Director of Dining Services

Pomona College; Claremont (CA); Vor Ort; USD 150.000 - 185.000; Vollzeit

Zusammenfassung

Pomona College is seeking a Director of Dining Services to lead a comprehensive, student‑centered dining program across multiple venues. You will shape distinctive dining identities, drive innovative concepts, and ensure sustainability and financial discipline.

You will manage staffing, purchasing, food costs, scheduling, safety, facilities, technology, and budgets with data‑driven decision making, while collaborating with students, faculty, and campus partners to elevate the dining experience.

Qualifikationen

• Bachelor’s degree required in hospitality/restaurant management, business, or related field.
• Minimum 5–7 years of leadership in large, multi‑unit dining or food service.
• Experience leading frontline teams and managing budgets, procurement, inventory, and reporting.
• Bilingual English and Spanish is highly preferred.

Aufgaben

• Provide clear direction to a large, diverse workforce in a collective bargaining environment.
• Recruit, onboard, coach, and develop leaders and staff across culinary, service, catering, admin, and support functions.
• Build strong relationships with employees and set standards for performance, conduct, attendance, communication, and service.
• Coordinate staffing plans and schedules that align with service needs and labor obligations.
• Plan and lead a comprehensive meal program across dining, retail, cafés, catering, and events.
• Monitor food quality, service, sanitation, merchandising, and equipment conditions.
• Oversee menu development and program design addressing diverse tastes and dietary needs.
• Develop and implement budgets, cost controls, inventory, and reporting; ensure financial performance.

Kenntnisse

People leadership

Communication

Problem-solving

Project management

Ethics and integrity

Ausbildung

Bachelor’s degree in hospitality or restaurant management, business, or a related field

Jobbeschreibung

Director of Dining Services

Salary Range: $150-$185k

The Director will lead a thoughtful examination of how the College’s dining venues can complement rather than duplicate one another. Possibilities could include distinctive culinary identities for each dining hall; expanded exhibition, made‑to‑order, global, plant‑forward, wellness, or locally inspired concepts; creative café offerings; collaborations with students and faculty; special dinners and community events; and experimentation with new approaches to service and hospitality.

The aspiration is straightforward: students should see dining as one of the strengths of the Pomona experience.

At the same time, innovation must be operationally and financially sustainable. The Director will bring disciplined management of staffing, purchasing, food costs, scheduling, safety, facilities, technology, and budgets, using data and feedback to determine what works and continuously improve the program.

What Success Will Look Like

• Strengthen employee relationships and workplace culture, creating a Dining organization characterized by trust, communication, professional development, accountability, and pride.
• Build a new model of student engagement, with predictable channels for consultation, feedback, communication, and collaboration.
• Develop a clear vision for the four dining venues, giving each a distinctive purpose while creating a cohesive overall Pomona Dining experience.
• Elevate food quality, variety, hospitality, and consistency and establish measurable approaches for understanding student satisfaction.
• Create a culture of experimentation and continuous improvement, piloting promising ideas, measuring results, and scaling those that work.
• Advance sustainability and responsible sourcing while reducing food waste and using resources thoughtfully.
• Develop and empower the Dining leadership team, strengthening supervisory practices and creating opportunities for employee growth.
• Deliver excellent operational and financial performance, recognizing that innovation, employee well‑being, and responsible stewardship must go hand in hand.
• Become a visible member of the Pomona community, known by employees and students as someone who listens, communicates, follows through, and cares deeply about the quality of the program.

Key Responsibilities

People Leadership and Labor Relations

• Provide clear direction and leadership to a large, diverse workforce in a collective bargaining environment.
• Recruit, select, onboard, coach, evaluate, and develop leaders and staff across culinary, service, catering, administrative, and support functions.
• Build strong relationships with employees; set clear standards for performance, conduct, attendance, communication, and service; recognize excellent work; and address concerns promptly, fairly, and consistently.
• Build a collaborative leadership team, strengthen succession planning, and create meaningful opportunities for internal growth.
• Coordinate staffing plans and schedules that support service needs, employee well‑being, contractual obligations, and responsible labor management.

Dining Operations and Hospitality

• Plan and lead a comprehensive meal program across board‑plan dining, retail operations, cafés, catering, and special events.
• Maintain exceptional standards for food quality, variety, presentation, service, cleanliness, sanitation, merchandising, and the condition of facilities and equipment.
• Maintain a visible presence in Dining operations, engaging directly with managers, frontline employees, and students to identify opportunities and resolve operational issues.
• Oversee menu development and program design in partnership with culinary leaders, addressing diverse tastes, food allergies, special diets, nutrition, wellness, and inclusive dining needs.
• Ensure customer concerns are heard and resolved professionally while creating consistent standards of hospitality across the program.

