Catering Sous Chef

Central Washington University is recruiting a Catering Sous Chef to join our Dining Services team in Ellensburg, Washington. This role is an important member of our team as they enhance the vision for the University. The role is a campus-based position, which means you get to see the lives you are impacting. We're offering a salary, depending on experience, from $53,000 - $58,000annually plus the awesome CWU benefits.

Who we are:

We are a team of individuals committed to Changing Students' Lives. No matter what job, each of us plays a part in supporting and empowering our students to fulfill their dreams.

Working in higher education provides career growth and career choice. Think of a university campus like a mini city, operating across 380 acres. You'll find diverse academics, libraries, athletics and sporting events, full service and quick serve dining, conferences and events from small to large, recreation centers, housing, health services, police and public safety for the campus population of 10,000 students.

Central Washington University has been named a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Top Producing Institution for the academic year. In addition, for the seventh time in eight years, CWU is a recipient of the prestigious Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. RentCafe has also named CWU of the Top 20 Best College Towns in the U.S. in 2025.

Come join us on our journey to encourage, inspire, and create spaces where all identities thrive on campus.

Tour our campus in Ellensburg here.

What we offer:

Our investment in you begins the day you join our team, a healthy and successful future for you is important to us. We offer medical, dental, life and disability insurance, retirement and optional savings plans, tuition assistance for you and your dependents, discounts across town, an employee assistance program for individualized counseling, and a wellness incentive program. Learn more: Benefits, Perks, and Leave and Total Rewards Calculator .

The Role:

The CWU Dining Department is a large, complex, multi-unit operation. The Catering Sous Chef will provide hands-on culinary leadership and operational support to the catering, concessions and any related units. This position can be assigned to the Student Union Dining Operations or the 1891 Catering Operations as needed.

The Catering Sous Chef works to maintain and lead members of a culinary program that emphasizes quality, excellence, and customer service through direct leadership of back of the house efforts. The Catering Sous Chef participates with the Dining management team in a collaborative effort to coordinate and synchronize the operations and services to achieve the vision and goals of Dining Services. In alignment with Central Washington University's vision, mission, and values, CWU Dining Services plays a key role in supporting these principles while also upholding our department's own vision, mission, and values. Our vision is to be a key campus partner in promoting the growth of our diverse community through shared culinary and educational experiences. As a member of Dining Services, you will be directly involved in these efforts and are expected to embody both the university, and department, vision, mission, and values in your work. All employees are expected to uphold and contribute to CWU's vision, mission, and values, fostering a culture of student success and institutional excellence.

Job Duties

Operations & Customer Service:
- Continuously monitors the appearance and quality of all food and food display areas.
- Continually seeks quality improvement in recipes through testing and execution with the culinary staff and Dining Services management with oversight from the Assistant Director of Culinary Operations and Campus Executive Chef.
- Designs and implements cooking techniques and presentation that maximize appearance, taste, and quality.
- Responsible for ordering, delivery, and preparation of food to meet planned menu and service needs.
- Responsible for assignment, allocation and reporting of all culinary labor (student, bargaining unit, and all other staff). Generate daily labor reports from data in time and attendance system. Make corrections to exceptions and staff work hours as needed daily.
- Follow proper reporting procedures for unit performance data to include cash sales, labor hours worked and inventory.
- Resolve issues that directly affect production and service of forecasted quantities of food by coordinating with service managers and staff as needed.
- Actively participates, supervises, trains, and directs staff in proper handling, preparation and storage of food products.
- Establishes and maintains a quality control program for food and beverage preparation and service.
- Actively participates in food preparation, in addition to overseeing food preparation and providing feedback and direction to staff.
- Responsible for actively controlling food waste and to proactively promote sustainability efforts and goals.
- Ensures cleanliness and sanitation of work areas at all campus dining locations.
- Supervises, directs and participates in proper and safe use, cleaning and maintenance of equipment. Is responsible for providing recommendations for equipment repair and/or replacement.
- Supervise the cleaning and sanitization of equipment after production is complete.
- Actively leads and/or participates in weekly unit production service staff meetings.
- Works with management team in developing new and creative programs designed to meet the diverse culinary preferences of college students.
- Actively solicits patrons' suggestions and respond to complaints, questions, and special requests.

Training:
- Trains and evaluates staff performance, including civil service, students and temporary employees.
- Coaches, provide feedback, and mentors staff and peers to improve efficient performance.
- Plans, conducts, and monitors monthly safety training meetings of culinary staff.
- Develops and maintains in-service orientation and training for new employees.
- Develops, implements, and provides department-wide training on sanitation, safety, and other food safety procedures.
- Assists in interviewing and selecting staff members, and ensures staff are on board properly.
- Provides guidance to direct reports on requirements and/or opportunities for learning and professional development.
- Identify and correct unsafe conditions, such as poor equipment or work habits that may lead to accidents or injury.

Menu Management:
- Ensure unit staff are properly trained on using the Computrition system by referring them to Dining Systems for training, as well as providing ongoing guidance and feedback.
- Use the current menu management software to update and to ensure accuracy of recipes, pricing and nutritional information.
- Use and maintain order guides to ensure accurate ordering practices. Ensure staff read and follow standardized recipes. Adjusts weights and measurements of ingredients to match quantity of production.

Supervisor Duties:
- Actively engage in recruitment and hiring new employees.
- Clearly define performance expectations, ensure accountability, and provide ongoing informal feedback, coaching, and mentoring. Conduct formal performance evaluations.
- Ensure employees have necessary resources.
- Oversee and direct the work of staff; serve as mentor, coach, and leader, and resolve complaints or issues.
- Promote professional development opportunities.
- Develop and foster supportive working relationships, motivation and engagement.
- Communicate information to staff on an ongoing basis to influence staff engagement and to be a part of a larger community.
- Take corrective action in a timely manner.
- Recognize and reward employees for good performance.
- Schedule employee work hours/shifts; monitor hours worked; approve payable time and absence requests.
- Adjust leadership style as needed to achieve results.
- Recognize value of and promote a diverse workforce. Value and encourage diverse perspectives, creativity, and teamwork.
- Participate as needed in campus special events.
- Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications
•   Over 3 years of experience working in large commercial/institutional or hotel type kitchen settings.
•   Leadership experience in a culinary setting performing such duties as hands-on training and working with teams.
•   Experience with menu execution, basic food ordering, understanding and applying allergen and nutritional standards.
•   Demonstrated ability and/or experience fostering a supportive and effective workplace while working with students and/or colleagues to uphold institutional excellence.
•   OR applicable combination of education and/or experience which demonstrates the ability to perform the essential functions of the position. Special Conditions of Employment
•   The position will require irregular shifts to ensure maximum coverage by management. As with any hospitality business, this position will work a variety of schedules and hours to meet customer needs.
•   Must have or be eligible to obtain WA State Food Handler's permit within 30 days of initial hire date.
•   Must be able to obtain SERVSAFE Certification within 6 months of initial hire date. Preferred Qualifications . click apply for full job details