(Archived) Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager

Overview
The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager is a full-time, year-round position responsible for management of
Findlay Kitchen, the region’s premier Food Business Incubator, supporting food entrepreneurs as they start,
grow and scale. This includes management of daily operations and facility oversight, program management and
execution, communications and relationship management, and financial and data management.
The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager will support Members with entrepreneurial mentorship, food production
support, navigation of regulatory processes, and business growth opportunities, including the development and
execution of mission-supporting programming.

The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager reports directly to the Director, Food Innovation. The Findlay Kitchen
Incubator Manager has two direct reports, the Food Innovation Facility Coordinator and the Findlay Kitchen
Program Coordinator. The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager also has shared workflow management with the
Food Innovation Program Manager, for the Entrepreneur Operations & Growth Coordinator.
This position has a regular schedule of Tuesday – Saturday, with some non-traditional working hours.

Details
The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager has responsibility for effective management of the 8,000 square foot
incubator kitchen facility, inclusive of equipment and regulatory compliance, as well as daily operations and
programming. This includes a core focus on strategic member recruitment, incubation support services, and
significant knowledge sharing in support of Members’ food production and business growth needs.
Strengthening relationships and making new connections to drive go-to-market strategies and opportunities for entrepreneurs will be a key piece of incubation service offerings.
Financial management is expected through an understanding of and adherence to monthly budget, as well as
responsibility for billing, invoicing and financial reporting.

The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager must ensure Findlay Kitchen is making a positive social impact through
program development, with special emphasis on supporting low income-, women-, immigrant- and BIPOC-food
entrepreneurs. The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager will work closely with the Director, Food Innovation and
team in developing vision for future programming that supports Findlay Kitchen’s mission and Members.
The Findlay Kitchen Incubator Manager’s success will be measured in part by the following Strategic Plan

Objectives:
CFFM will provide an environment for independent food-related businesses to start, grow & scale
Principal Duties & Responsibilities:

• Operations & Facility Management
  • Oversee facility operational needs, ensuring the highest standards are met for facility upkeep through management of meticulous cleaning, maintenance, and repair of facility and equipment needs; Manage and work closely with Food Innovation Facility Coordinator, ensuring their success in meeting related expectations.
  • Lead continuous identification, implementation and improvement of operational processes and risk mitigation.
  • Manage adherence to city, state, federal requirements for commercial kitchens and member licensing, ensuring consistent review and updating based on evolving regulations.
  • Manage and maintain scheduling, reservation, records and payment system, as well as rule enforcement and training with all Members, citing violations and providing trainings as needed.
  • Manage membership process, including curation and execution of member onboardings.
  • Overall administrative and project management required for effective and efficient operations.
• Program Management & Development
  • Provide overall leadership to program stakeholders, mediating and managing expectations internally and externally. Deliver regular updates to the team, providing context, data, risks/issues, and action needed.
  • Responsible for management and execution of all program components through to completion.
  • Manage external partnership development, optimized facility infrastructure, and enhancement of overall program, executing program and functional requirements.
  • Responsible for achieving strategic objectives in alignment with CFFM’s Strategic Plan.
  • Supports the Director, Food Innovation, in the development of vision, plan, and execution of Food Innovation Growth and Initiative Planning.
  • Incubation Support Services
    • Food Production Expertise -- Provide Members assistance with recipe scaling, production methods and processes, equipment functionality, menu creation and related food and product creation support.
    • Licensing & Regulatory Compliance -- Provide expertise and continuously update and create SOPs and step-by-step processes, guiding Members through food regulations, licensing requirements, inspections, best practices, HACCP plan creation, and additional regulations required for food safety and production.
    • Business Support -- Mentor and provide members access to technical assistance through partner connections, and internal programming opportunities; Work closely with the Food Innovation Program Manager to cultivate and provide ideation, content, recommendations and connections in creating and executing entrepreneur education programming through Findlay Learn.
    • Sales Channel/Promotion Opportunities -- Work closely with the entrepreneurial and business community, creating new and evaluating existing growth opportunities, leading management and execution; Work directly with Market team ensuring integration with services and offerings.
    • Market Popup Program – manage the administration and execution, including procurement of licenses, necessary equipment, scheduling, and training of Members.
• Communication and Relationship Management
  • Develop positive relationships and community-building with program stakeholders; Initiate and participate in community outreach; develop new/nurture existing key industry relationships.
  • Cultivate Member community-building providing a platform for internal connections and collaborations.
  • Work cross-functionally with Food Innovation, Market Management, Development, and Communications teams on planning and pipeline.
  • Oversee external communications, including program messaging, consistent website updating, newsletter input, initiation of promotional collateral and framework for social media management, supported by Communication team.
  • Coordinate with Development and Communication teams on fundraisers and special events that include Findlay Kitchen Members, including coordination and execution of events.
• Financial and Data Management
  • Own administration of software platforms, including CRM, used to collect and analyze data on Member trends and program details, strategically leveraging insights to inform innovation, growth, and change.
  • Lead reporting initiation and implementation; ongoing measurement of program effectiveness through qualitative feedback and metric tracking, iterating and adapting as necessary.
  • Responsible for financial management of program budget, projections, and identification and action upon key budgetary trends.
  • Initiate recommendations for financial model improvements, incremental revenue streams, and provide point of view for management of services, fee, and resource allocation.
  • Manage billing, invoicing, payments, fees; provides monthly reporting and review of financials.
  • Prepares yearly budget recommendations; controls expenditures in accordance with budget allocations.

• Minimum 5+ years professional kitchen experience
• Entrepreneurial drive required; bringing a sense of urgency, ownership and follow through to all work
• Ability to effectively identify, prioritize, manage multiple work streams in a dynamic environment
• Skill and experience in program development and execution, evaluating data and establishing priorities
• Must have grit: the willingness to do whatever it takes to solve for issues
• Comfortable operating with a rapid pace of play that comes with working in a startup business mindset
• Highly organized with excellent time management, problem-solving and mediation skills
• Strong business judgement and creative problem-solving skills
• Experience with organizational and management practices, budgeting and accounting principles
• Passion for working in a proactively diverse and inclusive organization
• Computer proficiency; experienced in using software platforms for functional and organizational efficiency; knowledge of G Suite, Asana, Slack, MS Office preferred
• Proven ability to cope with conflict, stress and crisis situations
• Continual on the job learning and application of new skills and knowledge is required
• Ability to lift 50+ lbs
• Position schedule is Tuesday through Saturday; must be able to work some non-traditional hours/days

• Findlay Kitchen: Food Business Incubator and commissary kitchen (findlaykitchen.org)
• Findlay Launch Storefront Accelerator: 9-month Residency Program (findlaylaunch.org)
• Findlay Learn: Food-related entrepreneur education through courses, classes, and workshops
• Findlay Market Shopping App: Innovative tech solution supporting Merchant growth and Shopper lifestyle

• Application: Send a cover letter and resume to jobs@findlaymarket.org
• Salary: $50,000-$55,000
• Benefits: This is a year-round, full-time position with an attractive benefits package that includes: 4 weeks of PTO (5 weeks after 2 years), paid parental leave, health insurance (medical, dental, vision, life, short-term, long-term), CFFM pays 85%-90% of health insurance premiums, CFFM HSA contribution for those enrolled in medical insurance, partial cell phone reimbursement or work phone, Sabbatical Program