Financial and Administrative Stewardship

• Develop and manage operating budgets based on realistic service, staffing, revenue, and cost assumptions.
• Monitor revenues, food and labor costs, purchasing, payroll, invoices, inventory, and other financial and operational reports.
• Maintain accurate financial reporting and effective internal controls, and take timely action when performance varies from plan.
• Identify responsible cost‑management and revenue opportunities without compromising food quality, service, safety, employee well‑being, or the student experience.
• Oversee inventory controls and the procurement of food, supplies, and equipment within established standards and budgets.

Safety, Compliance, and Risk Management

• Ensure compliance with applicable food safety, sanitation, occupational safety, health, accessibility, and regulatory requirements.
• Maintain strong training, inspection, documentation, and corrective‑action practices across all venues.
• Ensure equipment and facilities are properly cleaned, maintained, and used, and partner with campus colleagues to address risks and capital needs.
• Foster a culture in which employees raise concerns early and leaders respond with urgency, care, and accountability.

Strategy, Innovation, and Campus Engagement

• Translate the College’s aspirations into a clear, practical, and measurable strategy for Dining Services.
• Bring fresh thinking to menus, service models, hours, programming, technology, sustainability, and the use of physical spaces, while testing ideas thoughtfully and measuring results.
• Use technology and data to strengthen menu planning, ordering, scheduling, inventory, customer communication, and operating performance.
• Advance local and responsible purchasing, sustainability, nutrition, and food‑waste reduction within responsible financial parameters.
• Collaborate with students, faculty, staff, College offices, vendors, and external partners on programs and cross‑campus initiatives.
• Represent Dining Services on selected committees and contribute actively to College planning, events, and community life.

Program Assessment and Continuous Improvement

• Establish meaningful service, financial, workforce, safety, and customer‑experience measures, including reliable approaches for understanding student satisfaction.
• Maintain appropriate records, prepare reports, analyze trends, and communicate results to College leadership and campus partners.
• Pilot promising concepts, evaluate outcomes, and adjust or expand programs based on evidence and community feedback.
• Anticipate emerging culinary, consumer, workforce, technology, and sustainability trends and translate them into practical improvements.

Candidate Qualifications

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in hospitality or restaurant management, business, or a related field.
• At least five to seven years of progressively responsible leadership experience in food‑service production or another large, complex, multi‑unit dining or restaurant environment.
• Demonstrated success leading and developing substantial frontline workforces and management teams.
• Experience managing budgets, food and labor costs, procurement, inventory, operational reporting, and financial performance.
• Strong working knowledge of high‑volume food production, quality control, food safety, sanitation, and service delivery.

Leadership Capabilities

• A people‑first leadership style grounded in visibility, listening, fairness, accountability, and follow‑through.
• Ability to lead effectively in a unionized environment and build constructive relationships across roles and perspectives.
• Strong judgment and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to move from ideas to practical action plans and measurable results.
• Demonstrated success introducing new culinary, service, technology, or customer‑experience concepts in a disciplined way.
• Excellent written, verbal, interpersonal, facilitation, presentation, and customer‑service skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively with individuals and groups from a wide range of backgrounds and to consider differing viewpoints with respect.
• Strong organization and project‑management skills, including the ability to prioritize competing demands, meet deadlines, and maintain attention to detail.
• High standards of integrity, discretion, ethics, professionalism, and care when handling confidential or sensitive matters.

Technical and Professional Knowledge

• Knowledge of current culinary trends, menu development, marketing, merchandising, and the research and implementation of new food products.
• Experience with food allergies, dietary restrictions, special‑diet preparation, nutrition, and inclusive menu planning.
• Proficiency with culinary, menu‑management, ordering, scheduling, inventory, financial, and related operating systems.
• Experience developing and facilitating training for employees with different roles and levels of experience.
• Bilingual proficiency in English and Spanish is highly preferred.

Licenses and Working Conditions

• California ServSafe Food Protection Manager Certification, or the ability to obtain it within 30 days of hire and maintain recertification as required.
• A valid driver’s license and the ability to meet College vehicle‑insurance requirements.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule that may include evenings, weekends, holidays, and occasional travel, based on program and College needs.
• Ability to work regularly in active dining and production environments and perform the essential functions of the position, with or without reasonable accommodation.