Chef Manager - School Cafeteria

**About Us** Variety FoodServices is a one stop solution for catering, micro markets, and vending clients across the State of Michigan. This 98\-year\-old family\-owned business believes our people are our greatest asset, and we are committed to building a culture that fosters growth, innovation, and collaboration. View our story at this link, https://youtu.be/9VUdEmJd7qU?si\=6Bu15Qx\-iSdowzmN, where brothers Ken \& Don Nowak, sons of founder Norman Nowak, share their stories and memories of our expansive history. **Position Overview** This role is perfect for a dynamic culinary professional who thrives in a leadership position, overseeing food service at a local school. As the Chef Manager, you will be responsible for managing the kitchen team, ensuring food safety standards, and delivering nutritious, appealing meals that meet dietary and nutritional guidelines. Your expertise in food production, menu planning, and team supervision will help foster a positive dining experience for students. **Essential Duties \& Responsibilities** * Lead daily culinary and kitchen operations, ensuring consistent execution, food quality, presentation, and customer satisfaction. * Oversee food production for daily service, special events, and catering functions. * Supervise, coach, and support culinary and support staff in accordance with company policies and applicable labor laws. * Maintain established recipes, menus, production standards, and culinary procedures while identifying opportunities for innovation and improvement. * Partner with nutrition, marketing, food service, and operational teams to support menu development and program initiatives. * Implement and maintain HACCP protocols and ensure compliance with all applicable local and state food safety and sanitation regulations. * Monitor food and labor costs, inventory, purchasing, waste, and production efficiency to support financial and operational goals. * Conduct regular quality, safety, sanitation, and operational audits and take corrective action when needed. * Recruit, train, coach, and develop team members while fostering a positive, professional, and high\-performance culinary culture. * Support accurate financial, operational, and performance reporting. * Partner with the Food Service Director, District Manager, and client stakeholders to ensure culinary operations align with organizational and client expectations. * Provide leadership and oversight for catering, special events, and other culinary initiatives. * Step into an established operation quickly and maintain continuity throughout the leave coverage period. * Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, participation, customer satisfaction, and the overall dining experience. * Perform additional duties and special projects as assigned. **Required Skills \& Competencies** * Proven ability to lead culinary operations and diverse teams in a fast\-paced environment. * Strong knowledge of food production, menu execution, purchasing, inventory, and cost control. * Thorough understanding of HACCP, food safety, sanitation, and applicable local and state regulations. * Strong leadership, coaching, and team\-development skills. * Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to build strong relationships with clients, customers, and team members. * Ability to quickly assess an operation, prioritize needs, and confidently lead an established team. * Strong organizational skills with the ability to multitask and adapt to changing priorities. * Proficiency with Microsoft Office and applicable foodservice/kitchen management systems. **Preferred Qualifications** * Experience in high\-volume catering, corporate dining, institutional foodservice, K\-12, healthcare, or other contract foodservice environments. * Experience managing or supporting large\-scale foodservice operations and budgets. * Familiarity with point\-of\-sale (POS) systems and foodservice technology. * Experience with menu planning, culinary innovation, and strategies that increase customer participation and engagement. * Experience working in a temporary, interim, relief, or multi\-site culinary leadership capacity. Benefits: * 401(k) * 401(k) matching * Dental insurance * Health insurance * Paid time off * Referral program * Retirement plan * Tuition reimbursement * Vision insurance Application Question(s): * What is your desired annual salary? * Are you willing to complete the required fingerprint/background check required to work in a school setting? * Please describe how your prior experience and qualifications relate to this Chef Manager position. Work Location: In person