Sous Chef

Stanford University; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 80,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Stanford University’s Residential & Dining Enterprises (R&DE) seeks an experienced Culinary Manager to oversee daily culinary activities in a Stanford dining hall on the Palo Alto campus. You will lead kitchen operations, ensure food safety, manage inventory and collaborate with staff to meet standards.

Minimum two years of culinary management; ServSafe CA certification; strong organizational and leadership skills; on-site daily presence; salary range $80,000-$90,000 with full-time benefits.

Qualifications

• Two years of culinary management experience.
• Accredited college program or degree, preferably in culinary field.
• ServSafe CA Certification.
• Reading, writing, and oral proficiency in English.

Responsibilities

• Oversee daily culinary activities in a dining hall and ensure food and kitchen standards are met.
• Contribute to recipe and menu planning and manage inventory with cost-sensitive considerations.
• Deliver real-time health and safety training for culinary staff.
• Support operating expense control through inventory maintenance and equipment upkeep.
• Act as kitchen leader, coordinating staff and reducing overtime through efficient scheduling.

Skills

Culinary management

Cost control

Food safety training

Team leadership

Inventory management

Scheduling

English proficiency

Education

Culinary degree

Food service education

Tools

Culinary production equipment

Job description

ABOUT STANFORD UNIVERSITY AND RESIDENTIAL & DINING ENTERPRISES:

Stanford University is one of the world's leading teaching and research universities. Founded in 1891, Stanford’s mission is to create and share knowledge and to prepare students to be curious, to think critically, and to contribute to the world. With world-class scholars and seven schools located together on a single campus, Stanford offers academic excellence across the broadest array of disciplines including business, education, engineering, humanities and sciences, law, medicine, and sustainability. It also is an engine of innovation, blending theory and practice to move ideas and discoveries from labs and classrooms out into the world. Stanford strives to foster a culture of expansive inquiry, fresh thinking, searching discussion, and freedom of thought – preparing students for leadership and engaged citizenship in the world. The university is located between San Francisco and San Jose in the heart of California's Silicon Valley, on a scenic 8,180-acre campus.

Residential & Dining Enterprises (R&DE), the largest auxiliary organization at Stanford University, supports the academic mission of the university by providing high-quality services to students and other members of the university community. R&DE has an annual operating budget of $400M, operates 24/7/365, and oversees a $3B asset portfolio comprising over 7 million square feet—one-third of the campus footprint. R&DE provides housing for 16,000 students and dependents, serves 8 million meals annually at 48 student dining venues and 32 culinary enterprises. In addition, R&DE provides executive services, conference operations, and guest lodging. R&DE is a talented and diverse team of 1,200+ who comprise the following divisions: Student Housing Operations & Stanford Conferences; Stanford Dining and Hospitality & Auxiliaries; Maintenance Operations and Capital Projects; and a team of R&DE strategic business partners—Finance & Administration, Information Technology, Human Resources, and Strategic Communications and Marketing.

“Students (Customers) First” is R&DE’s mantra and its strategic goals reflect its commitment to delivering service excellence to the campus community. R&DE’s belief is “students are never an interruption in our day; they are the reason we are here.”

R&DE’s dedication to promoting fair treatment, access to opportunities, and a positive work environment is reflected in its essential priorities and efforts for cultivating a culture of operational excellence as a foundational cornerstone. R&DE is committed to creating and sustaining inclusive excellence where all staff feel a sense of belonging and are empowered to thrive.

This role is designated as essential and requires incumbents to report to work onsite. Telecommuting is not available for this role.

The budgeted pay range for this position is $80,000-$90,000 per annum.

Oversee daily culinary-related activities within a dining hall, ensuring food and kitchen standards are met.

Responsibilities

Core Duties:

• Contribute to recipe and menu planning by providing directassistance building recipes, maintaining cost-sensitive inventorylevels, following daily menu production standards, assuring accuratework completion by line staff, executing and orchestrating the timing ofproduction within operation standards, and influencing the use ofinnovative ideas and concepts, demonstrating cutting edge trends whilemaintaining current industry standards.

• Ensure health and safety standards are met by deliveringreal-time food safety and hygiene training for culinary staff asassigned.

• Contribute to business optimization by assisting with operatingexpense control through inventory maintenance, inventory levelcomparison, and inspecting and maintaining culinary equipment asdirected.

• Contribute to effective employee and staff relations by providinginput on scheduling needs for the unit and monitoring staff timing andproduction to avoid unplanned overtime expense.

• Act as the kitchen’s second-in-command.

Minimum Education:

Accredited college program or degree, preferably specializing in aculinary program, or combination of education and relevantexperience.

Minimum Experience:

Two years of culinary management experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Ability to suggest and execute creative menudevelopment.

• Demonstrated ability to oversee and work harmoniously andprofessionally with co-workers and supervisors.

• Strong organizational and multitasking skills.

• Ability to operate computer equipment and food and beveragecomputer systems.

• Ability to operate and utilize culinary production equipment andtools.

• Awareness of local, state, and federal health and sanitationlaws.

• Reading, writing, and oral proficiency in the Englishlanguage.

• Knowledge of basic training techniques.

Certificates and Licenses Required

ServSafe CA Certification.