General Manager - Downers Grove School Nutrition

at Whitsons Culinary Group in Berkeley, Illinois, United States Job Description General Manager

• Downers Grove School Nutrition Berkeley, IL, USA Requisition Number 16479 Location Berkeley, IL Job Description Food Service General Manager
• Lead with Purpose in School Nutrition!

School Dining Leadership Are you a food service leader who's passionate about people, operations, and purpose? Join our school nutrition team as a Food Service General Manager and take the lead in a mission-driven kitchen that fuels young minds and futures.

What You'll Do:

+ Inspire and lead the food service team to deliver nutritious, high-quality meals to students and staff + Oversee all aspects of daily operations: scheduling, inventory, compliance, and food safety + Partner with school staff to ensure meals support student health, learning, and well-being + Ensure compliance with state and federal child nutrition program guidelines ( NSLP , SBP , etc.) + Manage budgets, staffing, vendor relationships, and performance goals + Foster a positive, student-centered, and inclusive kitchen culture + Oversight of multi-site food service operations with meals produced from two central kitchens and distributed to multiple elementary school locations. + Monitor participation trends, forecast meal counts, and communicate effectively between production sites and satellite schools.

We're Looking For:

+ 3-5 years of experience in food service management (K-12 or institutional preferred) + Strong leadership, communication, and organizational skills + Knowledge of USDA school meal guidelines and food safety regulations + A hands-on leader who builds strong teams and models accountability + ServSafe certification (or ability to obtain) + Experience managing satellite meal programs within a large K-12 school district environment. + Demonstrated knowledge of bulk food production, transportation logistics, meal holding standards, and satellite service procedures. + Experience coordinating production schedules and delivery timelines to ensure accurate meal counts and on-time service across multiple schools. + Ability to manage operational consistency between multiple production kitchens while maintaining USDA and state compliance standards. + Experience supervising staff across both production and satellite serving locations. + Knowledge of HACCP procedures, temperature control, food safety, and transportation documentation for satellite meal service. + Experience with inventory coordination, ordering, and distribution of food and supplies to multiple district locations. + Strong organizational and communication skills to support seamless operations between central kitchens, drivers, and elementary satellite sites. Why Join Us? + Competitive salary + performance bonus opportunities + Family-friendly schedule

• no nights or weekends + Health, dental, and vision benefits + Paid holidays, time off, and retirement plans + A chance to shape a food program that supports learning, growth, and equity

About Us:

At Whitsons, we believe that every school meal is an opportunity to fuel success. As our General Manager, you'll lead a team dedicated to serving nutritious, student-approved meals with care, efficiency, and pride. Your leadership will help create a kitchen that's more than a workplace-it's a hub of health, learning, and community. Apply now and bring your leadership to the lunch line-one student, one meal at a time! At Whitsons our mission is Enhancing Life One Meal at a Time. $65,000

• 68,000 Requirements

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND COMPETENCIES

: Education

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent with concentration in food and nutrition, food service management, dietetics, family and consumer sciences, nutrition education, culinary arts, business or a related field. OR
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent with any academic major AND a state recognized certificate in food and nutrition, food service management, dietetics, family and consumer sciences, nutrition education, culinary arts, or business. OR
• Associate's degree or equivalent with concentration in food and nutrition, food service management, dietetics, family and consumer sciences, nutrition education, culinary arts, business or a related field AND at least one year of relevant school nutrition programs experienceCertifications
• ServSafe Mandatory
• Local food safety certification if required in jurisdiction of employment.

Must be knowledgeable of all local ordinances.

Computer Skills

• Proficiency in all Microsoft Office applications is required
• Must be able to communicate electronically through use of email and other similar computer platforms
• Able to learn new programs easily and quickly.

Other Qualifications, Experience

• 5 years' experience in Food Service Management required
• Minimum 3 years experience in K-12 programs required. Strong interest in school nutrition program development
• Culinary background is required
• Must have a passion and an interest in food
• Working knowledge of cooking procedures and recipe adherence and scaling
• Must have demonstrated experience developing talent and managing multiple priorities
• Must be able to use "critical thinking" skills in order to resolve problems or would result in improving program overall
• Ability to effectively communicate verbally, electronically and written with clients, parents, students and support staff
• Must possess excellent time management and organizational skills
• Bilingual Spanish is highly desirable. Required Competencies
• Communicationo Effectively write, present and transfer ideas and information for the advancement of individual and company performance
• Customer Focuso Act in the best interest of the customer, both internal and external
• Innovationo Create new ideas, processes or products which when implemented lead to positive effective change
• Organization Leadershipo Apply strategic thinking, prioritization and decision-making to drive results.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS OF THE JOB

:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by a Team Member to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions

• While performing the duties of this job, the team member is frequently required Sit, walk, talk and hear
• Use hands and fingers to feel, handle, or operate objects, tools, or controls and reach with hands and arms
• Be standing on feet majority of the workday in addition to walking back and forth
• Lift and/or move up to 40 pounds. Lifting while turning side to side is sometimes necessary
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus.

Position may require extended hours including evenings and/or weekends, travel to multiple work sites and occasional out-of-district travel. Must be able to drive his/her own vehicle to other work sites.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those a Team Member encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The work is performed primarily in a Cafeteria/Food Service establishment. Work is primarily "hands-on" during mealtimes. Office work is completed before or after mealtimes. The noise level in the work environment is moderate to loud. The duties listed above are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work and duties that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related or a logical assignment to the position, and the Company reserves the right to add additional duties or modify existing duties. The job description does not To view full details and how to apply, please login or create a Job Seeker account