Industry veteran Fadi Chakbazof appointed president and chief operating officer for U.S. transit; Ryan Adams to assume new chief performance officer role 

 

BOSTON – April 15, 2025 – Keolis in North America (Keolis) today announced strategic enhancements to the regional executive leadership team with Fadi Chakbazof joining as the new president and chief operating officer for U.S. transit and Ryan Adams appointed to a newly created chief performance officer role. Both Adams and Chakbazof will report directly to Brad Thomas, regional president and CEO, and will sit on the Keolis North America executive committee.  

 

Chakbazof has a strong track record of driving strategic growth, improving customer service, and fostering a culture of trust and safety. His leadership will further strengthen the company’s growth trajectory. He brings 25 years of industry experience, having held executive roles at MV Transportation, First Transit and First Student. He oversaw a $500 million operations portfolio, led more than 5,000 employees, and managed 60 contracts.  

 

Adams most recently served as the executive vice president of market development and innovation for Keolis in North America. During Adams’ leadership of the business development function, Keolis grew the size of the U.S. transit portfolio from $128.5M in annual revenue to $560M, a 336% increase. All this growth was organic. Adams has been with Keolis since 2013 and has held business development and operational leadership roles. He also implemented business intelligence systems designed to deliver actionable insights into the company’s operating performance and to facilitate continuous improvement in safety, maintenance, and operational efficiency.  

 

To continue the aggressive growth trajectory for Keolis in the United States, today Keolis announced that Sandi Hill will assume a new role leading business development for U.S. transit, reporting to Chakbazof. Hill’s extensive relationships and expertise in the U.S. market region is invaluable and her partnership with Chakbazof will deliver strategic value for new and potential clients as Keolis expands.

 

In addition, today Keolis appoints Francis Julien into an expanded role providing strategic operational leadership to all contracts in Keolis’ U.S. transit portfolio as the vice president of operations. This position will report to the president and COO for U.S. transit. Most recently, Julien served as the regional vice president for the eastern region. He has held several positions at Keolis including VP of commercial development, general manager and regional vice president of operations, and assistant director of operations. He also served as the deputy CEO for the RTC of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas.  

 

“Fadi has a reputation as an effective operations leader with a focus on safety performance, customer satisfaction, and strong stakeholder relations. His innovative approach to operations will help Keolis deliver on our growth ambitions and build an even stronger foundation with our clients.” said Brad Thomas, Keolis North America president and CEO. “Ryan’s new role as chief performance officer will add significant value to our local management teams and our clients. His reputation as a data-driven leader with an unmatched understanding of how key data inputs can create strategic value for our stakeholders is an exciting evolution for Keolis.”