General Manager of Rex at the Royal Job Description

Job Title: General Manager

Job Type: Full Time, Salary Department: FOH Reports to: Owners / Directors

Leadership Benefits: 

• Health
• Vision

• Dental

• 401K

• Commuter benefits

• Dining discount

• Fitness benefits

• PTO
  

Business Overview

Rex at the Royal represents, "Elevated Country Cuisine with Coastal Influences" in the newly renovated atmosphere of the historic Royal Theatre at 1524 South Street.  Rex at the Royal entices the neighborhood with live music weekly, space for private events, and a bottle shop to grab wine and beer to go.  Expanding beyond dinner service, Rex at the Royal is eager to grow its leadership team.

Rex at the Royal is part of Sojourn Philly, a hospitality group of four restaurants: Jet Wine Bar, Rex at The Royal, Café Ynez, and Sor Ynez. Sojourn Philly has been operating restaurants in Philly since 2010. Our mission is to create welcoming environments that serve delicious food and drink, while being a caring and responsible neighborhood partner.

https://www.rexphl.com/

Position Overview:

The General Manager (GM) is responsible for the day-to-day operations of their respective restaurant; they organize and oversee the FOH to achieve consistency in fiscal health as well as a consistent experience for both the public and staff.  The General Manager is established as the onsite expert of their business strategies, brand, the hospitality standard of service, and is trusted to recognize when intervention is needed.  The General Manager must understand that the success of day-to-day operations determines the achievement of long-term goals; the GM is expected to lead and direct the daily demands of the department by maintaining routines and accountability for their staff.  The GM position is unique in that they are ultimately accountable to all aspects of FOH service and success; therefore, it is essential that the GM organize and hire reliable staff to allow for delegation and oversight of standards. While they shouldn't always be the direct contact for every operation, knowing and understanding them is essential to successful oversight. 

The General Manager is expected to lead through their decision making, confidence in the brand and operations, and their consistent feedback and accountability. The GM and EC are unique in their close partnership with Directors to achieve long-term financial growth; it is the GM and EC’s responsibility to apply this insight to a clear vision and established expectations for day-to-day operations.  There should be a close working relationship with the EC and an understanding of their vision for the BOH.  The GM is required to have a clear knowledge and understanding of the current and developing beverage and food programs and is accountable to their impact on the overall budget.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities:

Staff

1. Keep all employees motivated and morale high by acknowledging team members that exhibit exceptional performance. Assure that a high quality of service standards are maintained by all staff members at all times. 
2. Oversee hiring and firing of all FOH employees, ensuring hiring standards are met and SOP is followed
3. Develop new positions as required by FOH; complete with qualifications, duties and responsibilities, position overview, and pay rate
4. Produce FOH Leadership schedule 2 months in advance, oversee that FOH Hourly schedule is produced 10 days in advance.
5. Creation of rubric, protocol, and training curriculum so that standards can be easily recognized and followed.
6. Organize staff training to achieve quality standards; expected to either lead staff training or be an expert of the curriculum being taught
7. Uphold accountability through PDP and documenting intervention efforts.  Recognize non-compliance with the Employee Conduct, Attendance Policy and training; overseeing timely and fair progression of feedback and discipline, assuring that documentation is within bounds and in compliance with standards for unemployment compensation requests.
8. Be vigilant about observing staff relations and schedule a meeting with appropriate parties before potentially adversarial relations escalate.
9. Maintain open communication with the chef and management staff to assess and augment performance.
10. Manage completion of FOH Leadership assignments and responsibilities; overseeing timeliness, accuracy, quality, and additional resources
11. Serve as FOH expert regarding current BOH staffing, operations, objectives, and new production
    • All FOH questions, concerns, and feedback pertaining to BOH should be filtered through the GM
    • Identifies BOH intel that directly affects FOH job performance; organizes FOH education and communication
12. Uphold all company expectations as set forth by Jill & Evan regarding respect for all coworkers.

Facilities

1. Serve as the point of contact for the restaurant’s facilities, maintenance, and upkeep
2. Guarantee the cleanliness and pest control of the entire restaurant, and maintain communication with hired entities to assure optimization.
3. Assess and maintain the inventory of disposable goods, tableware, and office supplies. Assure that they remain relevant and accessible to staff.
4. Oversee the cleanliness of refrigeration used by staff, and that contents are labeled in accordance with health code, and maintenance of equipment is in contract.
5. Determine if there are ergonomic impediments to staff and resolve issues for ease of use in both FOH & BOH.
6. Maintain the security of the building with attention given to onboarding and termination of management, security codes, and keys.

