Focus on Desired Outcomes: Successful organizations prioritize a limited set of outcomes that truly matter over an abundance of attention-grabbing actions.
Prioritize Excellence: No organization excels in every area. Just as Ritz Carlton offers luxury and unparalleled service while Walmart focuses on affordability, public transit agencies trying to be "great" at everything dilutes effectiveness.
Cultivate Ownership:Inspiring employees to take ownership of their work leads to sustainable performance, far more than merely enforcing a culture of accountability. When staff feel personally invested in their contributions, the organizational results shine.
Sharing a ‘Cult of Personality’
The public and private sectors share a "cult of personality" surrounding high-profile executives. Executives in all sectors, who have an interest in the limelight, can certainly create it for a period of time.
However, again, similarly, in all sectors, it is often those senior executives whose names may not be in bright lights who bring the greatest return to their investors.
We all know Tim Cook from Apple, Jamie Dimon from Chase, and, of course, Jeff Bezos from Amazon. But do you know John Martin, "the quiet leader" as his colleagues nicknamed him, who was the CEO of Gilead Sciences, provided his investors with a 2,054% return on their investment? Certainly, this would capture the far more famous Warren Buffet's attention.
Of course, Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, whose stock has escalated 33.048% over the last 25 years, is every bit the household name as Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, whose stock is up less than half that of Nvidia.
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Musk is desired on every conference stage across the globe, while Huang is desired by every savvy investor for serving his customers. To Huang, serving the customer and investor matters. Musk is famous.
The measurable experience of the customer should always be made famous, before the leader themselves.
Photo: Canva
Committing to Performance
The point is some executives choose to be at the podium. While others are committed to performance.
Jim Collins, author of From Good to Great and Great by Choice, has a metaphor for this phenomenon: a "show horse" or a "plow horse."
In the realm of public transit, leaders at organizations like VIA in San Antonio exemplify a customer-centric approach. Rarely seen on stage, their leaders focus on customer satisfaction, earning an impressive Net Promoter Score (NPS) score of 72, matching that of Apple, highlighting a commitment to quality service.
Similarly, the executives at Albany, N.Y.’s public transportation system emphasize results over name recognition, consistently reporting high levels of customer satisfaction, measurable community value and employee engagement. Results first. Microphone last.
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Seeing Real Results
While some nationally embrace the yesteryear language of "ridership recovery," the executives in Toledo, Ohio, have fewer than 3% of people in the community riding their buses, while an astounding 91% of those same community members find value in the public transportation system — even though they don't use it.
For their "investors" the return was never about ridership. So, the agency doesn't talk about it. Rather, they are focused on what matters to customer and community. Basic blocking and tackling. No need for shiny and loud.
You will note that I didn't use the names of these agency CEOs. Perhaps you don't even know them. That's precisely the point. These "plow horses" are producing results that are worth showing. They aren't about being podiums. They're about results. Outcomes that their customers and communities care deeply about.
These leaders may not be the "Elon Musk" of the transit industry, but they embody the spirit of "Jensen Huang," achieving significant results while avoiding the limelight. Their customers and investors are the beneficiaries of such an approach.
The lesson for leaders in public transportation is to be just as interested in the experience of the customers and the community that are served by an organization as the executives who lead that organization.
Photo: Canva
Key Takeaways for Public Transit Leaders
Some key takeaways for public transit leaders, include:
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Spotlight Famous: The executives on stage aren't always the ones performing at the highest level. They may have lots of projects. But are those projects bringing the greatest value to both customers and investors? Look for leaders who talk passionately about the results of their actions versus simply their actions. Look for the "plow horse." They are likely in the audience.
Prioritize Customer and Community Value: Like Martin and Huang, focus on achieving results that benefit customers and the community. Being known for outcomes rather than fame drives meaningful change in public transportation.
Foster a Culture of Empowerment: Encourage a workplace culture where employees are empowered to contribute ideas and solutions. When team members at all levels understand how their contribution drives the organization’s success, magic can happen.
The lesson for leaders in public transportation is to be just as interested in the experience of the customers and the community that are served by an organization as the executives who lead that organization.
Public transportation is a service industry. Whether ice cream, coffee, or mobility, transit provides a service — a public service. And the measurable experience of the customer should always be made famous, before the leader themselves.
The next time you see a famous personality at the podium, listen if you hear them share their NPS score or a laundry list of projects.
Polis comprises cities and regions, as well as corporate partners, from across Europe, promoting the development and implementation of sustainable mobility. This year’s event had over a thousand attendees across various policy forums and an exhibition.
Across North America and beyond, transit agency officials are contending with a perfect storm of operational headaches and strategic challenges that hamper daily service and long-term progress.
Simply incentivizing electrification is not enough to make a meaningful impact; we must shift our focus toward prioritizing public transportation and infrastructure.
For many years, the narrative surrounding public transit improvements has been heavily weighted toward environmental gains and carbon reduction. While these are undeniably crucial long-term benefits, the immediate focus of this new funding environment is firmly on demonstrable system efficiencies and a clear return on investment.
The notion of agencies being over- or underfunded, I argued, doesn’t hold up. If an agency wants to turn up the heat — to grow beyond the status quo — it must demonstrate measurable value.
Some agencies might suggest they are funded in the public transportation space. Some complain that they are funded too little. I have never heard a public transportation executive proclaim that they are funded too much. And if no public agencies are funded too much, then, by definition, none are funded too little. To steal from Goldilocks’ thinking, they are all funded just right.
From East Asia to Europe, more than 400 exhibitors and 70 sessions tackled global mobility challenges — highlighting AI, automation, and urban transit equity in the race toward a carbon-free future.
A closer look at ridership trends, demographic shifts, and the broader impacts of service reductions reveals why maintaining, and even improving, bus service levels should be a top priority in 2025.
