Executive Chef of Culinary Operations

Sodexo is Seeking an Executive Chef of Culinary Operations for Yale New Haven Hospital in New Haven, CT

Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) is a 1,541-bed hospital located in New Haven CT. YNHH is the primary teaching hospital for the Yale Schools of medicine and nursing, includes the 168-bed Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale New Haven, the 201-bed Children's Hospital and the 76-bed Yale New Haven Psychiatric Hospital. Sodexo offers a room service program that will be transitioning to bedside dining this spring and 6 retail dining locations including a large main cafeteria, 24hr. micro-market, Starbucks we proudly serve, sushi and staff focused cafe with Peet's coffee shop in our New Haven Cafe.

The Executive Chef of Culinary Operations role is approximately 80% administrative and 20% frontline culinary. This role will lead a dynamic team of 80 union employees, drive quality assurance, and ensure financial and operational success while fostering a strong team culture in a unionized healthcare environment. 

Why Join Sodexo?

✨ Impact: Make a difference in patient and retail food service quality.
✨ Leadership: Take ownership of a high-profile healthcare culinary program.
✨ Growth: Develop and implement innovative culinary systems.
✨ Team Culture: Work in a collaborative and supportive environment.

🔹 Ready to lead? Apply today!

What You'll Do: 

• Culinary Excellence: Ensure top-quality patient and retail meals that look and taste great!
• Food & Physical Safety: Maintain HACCP standards, ensure ServSafe compliance, and uphold safety protocols.
• Team Leadership & Development: Lead and develop a team of managers
• Union Leadership: Must have experience managing in a union environment (1199 experience preferred, but any large union is acceptable).
• Employee Engagement: Build team morale and foster a positive, high-performance culture for frontline staff.
• Financial & Budget Management: Control food and labor costs, manage inventory and procurement, and ensure contract compliance.
• Collaboration & Multi-Tasking: Work effectively in a team environment, managing multiple priorities and driving operational efficiency

What you Bring: 

• 5+ years of administrative experience in healthcare culinary operations
• Strong knowledge of union environments (1199 experience a plus!)
• Experience managing multi-level teams, including managers & frontline staff
• Expertise in food safety, quality control, and compliance
• Proven ability to manage budgets, inventory, and procurement
• Passion for team development, coaching, and morale-building
• Ability to commit long-term (5+ years) to growing and evolving the program