General Manager

Compass Group; Greater London; On-site; GBP 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading food service provider in Greater London is seeking a General Manager to oversee a single-site operation. The successful candidate will lead and inspire teams, ensuring outstanding customer experience and strong commercial performance. This role involves managing financial performance, client relationships, and compliance with standards. The ideal candidate will have proven leadership experience, financial acumen, and the ability to foster a high-performance culture. Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package offered.

Benefits

Free meals on duty

Contributory pension scheme

Career development opportunities

Healthcare benefits

Exclusive travel discounts

Supermarket savings

Cashback rewards

Free wellness classes

Qualifications

• Proven experience as a General Manager or senior site leader.
• Commercially astute with strong financial and operational capability.
• Confident managing budgets, forecasts, and performance targets.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing management and operational team.
• Ensure compliance with legal, company, and client standards.
• Take ownership of the site P&L, delivering agreed financial targets.
• Build lasting relationships with clients and stakeholders.
• Drive a culture of continuous improvement across the contract.

Skills

Leadership

Financial Acumen

Operational Excellence

Customer Service

Team Development

Job description

We recognise and reward great leadership. Alongside a competitive salary, you\'ll benefit from a comprehensive package that includes:

• Monday to Friday working - days only (no evenings or weekends)

• Free meals on duty

• Contributory pension scheme

• Career development through Career Pathways and MyLearning

• Quick access for you and your immediate family to a Digital GP and wider healthcare benefits

• Exclusive travel discounts with TUI, Expedia, Booking.com and more

• Supermarket savings at Tesco, Sainsbury\'s, Morrisons and others

• Up to 44% off cinema tickets

• Cashback rewards on everyday spending

• Free wellness, mindfulness and fitness classes

• Discounts and offers you can share with friends and family

The Role

As General Manager, you will have full responsibility for the successful delivery of this single-site operation. You\'ll lead, inspire and develop your management and operational teams, ensuring outstanding customer experience, strong commercial performance and full compliance with all contractual, company and statutory requirements.

You will be accountable for financial performance, client relationships and operational excellence, ensuring everything you do aligns with the Compass vision, values and business strategy.

Key Responsibilities

• Leadership & People Development

  • Lead and develop a high-performing on-site management and operational team

  • Recruit, retain and grow great people, building strong succession and development plans

  • Create a positive, inclusive and high-engagement culture

  • Manage performance effectively, including appraisals, labour planning and employee relations

  • Ensure labour structures and resources are fit for purpose and commercially effective

• Health, Safety & Compliance

  • Champion a strong Health & Safety culture across the site

  • Ensure a safe environment for customers, colleagues and visitors

  • Maintain full compliance with legal, company and client standards at all times

• Commercial & Financial Performance

  • Take full ownership of the site P&L, delivering agreed financial targets

  • Manage budgets, forecasts and cost controls effectively

  • Identify and implement opportunities to improve sales, margin and efficiency

  • Support Compass Foodbuy initiatives, ensuring supplier compliance and value

• Client & Stakeholder Management

  • Act as the senior point of contact for the client and key stakeholders

  • Build trusted, long-term relationships based on service excellence and transparency

  • Review and act on client feedback and satisfaction surveys

  • Ensure contractual compliance while consistently exceeding expectations

• Customer Experience & Service Excellence

  • Ensure food and service offers are fit for purpose, fully costed and delivered to specification

  • Drive consistency, quality and innovation across food and service standards

  • Capture and act on customer feedback to support continuous improvement and growth

• Strategy & Continuous Improvement

  • Deliver site-level strategy aligned to wider Compass objectives

  • Embed central brand, service and operational initiatives

  • Drive a culture of continuous improvement across the contract

Who You Are

• Proven experience as a General Manager or senior site leader

• Commercially astute with strong financial and operational capability

• Confident managing budgets, forecasts and performance targets

• A visible, engaging leader who develops people and drives results

• Organised, adaptable and comfortable working in a fast-paced environment

About Us

As part of Compass you\'ll help to feed people, fuel progress and forge connections in around 6,000 venues. Join us to grow your career with the industry leader, and get competitive pay, great perks and unrivalled opportunities for learning and development, at one of the UK\'s biggest businesses.

Job Reference: com/3001/41472001/52787957/SU #Lodestone House

Compass Group UK&I is committed to fostering an environment where every individual can truly be themselves at work and has equal opportunities to advance in their careers. We strive to build a culture that respects and celebrates the unique talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and abilities of all our team members. We want our colleagues to feel valued, empowered to reach their full potential, and to thrive - because diversity is our strength!