Who We Are

At SMS Assist, we’re not just in the business of fixing properties—we’re fixing an entire industry. Typically, facilities maintenance is tough work—both in the nature of the job (plumbing, HVAC, snow removal) and the lack of clarity throughout the experience. We decided a better way wasn’t only possible, but essential. Through our award-winning technology platform, built and powered by SMSers, we connect local contractors to our customers and help manage an experience that surpasses expectations.

Recognized on Forbes’ Cloud 100 list, Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500, Chicago Crain’s Top Tech Employers, and more, SMS Assist manages more than 186,000 properties where people live and work. Our customers’ livelihoods are in our hands—think a restaurant manager whose only fryer goes down on a busy Friday night or a family in Florida without power after a hurricane. We work across the industries that make up your community, including retail, food service, banking, residential, and more, and we help them find the right provider in our network (we call them Affiliates) in more than 45 trades. 

We’re innovators, disruptors, and out-of-the-box thinkers. We set each other up for success in the office and for the perfect spike on the volleyball court during an intramural game. We’re community volunteers, karaoke partners, and lifelong friends. We’re passionate about the people we serve, and we give our all because we care. We want to make every property better, and we want your help to make it happen.

Job Summary

The Regional Director (RD) is responsible for the continuous improvement of the affiliate (vendor) network by managing a team tasked with creating and developing strong relationships with affiliates and leveraging those relationships to drive performance output.

A successful RD makes affiliate market managers and affiliates better. To accomplish this, the RD acts as a mentor to AMMs and equips them with the resources to empower the vendor base. Tools utilized by the RD to influence affiliate performance include hands on training, creation and distribution of content, management of the dispatch plan to award work, performance metric delivery and coaching, and feedback collection to drive product and process improvements.

The RD works with senior department leadership and internal stakeholders to position the team and affiliates for success.

Responsibilities
 

• Serve as the SMS Assist escalation point of contact for business relationships with affiliates and maintain a working knowledge of affiliates' business, priorities, needs, and capabilities such as services performed, locations, capacity, and pricing.
• Regular affiliate market manager touchpoints including performance metric review, education on the importance of performance and metrics, communication of the consequences and opportunities associated with performance, sharing best practices, managing performance improvement plans, ensuring compliance with national programs and pricing.
• Accountable for the performance metrics of affiliates and the depth and quality of the regional affiliate network.
• Own and manage the dispatch plan including plan effectiveness, opportunities for affiliate improvement, distribution of work across the region balanced with overall affiliate capacity and avoidance of affiliate-related bottlenecks in the workflow.
• Identify sourcing needs and work with the sourcing team to onboard high potential prospective affiliates to satisfy market needs.
• Ensure newly sourced Affiliates are aware of performance expectations and are equipped to perform services successfully. Provide oversight and coaching to affiliates during initial work orders.
• Communicate the status of the affiliate network market performance and top affiliates by trade to senior department leadership, client account teams and regional customer leadership.
• Manage high-priority inbound escalations tied to affiliates.
• Frequent visits to affiliate and client offices to improve market performance, address challenges, and action plan development.
• Serve as the 'voice of the affiliate' within SMS by providing feedback to improve the affiliate experience (technology, operations, billing, compliance, etc.) and communicate internal feedback concisely to the vendor base

Professional Skills
 

• Customer Service - EXPERT
• Verbal Communication - ADVANCED
• Written Communication - ADVANCED
• Teamwork – EXPERT
• Relationships – EXPERT
• Learning Agility - ADVANCED
• Problem Solving – ADVANCED
• Prioritization - ADVANCED

Role Specific
 

• Maintenance or property management knowledge required
• Industry trade knowledge: HVAC, electrical, plumbing, general maintenance required
• Strong leadership skills with experience managing third party vendors
• Self-directed and motivated with the ability to succeed working remotely
• Demonstrated analytical skills and an ability to make timely decisions in a logical, effective manner
• Extensive travel within assigned regions required
• Must be available outside of business hours via phone or email
• Computer skills: Basic computer skills; proficient with Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) required
   

Minimum Qualifications
 

• 5+ years of experience in vendor management, property maintenance or management, or construction required; previous experience in a customer service environment preferred
• Associates or Undergraduate degree preferred or equivalent experience