Stewart Mader uses his technology, finance, and transit experience to maximize mobility that builds health, economic, and climate resilience in our communities. He works at the nexus of policy and customer experience at NJ Transit, and helped establish PATH Riders Council to guide enhancements for 80 million annual riders. The Wall Street Journal, New York Daily News, USA Today Network, Mobility Lab, New Jersey Future and other forums have created a wide audience for Stewart‘s transit policy ideas. Stewart’s social media followers recognize his New York & New Jersey Subway Map, Transit Standards, and Pandemic Best Practices: Changing Transit’s Future as high-value insight to help activate customers to advocate for investment in equitable and reliable mobility.
Stewart worked as a senior executive in Silicon Valley and Wall Street. As Global Head of Digital Strategy, Stewart streamlined customer experience at Fitch Ratings to accelerate its market intelligence and e-learning businesses. He transformed CFA Institute’s widely-recognized CFA Program with a digital-first learning approach, and built a social media presence named #1 in finance by Association Trends. CQ Roll Call named @CFAInstitute one of 100 Association Twitter Handles You Should Follow. Stewart wrote the book Wikipatterns drawing on his experience as Chief Evangelist for Atlassian, and as a digital strategy consultant to global organizations including Airbus, ICANN, SAP, Thales, and World Bank-International Finance Corporation.
Stewart led instructional design at Brown University, Emerson College, Long Island University, and University of Hartford. PBS stations aired “Skysight” and “Seeing the Scientific Light”, two NASA Space Grant-funded films he wrote, directed, and edited. Stewart earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, Magna Cum Laude from University of Hartford, a Master of Science in Curriculum Development and Instructional Technology from University at Albany, and a certificate in Jurisdictional Crisis Incident Management from Texas A&M Engineering Extension (TEEX).
“Every time I talk with Stewart Mader, I learn a new way of thinking about transportation and mobility. He sheds old myths and looks at new realities. He quickly spots issues and works creatively to resolve them.” -Colleague
“Stewart is hands down one of the best managers I’ve worked for. As both a mentor and an advocate for his team members, Stewart maintains a high level of engagement with each project, while somehow never micromanaging the details.” -Colleague
“Stewart approaches every project with exponential neurons firing and a great sense of humor.” – Colleague
“For 45 minutes he captivated the audience…We only received positive reviews on his engaging presentation style and in-depth knowledge.” -Client
“Stewart took time literally in the middle of a cross-country move to speak to our newly-formed team. He provided tons of insights and examples from his experience, and team members are still talking about the nuggets they took away.” -Client
Thinking Ahead
- E-ZPass Streamlines Driving. Could it do the Same for Transit? – Mobility Lab, 2019
- Building Bright Signals for the Future of Transit – New York Daily News, 2019
- Simplify Things for Customers: A Transit Vision for the Tri-State Region – USA TODAY Network, 2018
- PATH to Penn Station: Restoring an Underground Passage to Streamline Tri-State Transit – 2018
- Microtransit: How Private Residential Shuttles Can Become Hyperlocal Public Transit – 2017
- Hudson Place: A New Public Plaza at Hoboken Terminal – 2017
- Towers Should Help Pay for Transit – Wall Street Journal, 2016
- NYC Subway Maps Have a Long History of Including Regional Transit – 2015
Case Studies
- Transforming Customer Experience to Strengthen Public Support for Transit – 2020
- Chicago Transit’s Digital Redesign Offers Blueprint for Transforming Customer Experience – Mobility Lab, 2018
- Seamless Subway Rides Replace Shuttle Buses, Thanks to Port Authority, MTA Collaboration – Mobility Lab, 2018
- Verkehrsverbund: How Germany Standardizes Transit Customer Experience – Mobility Lab, 2018
- PATH Riders Council: Building a Model for Transit Agency & Customer Collaboration – 2017
👩💻 Connecting with Customers
“Grazie!” I said to Renato Geremicca (right) for inviting me to keynote the international Forum Risorse Umane conference in Milan, where I shared how I led the global digital transformation at Fitch Ratings.
During a simulated emergency press conference at Texas A&M Engineering Extension (TEEX), I performed the role of Public Information Officer and fielded questions at 02:30.
“I want you to hear directly from me,” I said to NJ Transit customers in the nation’s largest media market, embodying FEMA’s best practices for incident management. My explanation of the infrastructure factors that contributed to a service disruption drove media coverage, including an article with the headline Sorry for Monday’s Massive Delays; Now Get Us New Hudson Tunnel.
As NJ Transit’s customer advocate, I highlighted how crews prepare to keep service running safely during winter storms – and urged customers to ask their municipalities to clear snow from locally-owned bus stops.
To gather customers’ views on the New York & New Jersey Subway Map, I interviewed riders at the Fulton Street subway station in Manhattan.
Addressing the 11-member Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of NY & NJ, I described key transit improvements delivered in collaboration with PATH staff during my first year as chair of the PATH Riders Council.