configuration, templates, workflows, reporting, data integrity, and user training
• Required exposure to the fire and life safety industry, including ITM, service, repair, deficiency management, compliance documentation, or NFPA-driven workflows
• Organized and project-disciplined — can run several initiatives at once without dropping detail
• Process-focused and field-credible, with a track record of simplifying workflows, reducing variation, and sustaining adoption
• A strong communicator and trainer — verbal, written, and virtual
• Self-directed, accountable, and comfortable leading without formal authority

Required Skills

• 5+ years in service operations, field operations, continuous improvement, or operations project management; fire and life safety exposure required
• Extensive hands-on ServiceTrade experience required, including configuration, administration, templates, asset and job data, workflow design, reporting, data hygiene, user training, and integration
• Demonstrated continuous-improvement track record with measurable results (Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen, or equivalent practical experience; formal certification is an asset)
• Project management experience delivering cross-functional operational initiatives on schedule (PMP, CAPM, or equivalent is an asset)
• Working knowledge of ITM requirements, deficiency workflows, compliance documentation, and NFPA code across fire and life safety service lines
• Strong analytical and reporting skills — advanced Excel required; Power BI, SQL, data visualization, or similar BI tooling is an asset
• Proficiency with CRM and accounting systems and the Microsoft Office suite; comfortable owning system data and documentation
• Proven ability to train, coach, and drive adoption across field and office teams without direct reporting authority
• High School Diploma or equivalent required; associate or bachelor's degree in business, engineering, operations, or a related field preferred
• Willing and able to travel regularly across Altus branch and customer locations (approximately 70% of time, varying with the active project portfolio); valid driver's license and reliable transportation required