Operations Manager Northeast Region

Operations Manager — Northeast Region

About the Role:

The Yay Company is looking for an experienced, hands-on Operations

Manager to own the performance of our Northeast area markets. These will consist of

locations in Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

You are in your markets, at your schools, and with your teams on a rotating basis,

ensuring every location runs to Yay's standards and every school feels great about the

program.

This region operates primarily through Yay-produced hub kitchens, meaning you are

managing real food production, kitchen teams, and distribution logistics — not just

coordinating third-party vendors. You will be responsible for standing up new kitchen

locations, managing Kitchen Managers and Lunch Coordinators across multiple

markets, and owning the financial performance of your region.

This role is based in Pennsylvania. The ability to lead remote teams with high trust and

clear expectations is as important as your ability to show up in person.

This is a high-accountability, high-visibility role at a company that is scaling fast. If you

love being in the field, own outcomes rather than activities, and thrive in an

environment where every day is different, this role is for you.

What You'll Own

Direct Margin & Financial Performance: You are accountable for the direct margin

of every school in your region. That means actively managing the inputs — food cost,

labor, waste, and sales — and knowing exactly where each market stands at all times.

Labor & Scheduling: You own the labor budget for your region. You build and manage

schedules for your Kitchen Managers, ensuring every market is staffed correctly based

on actual production volume — not habit. You approve overtime, monitor clock-in

compliance daily, and hold your team accountable to being on time, on location, and on

task — including markets you are not physically in that week.

Sales & School Experience: You own the sales number for your markets. You

understand participation rates at every school, you know which locations are

underperforming, and you proactively address the barriers — whether that's a school

relationship issue, a service gap, or an execution problem. Your schools should feel like

Yay's most important partners, whether you are there in person or managing remotely.

Inventory & Waste: You oversee weekly and monthly inventory counts across all

schools in your region. You are physically present for inventory on a rotating basis in

your core markets, and you hold Kitchen Managers in remote markets accountable to

running accurate counts on schedule without your physical presence. You investigate

any variance before it hits the margin report.

Remote Market Management: New York and Connecticut teams run their schools

day-to-day with significant autonomy. Your job is to set the standard, stay close through

daily Slack communication and weekly market calls, conduct site visits, and ensure

nothing drifts without you knowing about it.

New Location Launches: As we bring on new kitchen schools in your region, you own

the launch process end-to-end alongside your Kitchen Managers — from health

department coordination and equipment procurement to staffing plans and operational

setup.

Team Management & Development: You directly manage Kitchen Managers across

the region and are accountable for all ground-level staff. You set clear expectations,

develop your team, address performance issues directly, and build a culture of

ownership in every market you cover — in person and remotely.

Field Presence: Your time in the field is concentrated where it matters most.

Philadelphia is your home base. You are always reachable, always informed, and always

accountable — regardless of which market you are physically in.

What We're Looking For

5-7 years of experience in multi-unit operations management, ideally in food

service, hospitality, or a similarly fast-paced field environment

Experience managing kitchen or food production operations — you understand

food cost, labor scheduling, and what it takes to run a kitchen at margin

Proven ability to manage remote teams effectively — you know how to lead

people you are not standing next to every day

Strong people manager — you have led teams in the field, held people

accountable, and developed talent

Financially fluent — you can read a P&L, understand direct margin, and connect

daily operational decisions to financial outcomes

Self-directed and highly organized — you manage multiple markets across a large

geography and nothing falls through the cracks

Comfortable with ambiguity and growth — Yay is scaling and this region is

expanding. You build as you go and you enjoy that

ServSafe Manager certification or willingness to obtain within 30 days of hire

Must be based in Philadelphia or within commuting distance

Valid driver's license and reliable transportation — this role requires regular

travel across your markets

What We Offer

Competitive salary commensurate with experience

A high-growth, mission-driven company where your work directly impacts what

kids eat every day

A leadership team that values accountability, transparency, and operators who

own their outcomes

Real career growth as we expand into new markets and continue building our

leadership team

About The Yay Company

We are on a mission to fundamentally change school food

for the better. We are a culinary-first school food company — we cook fresh, nutritious,

and genuinely delicious meals in school kitchens every day. Since launching in 2018, we

have expanded across multiple markets and are backed by experienced venture capital

partners. This is school food the way it should be — and we are just getting started.