Administrative

1. Complete daily manager report nightly. Complete daily attendance audit nightly. 
2. Assure that all management is maintaining the reports to the best of their abilities and coach when necessary.
3. Ensure accurate cash handling and security of onsite safe. Manage distribution of paychecks, vendor checks, and reimbursements.
4. Any breach of security must result in a change of protocol.
5. Maintain positive and professional relationships with vendors, including food & beverage representatives, technicians, industry professionals, and guests.
6. Practice excellent grammar and diction while in service, in business correspondence, and on social media.
7. Follow the Chain of Command for Conflict Resolution, and utilize expertise of Personnel Director and HR Director for additional support.
8. Maintain well-rounded and compelling social media accounts including clear and up-to-date pictures, planning, and events.  Ensure that the Leadership Team utilizes marketing tools to schedule content creation and remains compliant with promotional timelines.
9. Meet the restaurant's financial objectives. 
10. Complete the monthly sales report for manager meetings
11. Set budget in tandem with CFO
12. Identify strategies and analyze effectiveness to achieve financial goals
13. Identify opportunities for improvement; operations, spending, repairs, etc
14. Forecast high-value expenses
15. Set Bonus Goals for FOH Leadership to enhance financial fluency and awareness throughout the department
16. Manage Progressive Discipline Policy (PDP) documentation using the Staff Log / Staff Journal and PDP Templates
17. Manage timeline for disciplinary intervention
18. Manage timeline for follow-up and retraining
19. Ensure quality of intervention and documentation
20. Fill out Employee Evaluations thoughtfully and with the intention of staff development.
21. Is the acting liaison between the restaurant and third party vendors, in both menu maintenance and conflict/billing resolution.
22. Schedule and manage contracts with live entertainers

Guests

1. Ensure overall guest satisfaction, especially keeping regular clientele and VIP guests happy. Note frequent guest’s names and preferences, share with staff, and conceptualize ways in which staff can exceed expectations.
2.  Train staff and management in the negotiation of conflict resolution, and assure that it is acted on immediately and in the best interests of both the guest and the company.
3.  Strive to develop and maintain ties within the community by interacting with proximate non-profit groups, including introduction, hiring locally, and attention given to neighborhood concerns.
4. Continually observe and audit steps of service to ensure a consistent and quality dining experience for guests. 
5. Manage private dining bookings, reply to inquiries, and ensure interdepartmental preparedness. 

Partnership with Directors: 

The General Manager is trusted to operate the establishment independently, and it is necessary that they do.  While each Director holds specific expertise, the General Manager is the expert of their establishment.  The intention of the existing Directors is to contribute strategic guidance and intervention to each establishment’s leadership team; introducing structure, resources, and information in response to barriers to success.  The Directors, in partnership with the General Manager, work in creating consistency and predictability for the wellbeing of staff and the community.  Protocols and policies  administered by Directors exist to achieve big-picture objectives; the General Manager’s day-to-day expertise and feedback is critical in editing practices for onsite success.  The General Manager must recognize that Directors aim to share their time equally between all four establishments, therefore Directors should be utilized most heavily when responsibilities are beyond the General Manager’s duties.  Directors will meet with the General Manager regularly and both parties share a responsibility to uphold communication standards.

Supervision Received:

The General Manager is encouraged to advocate to the Owners and Directors in regards to continued education.  Direction from the Owners and Directors is sourced in the best interest of the business and needs to be regarded with seriousness.  The General Manager is held accountable through the PDP with direct oversight from the Personnel Director and HR Director of Sojourn Philly.  

Supervision Exercised:

Reflecting the Chain of Command, the GM is accountable to all aspects of FOH and service; therefore it is essential that they monitor and supervise all FOH staff to ensure a standard of excellence is maintained.  The GM directly supervises FOH Leadership and FOH hourly staff for compliance with policy, consistency in service, accuracy, and quality standards.  The GM should be seen as the last supervisor in the building, and the final word for most decision making.

Qualifications & Skills: 

A minimum of 4 years of General Manager.

The GM position requires: 

• Deep knowledge of standard restaurant operations for both FOH and BOH
• Understanding of restaurant budgeting, P&L analysis, and financial management as it applies to the operations of the restaurant
• Strong operating knowledge and ability to problem-solve various POS operating systems
• Strong leadership skills
• Time management
• Effective delegation and follow up