Sous Chef, Operations

gategroup•Chantilly, VA

13d•$75,000 - $80,000

About The Position

The Sous Chef, Operations assists the Executive Sous Chef or Executive Chef for the unit in designing and preparing meals for airline customers. The role provides culinary expertise and leadership, promotes quality food services, ensures food safety and sanitation requirements are followed, and drives food production with the assistance of Food Supervisors. The position oversees the quality, quantity, and consistency of hot and/or cold kitchen production. It coordinates staffing, production planning, and food supplies, and trains employees on preparation and work procedures. The Sous Chef also supports employee coaching, retention, scheduling, labor compliance, and adherence to company policies and required training. This is a full-time, exempt position with travel of up to 25%.

Requirements

Minimum 1–3 years of experience as a Chef and/or Sous Chef.
Minimum 7 years of experience as a cook.
Ability to cook meals according to detailed specifications.
Ability to work in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
Strong leadership skills and ability to successfully manage a team of cooks.
Ability to train others.
Ability to give employees positive and negative feedback on a daily basis.
Excellent time-management skills and ability to handle multiple tasks while maintaining focus on priorities.
Strong organizational, analytical, communication, and leadership skills.
Ability to make operational changes to improve the work environment and unit performance.
Basic computer skills.
Excellent written and oral communication skills.
Ability to stand, bend, lift, and move intermittently during shifts of 10 or more hours.
Ability to lift, push, pull, and move products, equipment, and supplies weighing more than 25 pounds.

Nice To Haves

Associate degree in Culinary Arts or a Culinary Arts certification.
Previous supervisory experience in a high-volume, manufacturing, food production, restaurant, or catering environment.
In-flight catering experience or experience in a high-volume food service environment.
Current or previous labor relations experience.
Experience with menu design.
Working knowledge of Microsoft Office products.
ServSafe certification.
Bilingual Spanish skills.

Responsibilities

Ensure food specifications and labor objectives meet company and customer requirements.
Supervise department quality and quantity; ensure items are produced and dated to specification and applicable coding and governmental requirements are followed, including FDA, USDA, and HACCP regulations.
Track attendance, prepare paperwork, organize each shift, and assign employees to sections to optimize schedules.
Order raw materials from the storeroom and produce additional meals at short notice as needed.
Prepare daily production sheets, assign employee tasks, and direct production using the sheets and passenger counts.
Account for food items after requisitioning them from the storeroom.
Train and provide recurrent training to employees on proper preparation and work procedures.
Ensure safety procedures are followed and maintain cleanliness throughout shifts.
Manage daily hot and/or cold kitchen production for quality and consistency.
Ensure compliance with company Wage & Hour policy, including employee rest and meal breaks and company processes.
Train and monitor employees to support productivity while minimizing labor and food expenses.
Monitor manpower planning and schedule employees.
Support employee retention and reduce turnover.
Coach and counsel employees and prepare corrective actions in compliance with applicable union or collective bargaining agreements.
Review employees in the chain of command for correct cost centers and job titles.
Verify union-represented employees’ pay rates against wage scales and seniority.
Complete required company training, including ServSafe, and comply with company policies, procedures, and processes.