Many people who work at Metro Transit take on new responsibilities and roles throughout their careers. Career Tracks highlights the paths employees have taken to their latest assignment and where they see themselves going next.
How did you begin your career with Metro Transit and what do you do?
I spent 16 years working for the London Underground as a customer service assistant, station supervisor, and duty manager. I met my now-wife, who is from Burnsville, at a wedding in 2006 and after living together in London we moved back to Minnesota in 2017 to start our family. I joined Meto Transit in June 2020 and now handle all the training for track and traction power maintainers, as well as the safety training for vendors and contractors who work on light rail.
What steps did you take to achieve your career goals?
I really enjoyed learning new things and meeting people through the training I attended, so I always felt training was the career path I wanted to take. While in London, I earned a qualification in competence assurance management, so was able to ensure my employees knew what they’re doing. To begin with, there were only a handful of us who had that training, so it kept me extremely busy. Apart from that, it was all self-taught.
When I moved to Minnesota, I worked as a customer service supervisor for Ecolab in downtown St. Paul. Even there, I liked the onboarding process, training new employees, and keeping an eye on them. As it was a lot of on-the-job training there, I relied on my experience from my previous roles to help my team be successful.
What career advice would you like to share with others?
You have to have a passion for it. I don’t think it can be a case of, “Oh, I think I’d like it, so I’ll give it a try.” Another thing is being open and honest and having a good time while you’re doing it. Work hard and take it seriously but try and have fun at the same time.
Our buses, trains, and railways need you!
Become a vehicle technician who works on buses, light rail, or commuter rail vehicles or a maintenance of way technician for our tracks and railway systems. Learn more and apply at metrotransit.org/mechanic-hiring