Culinary Services Director

Job Posting Title Culinary Services Director Agency 650 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS Supervisory Organization ODVA - Central Office Job Posting End Date Refer to the date listed at the top of this posting, if available. Continuous if date is blank. Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the posting end date above. Estimated Appointment End Date (Continuous if Blank) Full/Part-Time Full time Job Type Regular Compensation Job Description Culinary Services Director This position is for a Culinary Services Director for the Central Office. Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs 2132 NE 36th Street Oklahoma City, OK 73111 Annual Salary: $90,000.00 Reports to: Chief Operating Officer (COO) Coordination: ODVA Chief of Staff, Senior Headquarters Personnel, Home Administrators Location: Oklahoma City Headquarters (with ~30-50% regional travel) Position Objective The Culinary Services Director serves as the primary architect and overseer of the nutritional and dining experience for Oklahoma’s veterans. This role is responsible for the strategic integration of food service operations across seven state veterans’ homes, ensuring that every meal meets the highest standards of clinical nutrition, regulatory compliance, fiscal efficiency, and resident satisfaction. Primary Responsibilities 1. Strategic Oversight & Headquarters Coordination Serve as the subject matter expert (SME) for all culinary and nutritional matters within the ODVA executive team. Collaborate with the Chief of Staff and COO to develop and implement standardized policies and procedures pertaining to all aspects of food service operations, including resident dining experience. Provide data-driven reporting on food service KPIs, including cost-per-resident-day (PPD), labor efficiency, and clinical quality outcomes. 2. Vendor Management & Procurement Lead the selection, onboarding, and/or performance management of food service vendors and prime distributors. Analyze and manage contract compliance to ensure maximum value from Group Purchasing Organizations (GPOs). 3. Menu Development & Clinical Excellence Design and maintain a standard menu that balances resident preferences with clinical requirements (MDS 3.0, therapeutic diets). Ensure all menus meet or exceed 38 CFR §51.140 and CMS F-Tag (800–814) requirements. Coordinate with facility-level Registered Dietitians (RDs) to ensure seamless integration between the kitchen and clinical care plans. 4. Resident Experience & Quality Control Standardize "Person-Centered" dining initiatives that prioritize resident experience, food palatability, and meal temperature. Implement and monitor resident satisfaction instruments to track and improve the dining experience. Conduct unannounced site visits to perform quality audits on food presentation, taste, and service culture. 5. Training & Talent Management Develop a centralized training regimen for home-level staff, focusing on food safety, modified texture preparation, and veteran-centric hospitality. Assist Home Administrators in the recruitment, selection, and performance evaluation of facility Culinary Service Managers. Identify and implement best practices for staffing levels to ensure operational continuity. 6. Regulatory Compliance & Safety Ensure all seven homes maintain "Survey Ready" status for VA, CMS, and Oklahoma State Department of Health inspections. Standardize Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plans across the agency. Lead the corrective action plan (CAP) process for any food-service-related regulatory deficiencies. 7. Fiscal, contracting and budgetery oversight Centralized Purchasing Strategy: Direct the agency-wide subsistence procurement strategy, ensuring all food and supply acquisitions across seven homes comply with the Oklahoma Central Purchasing Act and OMES (Office of Management and Enterprise Services) guidelines. Budgetary Control & Audit Readiness: Monitor and approve large-scale requisitions to ensure fiscal alignment with the agency’s annual budget. Implement internal controls to prevent "split-purchasing" and ensure all procurement act