Pit Master & Team Leader — High-Volume Meat Ops

Socket.dev; Nashville (TN); On-site; USD 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

Socket.dev in Nashville, Tennessee is seeking a Pit Manager to oversee all meat production operations, including the smokehouse, trimming, and in-house sausage making.

This role ensures quality, consistency, and efficiency while developing team members and driving a performance-based culture across the pit. You will lead pitmasters, trim and sausage staff, manage schedules, logs, and sanitation to deliver flavorful, safely produced products.

Qualifications

• Leadership experience in high-volume meat operations and back-of-house teams.
• Strong knowledge of food safety protocols and sanitation procedures.
• Ability to schedule labor and coordinate production across shifts.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead a high-performing pit team, including pitmasters, trimmers, and sausage production staff.
• Create weekly schedules to meet labor budgets while ensuring adequate staffing during all production windows.
• Provide real-time coaching and feedback to team members to reinforce best practices, safety protocols, and quality standards.
• Foster a positive, winning culture that inspires pride, accountability, and collaboration.
• Uphold a people-first approach while holding the team to clear performance and food safety expectations.
• Identify and mentor high-potential team members for future leadership opportunities.
• Manage all aspects of daily pit operations, including fire management, meat rotation, and execution of proper cook timelines.
• Ensure all brisket, ribs, turkey, sausage, and beef ribs meet brand specifications for flavor, tenderness, and presentation.
• Collaborate with the GM to anticipate volume swings and adjust cook schedules accordingly.
• Oversee the trimming process to maximize yield and minimize waste.
• Manage the full sausage-making process: grinding, mixing, stuffing, curing, and portioning.
• Maintain detailed logs including production logs, salt curing logs, and temperature logs to ensure full compliance with food safety standards and internal procedures.
• Ensure proper labeling, dating, and FIFO systems for raw and finished sausage products.
• Uphold all regulatory and internal standards for food safety and sanitation in sausage operations.
• Ensure all equipment (pits, grinders, saws, mixers, etc.) is cleaned, maintained, and inspected regularly.
• Enforce health code compliance and internal food safety protocols with zero compromise.
• Lead by example in maintaining an organized and safe production environment.

Skills

People leadership

Food safety

Scheduling

Quality control

Training & mentoring

Job description

Socket.dev in Nashville, Tennessee is seeking a Pit Manager to oversee all meat production operations, including the smokehouse, trimming, and in-house sausage making.

This role ensures quality, consistency, and efficiency while developing team members and driving a performance-based culture across the pit. You will lead pitmasters, trim and sausage staff, manage schedules, logs, and sanitation to deliver flavorful, safely produced products.