The Maintenance Manager at St Columba’s plays a very significant role in the establishment. His responsibility is to ensure that the school infrastructure and campus are conducive for the educational purposes of the school. To help him in this regard, he animates the team of Grade IV staff, who work under his guidance.
The Maintenance Manager, himself is guided in his work by the Principal and the School Executive Committee, with who he will have daily and weekly meetings respectively.
The Maintenance Manager is expected to be conversant in English and Hindi.
As he has important supervisory roles, it is preferable that the Maintenance Manager be at least 45 years of age.
a. Allotment of duties for all Grade IV staff on campus
The school has presently 51 number of associate workers, some who are employed by the school and others who are employed through agencies. The Maintenance Manager’s role is to ensure that all are given an equitable amount of work, each day, covering all the requirements of the school. It is his duty to supervise the work and ensure that it is done well. He is also to ensure that all material given to the workers is used carefully.
He is in charge of all equipment used by the workers and must keep an inventory of all items. This inventory will be checked from time to time by the Bursar and / or Principal.
b. Adjustment of duties of Grade IV staff
Since some of the associate staff may, occasionally, be on leave, duties assigned to the workers will be flexible and it is expected that workers will fill in for each other.
It is expected that the Maintenance Manager, in the distribution of duties, keeps in mind the absence of workers due to leave and accordingly assign duties. The number of Grade IV staff have been assigned taken into account the work to be done each day and the leave requirements of the workers.
c. Maintaining Records of Attendance and Leave for Grade IV staff
It is the Maintenance Manager’s duty to ensure that the attendance registers or systems for all the Grade IV staff are recorded and well maintained.
It is his responsibility to give such details as may be required by the Accounts office of the school from time to time.
All leave requests from the Grade IV members of the staff must be routed through him to the Principal for sanction.
Given his supervisory role, it is expected that the Maintenance Manager arrives by 6.30am and leaves by 4.30pm. His breaks during this work day will be taken in discussion with the Principal.
a. Campus Ambience, utility & Cleanliness
Creating a conducive educational ambience in the school is a key role of the Maintenance Manager. The campus should be inviting and child and educationally friendly. The Maintenance Manager anticipates the needs of the school and makes arrangements to ensure that facilities can be used and be made ready for the next event.
Having dustbins strategically placed and cleaned at significant times during the day is vital.
Making sure that the school buildings are regularly cleaned (after the start of school, after each break and at the end of school. On arrival the Manager is expected to make a tour of the school and ensure that school is suitably prepared to receive all stakeholders. Students toilets must be cleaned after the commencement of classes, after each break and at the end of school).
For all school occasions / if the school facilities have been offered to other organisations for use, the Manager is to ensure that all preparations for these are made and that the school presents itself in the best possible manner.
b. All Repair & Maintenance Works
The Maintenance Manager is primarily responsible for the repair and maintenance of the entire campus. In order to do so the Maintenance Manager must have an in-depth knowledge of the sewage, water & electrical lines and connections and disaster management infrastructure of the school. The Manager must regularly check these systems and ensure that they are working well.
The Manager must have the required contact details of Government / Maintenance personnel to be contacted in an emergency. The Manager is expected to respond to a critical situation, with the help of his team and others with the utmost speed.
Thus, the Manager is required to know the workers under his care well and ensure that they are trained in meeting various maintenance and contingency requirements as required.
The Manager is to maintain a maintenance register in each section building and in the Principal’s office and ensure that these are checked daily, works initiated, the register maintained, and that he communicates with the respective Section Head / Principal regarding the same.
The Manager is responsible for all tools owned by the school. The Manager must maintain a log of tools being given to workers and of their return.
The Manager is responsible for ensuring that a stock of materials which might be needed in a contingency is ordered for and kept by the Stores & Purchases Manager. While giving orders for materials, the Maintenance Manager is to be very specific regarding details of the items. He must check that the items bought are as per the requirements. The Maintenance Manager must give feedback to the Stores & Purchases Manager regarding the quality of items.
c. Supervision of Maintenance works outsourced to contractors
On occasion, work will need to be assigned (through the Principal only) to a contractor. It is the responsibility of the Maintenance Manager to get at least three independent quotations from contractors and present the same to the Principal for his decision. The Maintenance Manager will supervise the work and ensure that the work is done as per specifications and quality.
The Maintenance Manager will be responsible for ensuring that the Contractor has been brief as to the Child Protection Policy of the school and that all workers of the contractor wear identity cards provided by the school when they are on campus.
d. Financial responsibilities
It is expected that the Maintenance Manager be a person above reproach in financial matters. As all his dealings involve finance, the Maintenance Manager is to keep in mind that he carries the reputation of the institution on his shoulders. Price concessions etc, should always be in favour of the school, keeping in mind that the school is able to pass on the price benefits in its assistance to needy students.
Given the nature of his work, the Maintenance Manager must have the necessary technical skills to pass on to the workers under his charge and to understand the requirements of a particular situation.
To this end, an ITI or other technical training background would be preferable
The Maintenance Manager’s responsibilities require constant interaction with a host of persons within the school community (Principal, Headmistresses / Administrator, Teachers and other Administrative Staff and the associate staff). Because the school is run by a Catholic Religious order, the Maintenance Manager will be interacting with the members of the Province Leadership team and the Ministries Office of the Congregation of Christian Brothers and Educational personnel from other institutions. With the seat of the Catholic Archbishop, Central office of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India and the Parish Church just alongside the school, he will have interaction with various persons related to these organisations. The School premises is used by various organisations in keeping with the educational purpose of the school, thus he will be relating to many such persons. It is thus essential that the Maintenance Manager have good relational skills in dealing with all these persons.
Of daily significance is his relations:-
With whom he will interact with closely and with whom he will carry out his duties successfully. A sense of team work, a respect for each person and their unique contribution to the school network will go a long way ensuring that a positive atmosphere, yet industrious atmosphere prevails in the school at all times.
The Maintenance Manager is aware of the Protection Policy of the school and abides by the policy.
It is also his responsibility to ensure that all the workers under his supervision, contractors and their workers, etc. are also aware of the policy.
He ensures that all persons engaged in the school sign an undertaking (after the same has been explained to them) that they will abide by the school’s child protection code.
