Safety & Risk Manager

What began as an idea between two brothers to open a Mexican restaurant has since grown into one of the largest, privately held Taco Bell franchisees in America. At Border Foods, we work with a people-first mantra. From cooks to cashiers to restaurant managers and beyond, we work together to bring to life the Core Values of Border Foods. Welcome to our family where you will continue to learn, evolve, and shape what comes next on our mission of making lives better. As an employee your mission is to reinforce the Border Foods CORE values, to include Accountability, Integrity, Family, Excellence, Teamwork, and Empowerment. At Border Foods, we will unlock the full potential of our employees and guest’s restaurant experience by creating safe welcoming and supportive environments where everyone can thrive. About The Role The Safety & Risk Manager is responsible for leading Border Foods' approach to workplace safety, claims management and risk reduction across our multi-state restaurant organization. This role combines strategic thinking with hands‑on execution — using data, technology and field insights to strengthen our programs while remaining directly involved in claims, investigations, restaurant safety and training. We're looking for an experienced safety and risk professional who enjoys being both a strategic partner and a hands‑on practitioner. Someone who can help shape where the function is going while staying close enough to the work to understand what our teams actually need. What You’ll Do Claims & Risk Management Personally manage workers' compensation, general liability and other assigned claims from initial report through resolution. Partner with insurance carriers, adjusters, brokers, TPAs, legal counsel and internal leaders to drive effective claim outcomes. Conduct regular claim reviews, monitor open claims and identify opportunities to reduce claim frequency, severity and overall cost of risk. Investigate incidents, evaluate contributing factors and implement appropriate corrective actions. Support return-to-work efforts in partnership with HR and Operations. Maintain accurate claim documentation, reporting and compliance requirements. Identify emerging areas of risk and recommend strategies to protect our people, guests and business. Safety Leadership & Field Partnership Serve as a trusted safety and risk partner to restaurant and field leadership. Regularly visit restaurants to understand operational risks, investigate incidents and identify opportunities to strengthen safety practices. Develop and deliver practical safety education and training for restaurant teams and leaders. Translate safety requirements into solutions that work within restaurant operations. Partner with Operations, HR, Facilities and other Support Center teams to address safety concerns and reduce risk. Help build a culture where safety is understood as an operational responsibility at every level. Strategy, Technology & Continuous Improvement Analyze claims, incidents and safety data to identify trends, root causes and areas of opportunity. Translate data into recommendations and action plans that improve safety outcomes and reduce organizational risk. Evaluate existing processes and identify opportunities to simplify, automate and improve how safety and claims work gets done. Leverage technology and reporting tools to improve visibility, decision‑making and accountability. Develop and continuously improve safety programs, policies, tools and resources. Establish meaningful metrics and communicate trends, risks and recommendations to senior leadership. Help shape short- and long‑term Safety & Risk priorities as Border Foods continues to grow. What We’re Looking For 7+ years of progressive experience in safety, risk management, claims, workers' compensation, loss prevention or a related field. Demonstrated hands‑on experience managing workers' compensation, general liability and/or other casualty claims. Experience investigating workplace incidents and developing corrective actions. Strong strategic and analytical skills with the ability to translate data into practical business recommendations. Comfortable leveraging technology, claims systems and reporting tools and identifying opportunities to improve or automate processes. Strong communication, facilitation and training skills with the ability to influence leaders at multiple levels. Ability to balance day‑to‑day execution with longer‑term strategic priorities. Willingness and ability to regularly travel to restaurant locations. Experience in a multi‑location restaurant, retail, hospitality, distribution or other frontline operating environment is strongly preferred. Experience working with insurance carriers, brokers, TPAs and legal counsel is preferred. What Success Looks Like The right person for this role is comfortable moving between strategy and execution. You can identify a trend in our claims data, recommend what Border Foods should do differently and help build the solution — then go into a restaurant and help our teams put it into practice. You're curious about how technology can make the function better, credible enough to influence senior leaders and operational enough to connect with restaurant teams. Most importantly, you don't view the day‑to‑day work as something beneath you. You understand that staying close to our claims, incidents and restaurants is what allows you to make better strategic decisions. If you're energized by the opportunity to both build what's next and stay in the work, we'd love to meet you. Physical Demands This position requires sitting, standing, walking, bending, lifting, and intermittent travel during working hours. These physical requirements may be accomplished with or without reasonable accommodation. Additional Information The duties of this position may change from time to time. Border Foods reserves the right to modify or assign additional responsibilities at the discretion of the company or its leaders. This job description is intended to describe the general level of work being performed and is not intended to be all‑inclusive. Border Foods is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer of Minorities, Women, Protected Veterans, and Individuals with Disabilities and does not discriminate based on gender identity or sexual orientation. #J-18808-Ljbffr