What are the responsibilities and job description for the Assistant Manager position at The Gold Leash?
Department: Operations
Reports To: General Manager
Location: Ottawa, IL (Business Transition & Rebrand Underway)
Overview:
The Assistant Manager at The Gold Leash plays a key leadership role in ensuring smooth operations, fostering a positive environment for pets, clients, and staff, and upholding company standards. This position requires exceptional organizational, communication, and management skills to support daily operations and long-term goals.
We are preparing to take over an existing pet care facility in Ottawa and transition it into The Gold Leash Pet Hotel & Daycare — and we are looking for an Assistant Manager who is ready for a challenging but rewarding leadership role.
This will not be a “step into a fully running, polished operation” type of role.
You will be part of the transition phase — merging the existing business into The Gold Leash brand, helping implement new standards, retraining current staff, and working through change as we reshape culture, systems, and expectations.
If you’re someone who thrives on structure, problem-solving, and leading people through change (not just maintaining what already exists), this is the role for you.
Responsibilities
- Assist with the business transition: new systems, policies, staff retraining, and workflows
- Work alongside current staff to coach, redirect, and build a strong team culture
- Support daily operations including daycare, boarding, feeding, cleaning, safety, and scheduling
- Lead by example on the floor while holding staff accountable to new expectations
- Provide excellent customer service through check-ins, tours, and professional communication
- Ensure pet welfare, safety standards, and incident responses are properly handled
- Partner with the General Manager and Area Manager to stabilize and grow the location
Benefits & Perks
- Opportunity to help shape a location under new ownership
- Leadership support and hands-on involvement from upper management
- Internal growth opportunities as we expand
- 20% employee discount on services and retail
- Free 10-day daycare package every quarter
- Weekly bonus opportunity
- Employee pet perks and discounted boarding
Ideal Candidate Mindset
- Comfortable stepping into a workplace mid-transition
- Able to lead staff who may resist change at first
- Motivated to help turn an average facility into a high-standard Gold Leash location
- Excited to build something new, not just maintain what already exists
Requirements
- Previous leadership or supervisory experience (pet care, hospitality, retail, etc.)
- Strong communication skills and confidence giving direction and feedback
- Ability to stay calm, organized, and solution-focused during change
- Comfortable working with dogs of all breeds, sizes, and temperaments
- Experience supervising dog playgroups or handling multiple dogs at once is preferred
- Knowledge of pet-care software such as MoeGo, Gingr, or PetExec is a plus
- Reliable, professional, and able to coach others to meet expectations
- Weekend and holiday availability required
- Open availability - salary - scheduled 45 hours a week