Culinary Lead

Position: Culinary Lead

Location: Bangalore / Hyderabad

Reports To: Operations Director

Role Summary

The Culinary Lead is responsible for driving culinary vision across multiple sites by leading largescale kitchen operations, new site mobilizations, and highimpact culinary innovation initiatives. This role requires strong expertise in strategic planning, menu innovation, project execution, sustainability, and team leadership. The position blends creativity with operational excellence to deliver worldclass food experiences aligned with client's global standards.

Key Responsibilities

Culinary Operations & Quality

Lead and manage all culinary operations across client sites, ensuring seamless production, procurement, and service delivery.

Maintain exceptional standards of taste, quality, consistency, and presentation across all food programs and concepts.

Ensure strict adherence to food safety, sanitation protocols, HSE standards, and Sodexos All Safe guidelines.

Drive continuous improvement by conducting Time & Motion studies and optimizing workflow efficiency.

Menu Planning & Innovation

Define the longterm culinary direction and develop new food brands, formats, and concepts.

Lead R&D for new products, menu engineering, and equipment innovation.

Develop menu cycles with accurate costing, nutritional balance, and visual documentation.

Stay ahead of global culinary trends and bring innovative, scalable solutions to multiple sites.

Process & Compliance

Drive labor optimization initiatives, including consolidation of production centers and redesign of kitchen workflows.

Manage space optimization projects such as Project Nest and ensure efficient use of culinary infrastructure.

Establish and maintain all QHSE documentation, operational SOPs, and compliance reports as per Sodexo standards.

Track and reduce wastage using Leanpath systems and support landfillreduction and sustainability goals.

Financial & Business Management

Manage production capacity planning, food cost controls, equipment planning, and kitchen budgets for all sites.

Ensure new sites are mobilized on-time, on-budget, and defectfree for First Day of Business (FDOB).

Collaborate with cross-functional teams for events, campaigns, and user-engagement programs.

Conduct final technical checks (HVAC, BOH readiness, equipment validation) during mobilizations.

Team Leadership & Engagement

Build and develop Culinary Leadership Talent Pools and succession plans for the India program.

Hire, train, mentor, and guide Site Chefs and Kitchen Support Teams (KST) to achieve culinary and operational KPIs.

Conduct weekly Chef Connects and annual culinary forums to align teams with strategic direction.

Foster an open, collaborative working culture and drive performance KPIs such as HSE compliance, user satisfaction, and staff retention.

Key Requirements

Education:

Degree/Diploma in Culinary Arts or Hotel Management (threeyear program from a recognized culinary school or institute).

Experience:

1014 years of progressive culinary leadership in large-scale, multiunit food service operations.

Strong experience in mobilizing new sites, launching large food programs, and managing complex culinary projects.

Skills:

Expertise in menu planning, costing, largescale production, and operational optimization.

Strong understanding of modern culinary trends, kitchen design, and equipment planning.

Excellent leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.

Commitment to sustainability and datadriven wastereduction programs.

Why Sodexo:

Healthy Work-Life Balance

Leadership Development

Global Career Opportunities

Cross-Functional Collaboration

Inclusive Culture

Competitive Compensation

Comprehensive Health & Wellness Benefits