Duties and Responsibilities 

Builds cooperative relationships with national and local market prepared food vendors. Develop strategic alliances based on innovation and product development. Negotiate pricing, vendor programs, delivery, and payment terms for prepared food products. Facilitate mutually beneficial agreements around promotional opportunities and support. Be first to market in new products, innovation, and points of difference. Conduct regular Quality Assurance tastings and evaluations to ensure recipe adherence, food quality, and consistency. Launch/expand successful prepared food product lines and implement successful exit strategies for unproductive merchandise. Completes all required reports, logs, and culinary audits/reviews in a timely manner. Lead, contribute to and execute parts of the culinary strategic plan for the division. Launch line reviews in support of customer and seasonal expectations. Leverage fact-based decision making to drive growth and profitability. Assists in kitchen schematics design and recommends adjacencies that support the efficiency of the space. Orientates new cooks within their respective area, core culinary standards and established food programs. Provides support for new restaurant openings and/or renovations. Provides leadership to culinary team members and kitchen managers. Assists with training, coaching and development of culinary team members.