Head of Food

Company Description

Head of Food
Burton-on-Trent/Hybrid
Fixed Term Contract until Feb 2028

Join us at Greene King the country's leading pub company and brewer, where our mission is to pour happiness into lives and become the pride of great British hospitality. We have something special, deeply rooted in our 220-year brewing and pub history, creating the business we are proudly known for today. Still today our 39,000 strong team are the guardians of what’s wholly British, the pub experience.  

Job Description

As Head of Food you will lead a Food team that builds food category management capability, delivers innovation aligned with brand strategies and embeds a robust, efficient end-to-end menu development process

Qualifications

Your role as Head of Food 

• Develop a long-term food category management approach that aligns GK food proposition development with brand strategies, marketing objectives and customer preferences whilst delivering against target profit margins
• Lead the implementation of technology and automation solutions that simplify and accelerate access to nutrition and allergen information, enhancing the overall customer experience and ensuring information is easy to find and understand.
• Protect core products, improve existing dishes (renovation), develop a pipeline of new menu items (innovation), and identify emerging food trends which enhance the dining experience, drive improved customer acquisition and retention and deliver against our ESG plan whilst differentiating GK in the marketplace (cost, quality, consistency)  
• Lead and organise chef councils which stimulate thinking against category briefs and inform the innovation pipeline
• Evaluate opportunities for food development alignment and consolidation driving a good, better, best mindset across brands and menus
• Own and develop an efficient menu development process in line with the 18 month integrated plan that delivers against customer targets whilst maintaining operational efficiency and profitability (targeting reduction in elapsed menu development timeframes, improved menu spec accuracy, etc.). Define clear margin efficiency targets and drive performance against them
• Ensure that new dishes align with consumer preferences for balanced, nutritious meals and dietary requirements; analyse ingredients and recipes to optimise nutritional content
• Collaborate with procurement to source products, secure sufficient supply to meet demand at the best price whilst minimising working capital and waste
• Assure the robust documentation of calorie, allergen and broader nutritional information, making visible to colleagues / customers and reducing corporate risk
• Drive effectiveness and efficiency through core menu, method & spec development  processes and ways of working, ensuring that investments (time & money) deliver clear value and RoI, challenging briefs from divisions where they don’t meet agreed standards or capacity expectations
• Embed and take advantage of technology to automate processes and drive improved outcomes (quality, accuracy, etc.) across food processes
• Embed rigorous plan-do-review routines, transparent prioritisation mechanisms and capacity plans
• Lead a team to robustly test new menus  / dishes with customer panels (where appropriate) building confidence that they will meet performance expectations when executed
• Maintain brand kitchen templates with inputs from Food & Drink Managers; explore / recommend operational kitchen equipment enhancements to deliver menu; and assure adherence to food & kitchen standards and H&S protocols within food development kitchens
• Package-up and handover dish specs to food / drinks coaches  (train the trainer)
• Define and manage the annual Food budget in line with expectation
• Build an engaged, performance and insight led team that actively prioritises time and investment on delivering the greatest value

What you’ll bring… 

• Strategic Planning Experience 
• Process improvement
• Category Management
• Food Innovation

Additional Information

We’re all about rewarding our team’s hard work, that’s why…

You’ll receive a competitive salary, pension contribution as well as:

• The chance to further your career across our well-known brands – as one of the industry's top apprenticeship providers, we can provide training and development at each level of your career. 
• Discount of 33% for you and 15% for your loved ones on all of our brands – so you enjoy your favourite food and drink at a discount.
• Free employee assistance program – mental health, well-being, financial, and legal support because you matter!
• Discount of 50% for you and 25% for your loved ones at our Greene King Inns and hotels. – so you can enjoy a weekend away without breaking the bank.
• Refer a friend – who do you know who could be interested in a new role? When they are placed, you could earn £1,500 for referring them!
• Wagestream – access your wage before payday for when life happens.
• Retail discounts – Receive up to 30% off at Superdrug, exclusive discounts with three mobile along with many more…