Culinary Director

Job Purpose Summary: 

The Culinary Director leads the culinary program at Joe Van Gogh. This position directly oversees the management of the South Court Bakery and Woodcroft Kitchen. The Culinary Director is constantly working to grow and improve the culinary program at Joe Van Gogh through recipe development, improving SOPs, developing new streams of revenue, and fostering meaningful wholesale relationships. The Culinary Director carefully sources products and ingredients and develops recipes for the cafes and wholesale customers. The Culinary Director is a company leader and works closely with other company leaders to promote and elevate the culinary department and the Joe Van Gogh brand.

Reports To: VP of Human Resources and Operations

Direct Reports: Bakery Manager, Assistant Bakery Manager, Kitchen Lead

Status: Full Time Salaried

Operations

• Meets weekly and sends weekly report to VP. 
• Ensures that all food and pastry products meet quality standards.
• Resolve wholesale customer conflicts, facility issues, equipment challenges, etc.
• Creates and maintains bakery and kitchen financials, implements strategies to improve sales, labor percentages, and COG as needed.
• Handles sensitive and private employee and customer information with care according to JVG policies.
• Coordinates delivery van maintenance.
• Coordinates major equipment repairs and purchasing.
• Sources products that align with production needs and company values.
• Manages the finances of South Court and Woodcroft including invoicing, financial review, profit margins, 
• Project manager for seasonal menu changes.
• Continually creates and improves bakery and kitchen SOPs.
• Manages the wholesale bakery program including communicating, monitoring invoicing, and problem solving. 
• Creates and maintains product nutrition database.
• Develops new recipes, trains, and implements into production structure.

Team Management

• Holds monthly 1v1 meeting with management, compiles notes and follows up accordingly.
• Collaborates with LTD to create and monitor job descriptions, pay bands, and review forms. 
• Thoughtfully compiles and presents performance reviews, references pay scale accurately.
• Utilizes and files all human resource paperwork correctly.
• Gives feedback regularly and encourages team members to set goals.
• Trains new and current managers, delegates to share workload effectively.
• Ensures compliance with all JVG policies.
• Ensure best practices and maintain high quality standards in product preparation.
• Addresses performance challenges with direct reports, utilizing HR as a resource as applicable

Collaborative Contribution

• Attends and contributes to retail and corporate operations meetings. 
• Brainstorms and tests new initiatives, communicates effectively with team members.
• Shares feedback and contributes to continuous improvement of bakery structures and resources.
• Completes additional projects as assigned.
• Collaborates with stakeholders on new culinary department initiatives. 
• Coordinates with marketing for social posts, special events, program expansion.
• Collaborates on café and bakery design and infrastructure.
• Oversees and maintains wholesale and catering systems.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

• At least three years of experience running a culinary program. 
• At least two years experience with commercial recipe development
• Superior teamwork, leadership, and collaboration skills.
• Passion for serving others and leading a team in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to communicate effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders.
• Passion for learning; ability to efficiently apply new skills and systems.
• Ability to offer and accept feedback, inspire others, and delegate effectively.
• Ability to work independently and manage multiple projects/priorities simultaneously.
• Ability to help employees learn and grow through performance challenges, with the support of HR.
• Reliable transportation and a valid driver’s license.
• Criminal background check as required by JVG’s institutional partners
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite
• Proficiency in POS systems
• Proficiency in evaluating, understanding, and creating financial reports

PHYSICAL DEMAND

• Prolonged, frequent ingestion of pastry and food products, coffee, tea, and other caffeinated beverages.
• Prolonged periods of constant repetitive motion with hands and wrists.
• Prolonged periods of time on foot, squatting, kneeling, and bending.
• Ability to lift 50 pounds or more.

All Joe Van Gogh employees are subject to a 90-day probationary period

JOE VAN GOGH INC

505 MEADOWLANDS DRIVE, UNIT 101

HILLSBOROUGH, NC 27278

919.644.0111

JOBS@JOEVANGOGH.COM