Position Type: Non-Exempt, full-time, benefits eligible
Reports To: Production Manager
Collaborates With: All Operations Teams, Cultivation/Harvest, Marketing, Product Manager and Dispensary Operations
The Verdes Standard:
At Verdes, the Kitchen Lead is a cornerstone of our commitment to delivering premium cannabis products. This pivotal role exemplifies our core values, fostering an environment where continuous improvement, efficiency, and an unwavering dedication to quality drive our success. As a Kitchen Lead, you will:
- Exceed Expectations: Not only uphold our high standards but also set new benchmarks for quality and efficiency in kitchen operations.
- Continuous Improvement: Embrace our ISO9001:2015 framework to constantly enhance kitchen processes.
- Initiative: Proactively adapt and innovate within the operations to meet dynamic market needs.
- Integrity: Guide your decisions by the highest ethical standards, ensuring all actions are transparent and honest.
- Courageous Conversations: Lead through open and direct communication, keeping your team aligned, informed, and engaged.
- Responsiveness: Address operational challenges swiftly, ensuring your team is prepared to meet and exceed our goals.
Job Summary:
The Kitchen Lead oversees the kitchen operations, including production, labeling, and inventory control of cannabis-derived products for distribution through dispensaries. This position entails supervising and leading a team to ensure efficient production schedules for infused edibles. The role involves increasing operational efficiency through best practices and stringent inventory control measures to minimize risk and product loss. This role must integrate ISO9001:2015 quality management principles to enhance overall performance and customer satisfaction.
Responsibilities/Essential Functions:
Staff Supervision and Leadership:
- Supervise staff to ensure high-quality, consistent, reliable, compliant, and safe product manufacturing.
- Maintain a safe and clean work environment.
- Obtain and maintain a Food Service Managers Certificate.
- Perform other duties as assigned, including the delivery of products to manufacturing and/or retail locations.
Production and Scheduling:
- Develop and execute manufacturing schedules to ensure product availability.
- Oversee the preparation of various edible products according to established recipes, SOPs & batch records.
- Package and label finished baked goods, adhering to commercial kitchen hygiene standards.
Process and Equipment Management:
- Collaborate with the Process Engineer to ensure proper use and maintenance of equipment.
- Maintain updated processes, procedures, and batch records to support GMP-like manufacturing standards.
- Implement and audit inventory control measures to reduce risk and product loss, adhering to ISO9001:2015 quality management standards.
Inventory and Materials Management:
- Ensure consistent availability of raw materials and supplies to meet production schedules.
- Manage Dutchie for inventory, recipes, labels, transfers, manifests, and seed-to-sale controls.
- Keep an accurate stock of ingredients and supplies.
- Maintain inventory to ensure 100% product availability.
Quality Control and Documentation:
- Adhere to ISO9001:2015 quality management standards.
- Complete production sheets and other required records.
- Supervise the preparation and manifesting of product orders.
- Ensure proper printing and application of product labels and barcodes.
- Assist all departments with product packaging and labeling.
- Conduct regular audits and inspections to ensure compliance with quality standards.
- Implement corrective actions as necessary to address any quality issues.
- Participate in continuous improvement initiatives to enhance product quality and operational efficiency.
Preferred Skills and Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree
- Experience with management
- Experience working in highly regulated industries. Understanding of regulations and compliance in
the cannabis industry.
- Acquire and maintain certification in Food Service Safety and Sanitation
- Strong attention to detail and quality.
- Able to perform basic math and algebraic equations.
- Excellent problem-solving, organizational, analytical and critical thinking skills. Ability to prioritize
work and make complex decisions.
- Ability to listen, develop strategy and tactics, communicate and direct your team.
- Able to use a computer to track inventory, print labels and UPC codes/tags.
- Able to perform basic tasks in Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel.
- Manufacturing experience, specifically experience with GMP, GDP or GLP
- Continuous improvement certification (Lean, Six Sigma, Agile, Design Thinking, etc.)
- Cooking and baking experience
- Experience or awareness with laboratory equipment and processes
General Housekeeping:
- Perform routine housekeeping activities to maintain a safe workspace and food safety compliance.
Physical and Emotional Requirements:
- Must be able to stand for long periods of time, 8 – 10 hours multiple days in a row
- Must be able to lift at least 50 lbs.
- Ability to work in a confined area.
- Must be able to bend/stoop/climb/reach
- Must be able to present complex information to groups of people
- Must be able to be physically present in work location
- Ability to handle high stress situations, ambiguity and changing priorities
- Must be able to tolerate a reasonable amount of work stress
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Emotional intelligence: self-awareness, self-management, empathy, relationship management
Compensation/Hours:
Compensation -60-70k; 40 hours/wk., Required availability Mon – Fri, some weekends, and holidays
Benefits
- PTO (accrual based)
- Health Insurance with employer contribution
- Vision Insurance with employer contribution
- Dental Insurance with employer contribution
- 401K (automatic enrollment at 3%)
- 25% Employee Discount