Manager, Learning & Development – Culinary (BOH)

Riviera Dining Group Inc•Miami, FL

16d

About The Position

The Learning & Development Manager for the back-of-house culinary division is responsible for designing, implementing, and sustaining best-in-class culinary training programs across the organization. This role ensures culinary teams are properly trained, assessed, and supported with the tools and resources required to deliver consistent execution, operational excellence, and compliance with Department of Health and internal standards. This individual will lead culinary onboarding, support new restaurant opening training roadmaps, manage skill development programs, and maintain compliance and certification standards across multiple venues. The ideal candidate brings a strong culinary foundation paired with demonstrated experience in training program development within high-volume, luxury, hospitality environments. This role reports into the Sr. Manager- Learning & Development

Requirements

Minimum 8 years of experience leading a culinary corporate learning program in a high-growth environment restaurant industry with many hourly and salaried employees, with deep experience in developing and driving learning strategies.
Bachelor’s degree in culinary arts, or related field of study or any equivalent combination of education and/or experience is required.
Previous experience as a corporate, executive or senior level chef or Culinary instructor adept at high volume, diverse and luxury cuisines required.
Strong understanding of food safety standards, DOH compliance requirements, and culinary best practices
Working knowledge of a Learning Management System (LMS).
Proficiency working with a variety of multimedia training platforms and driving strategy behind instructional design, including creating engaging and interactive learning curriculums using industry standards such as ADDIE and needs analysis.
Ability to create captivating training curriculum materials, slide decks and workbook training materials with ease.
Excellent team facilitation and presentation skills (platform skills) a MUST!
Seasoned user of Microsoft office inclusive of Power Point, Excel, and Word.
Demonstrated success in fostering a learning culture that promotes engagement, retention, and career growth.
Strong ability to assess training effectiveness using data-drive metrics, feedback tools, and ROI analysis.
Experience leveraging learning tools, innovative digital tools, microlearning, and gamification to enhance learner engagement.
Deep understanding of front-and-back of house operations, brand standards, and luxury training.
Superior verbal and written communication skills.
Adept at working in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment with a task-driven focus.
Accustomed to serving as a Change Agent - highly adaptable, dependable with an entrepreneurial spirit.
Strong analytical and critical thinking skills to successfully troubleshoot and resolve unexpected roadblocks, barriers, and inquiries from internal and external clients.
Excellent relationship building capabilities with a keen ability to drive engagement.
Ability to work am, pm, holidays, weekends if there is a business necessity or venue opening requirement.

Nice To Haves

Certified Professional in Learning and Performance (CPLP) credential preferred.

Responsibilities

Create, update, and maintain culinary training programs, learning paths, and standard operating procedures aligned with brand standards.
Develop and deliver hands-on culinary training initiatives, including technique modules, recipe mastery, cooking method workshops, and station-specific skill development.
Create and manage annual culinary training calendar to support company-wide development priorities.
Directly coach and train culinary leadership to ensure learning consistency, accountability, and follow-through.
Conduct culinary assessments at scaling intervals to validate capabilities across kitchen teams and identify development gaps.
Build assessment frameworks and rubrics for skill evaluations, recipe execution, plating standards, and food safety compliance.
Provide reporting, feedback, and recommended training plans in partnership with HR, Culinary Leadership, and Operations.
Lead culinary training during new restaurant openings, including coordinating schedules, materials, culinary trainers, and performance evaluation checkpoints.
Oversee back-of-house new hire training and onboarding modules ensuring all culinary team members receive consistent immersion into culture, standards, safety, and execution expectations.
Create structured training timelines and role-specific training checklist compliance.
Full alignment with the Opening Critical Path, ensuring all BOH milestones are completed on schedule.
Task Force coordination, including scheduling, deployment, trainer expectations, and onsite leadership alignment during the opening phase.
Pre-opening BOH readiness audits, using detailed checklists to validate station setup, prep guides, food safety, equipment functionality, and consistency across all teams. (MAKING SURE THE TEAM IS TRAINED ON BOH SOPs)
Onsite support during Friends & Family and Opening Week, with daily recaps, immediate retraining where needed, and full stabilization support.
BOH + FOH integration for openings, ensuring timing, expo flow, pacing, communication, and allergy/safety protocols are fully aligned.
Participation in post-opening debriefs, delivering insights, identifying gaps, and recommending adjustments to the opening process and training roadmaps.
Develop and manage Department of Health compliance training programs, including food safety, sanitation standards, allergen awareness, and temperature control guidelines.
Partner with operations to ensure all culinary staff maintain necessary certifications and training records in compliance with regulatory requirements.
Conduct periodic kitchen compliance reviews to reinforce sanitation, SOP alignment, and safety behavior modeling.
Maintain accurate digital and onsite training materials, checklists, curriculum tools, and compliance tracking.
Support the development and use of an LMS platform for scheduling, learning records, and resource access.
Provide reporting and insights on training outcomes, assessments, certifications, and development progress.
In partnership with our Sr. Manager, Learning & Development, you will develop and lead Learning & Development initiatives that align with business goals, talent strategies, and meet all compliance requirements.
Drive engagement and development at all levels of the organization and foster an environment of continuous learning to encourage career growth and succession readiness in BOH functions.
Conduct comprehensive needs analyses on a continuous basis, recognize emerging patterns, and provide recommendations to address gaps and/or potential opportunities.
Partner closely with the HR Team, and senior culinary management team to monitor the pulse of organizational needs and learning opportunities across RDG and diverse functions to align with Performance Management and career growth.
Research and implement best practices in instructional technology, tools, and approaches.
Assist with orientation facilitation, performance management preparation and service training when necessary. Cross training in all areas of learning & development is essential.
Support the Chief People Officer, Sr. Learning & Development Manager & HR Team with additional/other HR duties or initiatives as necessary.