Guest Service Manager

Who We Are

Founded in 1926, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is a private, not-for-profit educational, historic, and cultural institution that owns and operates one of the largest and best-known museum complexes in the world. Our mission is "that the future may learn from the past" through preserving and restoring 18th-century Williamsburg, Virginia's colonial capital. We engage, inform, and inspire people to learn about this historic capital, the events that occurred here, and the diverse peoples who helped shape a new nation. Today, Colonial Williamsburg is the largest living history museum in the U.S. The Historic Area is the 301-acre restored colonial capital with 88 original buildings and 525 buildings reconstructed to how they appeared in the 18th century through extensive archaeological, architectural, and documentary research. The Historic Area is staffed by highly trained, historically dressed interpreters and expert tradespeople who bring the 18th century to life. The Foundation also owns and operates two world-class museums, the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum, and the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, and a renowned research library, the John D Rockefeller Jr Library. Additionally, Colonial Williamsburg is home to five world class accommodations at the Williamsburg Inn, Williamsburg Lodge Autograph Collection, the Giffin Hotel, the Williamsburg Woodlands Hotels and Suites and the unique Colonial Houses in the Historical Area. Visitors may also indulge in food and drink at our many on site restaurants and taverns that blend a historically inspired dining experience with today's evolved tastes. Each year over 5 million people visit Williamsburg and another 20 million engage with us digitally.

Essential Functions:

1. Manages day-to-day leadership and development, completed shift assignments based on job classification and establishes performance evaluations from each shift where needed to include Guest Service Supervisors, and 50+ front line employees in the Collective Bargaining unit, as well as any Non-Bargaining Units. Develops/adjusts weekly work schedules based on forecasted business needs.
2. Collaborates with the culinary team, Restaurant Manager and Director of Restaurant, to ensure efficient operations and consistent management in all Historic Area Tavern Food and Beverage Participates in all Food and Beverage tastings and provides constructive feedback designed to satisfy the most discriminating guest tastes. Coordinates the planning, booking, and execution of special dining programs/events and updates POS and OpenTable.
3. Collaborates with the Culinary team, stewarding team, Restaurant Manager, and Director of Restaurants, to ensure exceptional guest service in all areas of the taverns. Conducts daily, weekly, and monthly performance maintenance schedules to ensure clean, orderly, and proper function of all guests and back of house areas
4. Facilitates the execution of service standards that consistently exceeds guest expectations in all Historic Area Tavern outlets by administering a training plan, implementation of plan and daily activities associated with the plan. Implements the production of new restaurant menu and the training of staff members.
5. Hire, trains, schedules, counsels, and evaluates all supervisors, and hourly staff to provide the highest levels of proficiency, efficiency, and confidence in our service standards for guests. Develops training plans for staff to provide guests with all information requested about menu items, food preparation, and general knowledge of the Historic Area Taverns and Colonial Williamsburg. Conducts audits for each job classification evaluated to our service Recommends evaluations to management based on audit findings.
6. Facilitates daily lineups, weekly, and monthly meetings with supervisors, and hourly staff to ensure all employees are aware of goals, objectives, and activities within the department. Ensures staff are familiar with and can describe daily specials as well as regular menu items in detail set forth in training manuals. Conducts compliance trainings, i.e., alcohol awareness, tip reporting, and food handlers.
7. Ensures compliance by all team members to Company policies and procedures, local and state regulations. Maintains company logs based on established policies and procedures.
8. Regularly reviews and evaluates the degree of customer feedback of the Outlet offerings and guest service and recommends to management new service policies whenever sales, customer feedback or trends in the marketplace necessitates such action. Has a working knowledge of OpenTable and POS system. Processes reservations, financial transactions, and bank audits as necessary. Analyzes operational problems and established procedures to alleviate problems, i.e., cashier over/short.
9. Monitoring equipment needs, menu abstracts, job descriptions, reviewing and editing daily time entries, reviewing overtime reports, and adjusting staff hours as needed. Controlling costs, guest responses and monitor other supply levels, count inventory and purchase orders as necessary to ensure efficient operations, in consideration of budget.
10. Assists the Restaurant Manager in developing marketing plans and strategies for all outlets. Develop, train and implement suggestive selling strategies for hourly staff. Implement incentive programs to motivate the team with new programing.
11. Maintains a daily management log of important information or decisions made such as guest dissatisfaction, over bookings, compliments received, or employee issues. Provides employees with information needed to successfully perform their responsibilities, i.e., department priorities, performance objectives and standards, special event information, and product information.
12. Attends meetings, and training sessions and prepares summary reports as required.
13. Assists the Restaurant Manager in planning music for dining guests.
14. Implementation of the beverage program of all Outlets listed above. Keeps up with industry trends to ensure a well-suited beverage experience consistently exceeds guest expectations.
15. Implements the training of the J-1 Internship Program. Evaluates the hourly interns as necessary and adjusts their training as needed.

Required:

2-year degree in restaurant management. Minimum 3-5 years' experience in Hospitality, with no less than 2 years of supervision in a luxury setting.

Preferred:

1. Restaurant and Hotel Food & Beverage Operations:
   1. A passion for excellent service execution and the ability to lead a team to the established standards.
   2. Strong knowledge of wine, spirits and beer and culinary arts.
   3. Thorough knowledge and understanding of Restaurant, Bar and Lounge operations.
   4. Skilled in planning and executing special functions.
2. Financial Management:
   1. Inventory maintenance and control.
   2. Thorough understanding of current Restaurant and Hotel technology, including PMS, POS, OpenTable, GL, Labor Management, and purchasing software.
   3. Skilled in staff scheduling, implementing payroll and inventory cost control methods.
3. Human Capital Management
   1. Skilled in providing guest service including personalized service, steps of service and service recovery.
   2. Ability to work closely with culinary team to deliver an exceptional product across all outlets.
   3. Ability to develop and implement employee training programs, coach and counsel, mentor and develop staff to the desired levels professionalism.
4. Personal Skills:
   1. Ability to find solutions in the midst of challenges while maintaining composure and delivering the highest level of guest service.
   2. Make independent decisions which are generally guided by established policy and procedures.
   3. Work flexible schedules, including nights, weekends and holidays.
   4. Excellent written and verbal communication skills
   5. Relentless attention to detail and devotion to excellence

Other Duties: Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

---