The Dining Services Shift Leader ensures a welcoming, efficient, and service-focused dining experience for students, faculty, staff, and guests. Overseeing front-of-house operations in a cafeteria-style setting, this position leads and supports a team of service staff to provide exceptional hospitality, uphold cleanliness and safety standards, and maintain smooth service flow during meals.
Essential Duties & Responsibilities:
- Manage daily front-of-house operations including staff schedules, meal period assignments, breaks, and shift changes.
- Support the hiring, onboarding, and training of Dining Services team members to ensure consistency, quality, and excellent service.
- Provide ongoing coaching, in-the-moment feedback, and input for performance reviews to support employee growth and accountability.
- Ensure all team members are positioned appropriately for meal service and understand their roles and expectations.
- Lead by example to maintain a welcoming, customer-focused environment that reflects Interlochen's values of respect, care, and community.
- Monitor portion control, menu presentation, and guest flow to ensure smooth and efficient service throughout each meal period.
- Ensure full compliance with food safety and sanitation standards by upholding proper hygiene, grooming, uniform, and glove-use practices, and by monitoring adherence to all state and local health regulations for food handling, storage, and service.
- Maintain high standards of cleanliness, organization, and safety in all dining and serving areas.
- Foster a positive, cooperative, and inclusive work environment that promotes teamwork, morale, and professional growth.
- Adhere to Interlochen Center for the Arts (ICA) policies and demonstrate stewardship of ICA resources and finances.
- Perform additional duties as assigned to support the success of Dining Services and the campus community.
- High school diploma preferred; equivalent experience considered.
- Minimum of two years of supervisory or management experience in a food service environment.
- ServSafe certification required.
- Knowledge of food safety practices and state health regulations.
- Familiarity with Mac laptops, Gmail, and digital communication tools used for email, newsletters, and ICA updates.
- Must meet and maintain background screening requirements as detailed in policy 12.HR.01 Pre-Employment and Employee Background Checks.
- Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to lead, function effectively within, and support a collaborative, team-based environment.
- Effective verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to follow and execute specific instructions with accuracy and consistency.
- Ability to promote and maintain positive, professional interactions with students, staff, guests, and other internal and external stakeholders.
- Demonstrated respect for cultural, ethnic, spiritual, and linguistic diversity and values, including differences in personal goals, lifestyle choices, and varying family backgrounds and histories.
- Health, dental, and vision insurance
- Vacation, Sick, Holiday and generous winter holiday time off
- Life insurance
- Voluntary life insurance
- Short and long-term disability
- Employee development & tuition reimbursement programs
- 403(b) plan, managed by TIAA
- Free or discounted employee tickets to Interlochen performances and events *some exceptions apply
- Early event ticket purchase before general public sales begin
- Free Stone Cafeteria meal on shift
- Dennison Recreation Center accessibility (includes spouses)
- Priority access to Interlochen employees at Pitter Patter Day Care Center (less than one mile from campus)
- Employee Referral Program (cash payments)
- Tuition discounts for employee's children at Academy, Camp and Interlochen Online
- Parental leave (12 weeks paid for Pregnancy/Maternity/Childbirth leave, 6 weeks paid for Parental leave).
Interlochen is proud to provide priority placement at Pitter Patter Preschool & Childcare located in the Interlochen Community Center, near our campus, for employees' dependents. In addition, Interlochen employees may be eligible for the MI Tri-Share Program. This program shares the cost of childcare between the state of Michigan, Interlochen Center for the Arts, and the employee (The employee will only pay 1/3 of the total cost, if eligible). Income guidelines and more information about MI Tri-Share can be found at https://www.michigan.gov/mwc/initiatives/mi-tri-share-child-care.