General Manager

About Pampered Paws | Digs Dog Care

Pampered Paws is part of Digs Dog Care, a premium dog care company offering DayPlay, Overnight Stays, Grooming, and Training across multiple locations nationwide. We're built on a simple belief: every pup deserves to feel safe, loved, and at home and every team member plays a real role in making that happen. Our shared ownership program means employees don't just work here, they have a stake in it.

About the role

This is a General Manager role over our Pampered Paws location, including daycare, overnight boarding, grooming & training. The General Manager is responsible for leading, mentoring, and guiding all team members to ensure smooth daily operations and deliver outstanding customer and teammate experiences. Staffing, retention, and morale all fall under this individual's responsibility, in addition to managing business outcomes such as financial performance and customer experience. The General Manager will work with the Area Manager to build an understanding of the locations progress and develop a strategic vision for the future and is expected to be a key leader in our operations organization, collaborating with operations leadership, setting strategic goals for operational efficiency and productivity, and owning the execution of our plan relative to our annual budget/goals.

R esponsibilities

Digs values and promotes a respectful, positive, and professional work environment and all teammates are expected to adhere to this. This role is a leadership position in the organization and will be critical in developing the culture of Digs. Additionally, you are accountable for the following:

Elevate the Standard of Care

• Meeting Digs and local Department of Ag standards in the cleanliness, maintenance, upkeep, and safety of the facility for our pups, team members, and customers
• Staffing Always ensuring adequate shift coverage, while adhering to scheduling and labor guidelines
• Monitor, analyze, and respond with a plan of action to drive progress in key performance indicators for Elevating Standards of Care
• Maintaining Digs focus of Treat our Pup Parents like Family by maintaining excellent customer service metrics such as Net Promoter Score and customer feedback on Google and social media

Core Financials

• Responsible for P&L, including but not limited to meeting budget, notably in labor, maintenance, cost of goods, and other controllable expenses
• Analyze past, present, and future operating performance against budget and goals, and formulate a plan to meet misses, as necessary
• Devise strategies to ensure growth of programs, identifying and implementing process improvements that will maximize output and minimize costs. Thinks and acts like an owner

Business Health

• Build mutually beneficial relationships with local vet hospitals, rescues, shelters, local businesses, local contractors, and local Department of Agriculture representatives
• Execute Digs marketing plans, and implement local market plans such as community events, B2B
• Responsible for outperforming the stores Meet and Greet and Net New Customers goals

Building a team and managing 5-20+ direct reports

• Responsible for the entire employee lifecycle including, hiring, onboarding, training, development, and performance management, including corrective action
• Responsible for facility workforce planning, which includes the recruiting, hiring, training, upskilling and retention of all teammates
• Leverage all available resources at Digs to lead team with integrity and to establish and maintain a trusting, inclusive, and productive environment

Qualifications

These qualifications and experiences help ensure that a store manager can maintain high standards of care and safety, create a welcoming environment for pets and owners, and lead a team dedicated to excellent pet care and customer service. Youre right for this role if you can demonstrate competencies in the following areas:

• Ability to be on-site 5 days per week

Animal care knowledge & experience

• Prior experience working with animals in a professional setting and familiarity with animal behavior, handling, and basic health needs
• Pet First Aid and Safety: Ability to recognize signs of distress or illness in animals and manage minor injuries or emergencies. Certification in pet CPR and first aid is not required, but nice to have
• Knowledge of health and sanitation standards for animals, including facility cleanliness and hygiene to prevent disease spread

Leadership and People Development

• Experience training and supervising staff, particularly in animal handling, safety, and customer service
• Ability to motivate and lead a team, with experience in setting clear expectations, providing constructive feedback, and upholding high standards of care and service. Must also be capable of handling challenging situations, including conducting termination conversations when performance does not meet Digs standards

Pet-Parent Centric Approach

• Takes pride in making every interaction with pet-parents exceptional and navigates difficult conversations with poise and integrity
• Experience in client-facing roles, including handling client inquiries, addressing concerns, and ensuring satisfaction

Business Acumen

• Basic knowledge of budgeting, inventory control, and cost management to help the store remain profitable and efficient
• Capable of analyzing metrics and drawing insights that can drive results

Operations Excellence

• Monitors progress against key performance indicators, and takes constructive feedback and applies it to drive performance
• Regularly improves processes that increase productivity, reduce waste, and improve compliance and safety
• Leads with a continuous improvement mindset to share best practices with the Digs operations team

Adaptability and Resilience

• Ability to stay calm in stressful situations, such as pet emergencies or client complaints, and find effective solutions
• Flexibility to adjust to changing needs, unexpected situations, and varying personalities and behaviors

Communication & Influence Skills

• Establishes strong professional relationships with different personalities; takes pride in ensuring information flows effectively throughout the team
• Articulates expectations to team and provides constructive feedback on all job duties
• Ability to clearly communicate pet care instructions and facility policies to pet owners, as well as provide updates on their pets well-being

What We Offer

Compensation includes a combination of base salary and a quarterly performance bonus.

At Digs, we take care of our pack. General Managers are offered flexible time off, dental, medical and vision benefits, a 401k with up to 4% company match after 90 days, and after one year you can join our DigIn Shared Ownership Program because we believe the people who build Digs should share in its success. Many locations also offer teammates discounted DayPlay as a little extra perk.

Digs Dog Care is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws. We are committed to diversity and inclusion and encourage all qualified individuals to apply.

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