Culinary Director @ Greener by Default

By Hannah Kinder @ 2025-01-14T14:32 (+1)

At Greener by Default, you will be working towards the ambitious goal of completely transforming institutional foodservice - and the food system as a whole - by making plant-based food the default. 

We recognize that the fate of humans, animals, and ecosystems are bound together, and strive to create a food system that will allow all life on earth to flourish. In order to achieve our vision, we develop strategies rooted in science, sustainability, and inclusivity to empower institutions to serve plant-forward food. 

Position Objective:

We are seeking an experienced Culinary Director to lead and expand our innovative plant-forward menu program across multiple sectors, including healthcare, higher education, and corporate dining. This role offers the opportunity to influence institutional dining programs that serve millions of meals annually, helping to transform employee wellness, institutional procurement practices, and broader food system sustainability. 

Primary Responsibilities and Duties:

• Provide strategic culinary leadership and support to healthcare, education, and corporate teams
• Collaborate with clients to optimize their culinary operations and menu offerings
• Lead and mentor culinary teams to ensure consistent quality and service delivery
• Create and maintain compelling culinary resources and training materials
• Build relationships with key stakeholders in the foodservice industry
• Elevate plant-based defaults and other nudges within the culinary community
• Drive innovation in sustainable, health-focused institutional dining
• Develop culinary strategy, create and implement the OKRs and KPIs to assess role responsibilities and measure success
   

Individual Attributes Required

• Intellectual integrity: Provide information rooted in culinary science, adapt messaging and tactics based on the latest behavioral research.
• Ambition: Boldly drive change within institutional foodservice norms.
• Open communication: Continuously seek out new information and dialogue, cultivate trust with staff and partners.
• Foster inclusion: Meet people where they are, strive to understand and acknowledge the different cultural contexts within which you’re working, hold space for divergent perspectives.
• Growth mindset: See challenges and mistakes as opportunities to adapt and improve. Continuously strive to hone your expertise and refine your skills in order to best serve the organization’s and client’s goals.

Position Requirements:

• At least 5 years of culinary leadership experience in institutional foodservice setting - culinary director, operations manager, or equivalent
• Strong understanding of large-scale food operations across multiple sectors
• Experience developing and implementing institutional menus
• Excellent team leadership and project management
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills
• Passion for plant-based cuisine
• Culinary degree and/or relevant certifications
• Strong connections in the sustainable foodservice space preferred

We strongly encourage people of every color, orientation, age, gender, origin, and ability to apply. Because we value a diverse workplace, we prioritize an inclusive climate during the application process and after you join the team. We encourage candidates with most of the above qualifications to apply; we do not expect all candidates to fit this job description 100%.
 

Reports to: 

Katie Cantrell, CEO 
 

Compensation: 

This is a salaried employee position paying $77,000 - $83,000 per year, depending on experience and credentials
 

Benefits

• Health, Dental & Vision Plan
• 401k plan, with a dollar for dollar employer match up to 3%
• $150 monthly cell phone and internet expense reimbursement
• $500 annual office equipment stipend (can be rolled over)
• 20 vacation days per year, 14 paid federal holidays, 8 sick days and 1 personal day per year, to be used during your birthday month

Location:

This is a remote position. We are currently only able to hire employees who can work in the U.S.

To Apply

In order to apply, please fill out this form. We will not consider any candidates who have not filled out the form. Please do not contact us via email or message to apply. Applications must be received by January 31, 2025.