Operational Food & Beverage Manager

Sodexo Ltd; Colchester (VT); On-site; USD 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Unlimited mental health support

Employee Assistance Programme

Free health & wellbeing app

Sodexo Discounts Scheme

Salary Finance benefits

Sodexo Retirement Plan

Death-in-Service

Learning and development tools

Cycle to Work Scheme

Volunteering opportunities

Flexible work environment

Competitive compensation

Full training and protective uniform

Job summary

Sodexo Ltd in Colchester Hospital is seeking an experienced Operational Food & Beverage Manager to lead patient dining and retail services across Colchester Hospital and community sites.

You will oversee a diverse operational team, ensure high standards of food quality, safety and service delivery, manage budgets and staff development, and drive continuous improvement in patient experience and patient satisfaction.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading and developing teams in a services environment.
• Operational management experience in catering/food services.
• Strong knowledge of food safety, hygiene and HACCP requirements.
• Understanding of health and safety, employment laws.
• Experience delivering staff training and maintaining training records.
• Strong financial and commercial awareness: budget, labour, stock control.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills.
• Attention to detail with focus on quality and compliance.
• Confident IT skills and ability to manage systems and reporting.
• Calm, resilient, flexible under competing priorities.
• Commitment to delivering safe, high-quality services for patients and customers.

Responsibilities

• Lead the day-to-day delivery of patient dining and retail services.
• Collaborate with Patient Dining team to maintain ward standards.
• Develop supervisors, ward hosts, retail staff and kitchen porters.
• Manage staff rotas, holidays, training and development reviews.
• Monitor food quality, hygiene and stock levels.
• Complete monthly stocktakes and manage ordering and waste.
• Review menu information and WasteWatch data for improvements.
• Manage departmental budgets, forecasts, labour costs and variances.
• Ensure compliance with food safety, HACCP, health and safety, infection control and Trust requirements.
• Maintain monitoring, training, quality and due-diligence records.
• Carry out service audits against catering KPIs and act on findings.
• Handle complaints and queries from wards and outlets professionally.
• Build positive relationships with Trust, clients and teams.
• Drive continuous improvement and customer satisfaction.

Skills

Team leadership

Operational management

Food safety / HACCP

Budgeting & cost control

Staff training & development

Communication skills

Quality assurance

IT systems literacy

Tools

IT systems

Reporting tools

Job description

• Job Title: Operational Food & Beverage Manager
• Location: Colchester Hospital
• Staff Parking / On site discounted staff retail offer / Free park & ride / Sodexo global company career opportunities

Job Introduction

We are looking for an experiencedOperational Food & BeverageManagerto lead patient dining and retail services acrossColchesterHospitaland its community sites. You will be responsible for maintaining high standards of food quality, safety and service delivery, with a particular focus on the patient experience. Leading a diverse operational team, you will ensure services are compliant, financially controlled and continually improved.

What You’ll Do:

• Lead the day-to-day delivery of patient dining and retail services.
• Work closely with the Patient Dining team to maintain agreed standards at ward level.
• Lead, support and develop supervisors, ward hosts, retail assistants, patient dining staff and kitchen porters.
• Manage staff rotas, holiday allocation, training and annual development reviews.
• Monitor food quality, preparation, hygiene and stock levels across the service.
• Complete monthly stocktakes and manage food ordering and waste.
• Review Saffron patient menu information and WasteWatch data to identify improvements.
• Manage departmental budgets, forecasts, labour costs and financial variances.
• Ensure compliance with food safety, HACCP, health and safety, infection control, company and Trust requirements.
• Maintain accurate monitoring, training, quality and due‑diligence records.
• Carry out service audits against catering KPIs and take corrective action where required.
• Manage complaints and queries from wards and retail outlets professionally.
• Build positive working relationships with the Trust, clients, colleagues and operational teams.
• Drive continuous improvement, service excellence and customer satisfaction across patient dining and retail services.

What You Bring:

• Proven experience of leading and developing teams within a service environment.
• Previous operational management experience within catering or food services.
• A strong understanding of food safety, food hygiene and HACCP requirements.
• Knowledge of relevant health and safety, employment and legislative requirements.
• Experience of delivering staff training and maintaining accurate training records.
• Strong financial and commercial awareness, including budget, labour and stock control.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to build effective working relationships.
• Strong attention to detail with a consistent focus on quality and compliance.
• Confident IT skills and the ability to manage operational systems and reporting.
• The ability to analyse problems, identify opportunities and implement practical solutions.
• A calm, resilient and flexible approach when managing competing priorities.
• A commitment to delivering safe, high‑quality services for patients, customers and clients.

What we offer:

Working with Sodexo is more than a job; it’s a chancetobe part of something greater.You’ll belong in a company and team that values youforyou;you’ll act with purpose and have an impact through your everydayactions; and you’ll be able to thrive in your own way.In addition, we also offer a range of resources,rewards and benefits for our colleagues and their families:

• Unlimited access to an online platform offering mental health and wellbeing support.
• Employee Assistance Programme to help with everyday issues or larger problems where you may need additional support, including legal and financial advice, support with work related issues or personal issues such as bereavement.
• Access to a free health and wellbeing app that provides rewards for maintaining a healthy lifestyle and includes access to a 24hr virtual GP and various other services.
• The Sodexo Discounts Scheme, offering great deals 24/7 (also open to friends and family) and/or the prepayment cashback card.
• Money Insights and financial benefits via the Salary Finance Platform.
• Save for your future by becoming a member of the Sodexo Retirement Plan
• A Death-in-Service benefit for colleagues who pass away whilst employed by Sodexo
• Opportunities to enable colleagues to grow and succeed throughout their career at Sodexo, including a variety of learning and development tools.
• Cycle to Work Scheme to help colleagues to do their bit for the environment whilst keeping fit.
• Volunteering Opportunities to enable all colleagues to help support worthwhile causes in our communities.
• Flexible and dynamic work environment
• Competitive compensation
• Full training and full protective uniform supplied.

About Sodexo

At Sodexo, our purpose is to create a better every dayfor everyone to build a better life for all.As the global leader in services thatimprove the Quality of Life, we operate in 55 countries, serving over 100million consumers each day through our unique combination of On‑Site Food andFM Services, Benefits & Rewards Services and Personal & Home Services.

We are committed tobeingan inclusive employer. Weare a forces friendly employer.We welcome and encourage applications from peoplewith a diverse variety of experiences, backgrounds, and identities.We encourage our employees to get involved with ourEmployee Networks such as Pride, Sodexo Parents & Carers, SodexoDisability, Ability network, So Together, Generations and Origins.

We’re a Disability Confident Leader employer.We’re committed tochanging attitudes towards disability and making sure disabled people have thechance to fulfil their aspirations.We run a DisabilityConfident interview scheme for candidates with disabilities who meet theminimum selection criteria for the job.

Sodexo Disability, Ability network, So Together,Generations and Origins.