Head of Services - Support and Managed

Director Of Dining Services (DDS)
Chartwells K12's goal is to make sure students leave the cafeteria happier and healthier than they came in, by serving food kids love to eat and creating custom dining programs. With more than 16,000 associates in 4,500 schools, ranging from large public institutions to small charter and private schools, Chartwells K12 is built on decades of food, education and operational experience driven by top culinary, nutrition, wellness, and sustainability talent.
Chartwells K12 | Compass Group USA is looking for a dynamic, high-impact Director of Dining Services (DDS) to launch and lead our new account with Lansing Unified School District in Kansas. In this role, you'll support five schools serving approximately 2,500 students, acting as the key partner to school administrators while working side-by-side with frontline teams to deliver exceptional dining experiences every day.
Reporting to the Area Director, you'll bring visible, hands-on leadership—driving operations, financial performance, compliance, and team development. This is a highly engaged role where you'll spend time in schools coaching managers, building strong relationships, and ensuring consistency across a high-profile district.
Even better—you'll enjoy a strong work-life balance with a steady Monday–Friday schedule, 7:00 AM–4:00 PM, giving you the opportunity to make a meaningful impact while keeping your evenings and weekends free.
Key Responsibilities:

Manages salaried managers and hourly associates in the Food Service Department
Oversees the overall direction, coordination, and evaluation of the account
Interviews, hires, and trains associates; plans, assigns, and directs work; appraises performance; rewards and disciplines associates; addresses complaints and resolves problems
Prepares and manages annual budget
Utilize company systems for completion of required daily/weekly/monthly reports such as inventory, cash reports, production records, payroll/time-keeping, etc.
Oversees and participates in the preparation and service of food and beverage items in adherence to company food standards for preparation, presentation, sanitation and safety (meeting HACCP and OSHA guidelines) and portion control
Preferred Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree, preferably in foodservice, hospitality management, dietetics, culinary or related fields.
Five (5) years of direct foodservice operational management experience with inventory and purchasing knowledge and control, K12 experience preferred.
Strong knowledge of food and catering trends with a focus on quality, production, sanitation, food cost controls, and presentation
Previous P&L accountability or contract-managed service experience is desirable
Strong supervisory, leadership, management and coaching skills
Strong communication skills, both written and verbal
Ability to communicate on various levels to include management, client, customer and associate levels
Excellent financial, budgetary, accounting and computational skills
Proficient computer skills to include; various computer programs, Microsoft Office programs, e-mail and the Internet
Bilingual (English/Spanish) with the ability to communicate in Spanish in a professional work environment preferred.
Chartwells K-12 maintains a drug-free workplace.
Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis.
Associates at Chartwells K12 are offered many fantastic benefits including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, disability insurance, retirement plan, paid time off, holiday time off, associate shopping program, health and wellness programs, discount marketplace, identity theft protection, pet insurance, commuter benefits, employee assistance program, flexible spending accounts, paid parental leave, personal leave.