Program Manager – Restaurant Pre-Opening

Location

Anaheim, CA

Type

Contract

Duration

null

Start Date

Immediate

Skills

Food and Beverage Operations, MarketingConstruction, Business Launch, Launch Operations, Team Leadership, Project Management, Project Planning, Tenant Improvement, Restaurant Management

Reference #

Job-11816

Job Description

We’re seeking an experienced Business Launch Program Manager to lead the planning and execution of our exciting new restaurant launch – a multi-concept food and beverage destination .

Working closely with the General Manager, VP of Food & Beverage, Director of Real Estate and Property Management, you’ll coordinate the numerous workstreams required to successfully open this dynamic dining environment. This role will build, manage and maintain the comprehensive launch plan, coordinate stakeholders, track dependencies and risks, and document critical patah timelines to support execution from planning through opening.

-Start Date: Immediate
– Duration: 1-2 years
– Location: Anaheim, CA
– Compensation: Starting at $95 per hour (W2) plus benefits

Key Responsibilities

Program & Launch Planning
– Develop and manage the comprehensive launch plan, including all operational readiness workstreams
– Translate operating plans into detailed pre-opening and launch activities
– Manage timelines, dependencies, risks, and key decisions
– Maintain clear project documentation and executive status reporting
– Own and maintain the master project schedule as the single source of truth

Tenant Coordination
• Coordinate with the Director of Real Estate and Property Management team to track tenant readiness.
• Track readiness milestones including tenant improvements, turnover, and operational setup.
• Ensure alignment between internal stakeholders; ; this role will not work directly with Culinary Partners.

Operational Readiness

Coordinate planning and execution across critical launch workstreams:
– Hiring: Coordinate hiring plans for supervisors, bartenders, servers, cooks, and other operational staff
– Training: Organize comprehensive training programs for staff and culinary partners
– Vendor Setup: Support onboarding of vendors for procurement, including contracts, item catalogs, pricing, and delivery schedules
– Systems Readiness: Coordinate operational readiness for systems such as NetSuite and Simphony in partnership with technology teams

Construction & Build-Out Coordination
– Track tenant improvement and construction readiness milestones affecting operational launch.
– Coordinate with Property Management to ensure spaces are delivered in alignment with operational timelines.
– Document kitchen and space handoff processes.
– Identify and escalate risks related to delays or sequencing issues.

Marketing & Launch Communications
– Collaborate with marketing teams on launch campaigns, announcements, and opening milestones
– Ensure operational readiness aligns with marketing and launch timelines

Launch Readiness & Executive Communication
– Develop and manage operational readiness checklists across all functions
– Ensure staff, partners, vendors, and systems are fully prepared for opening
– Provide structured status updates to the General Manager
– Proactively identify risks, issues, and decision points
– Maintain a centralized dashboard for schedule, risks and milestones
– Drive accountability across stakeholders to maintain launch timelines

Required Experience
– 8-10+ years of project management experience, ideally focused on hospitality, restaurant, or venue launch operations
– Proven track record opening multiple restaurants or food concepts, preferably in a multi-tenant dining environment
– Strong experience managing complex pre-opening programs with multiple concurrent workstreams
– Excellent organizational, communication, and stakeholder management skills
– Ability to translate strategy into structured execution plans
– Comfortable working in fast-paced startup or pre-opening environments

Preferred Qualifications
– Management consulting background
– Experience with hospitality operational systems (e.g., POS or ERP systems)

Key Success Characteristics:
– Highly organized and execution-focused
– Comfortable managing ambiguity and complexity
– Proactive in identifying risks and dependencies
– Able to drive accountability across cross-functional teams
– Skilled at building relationships with operators, partners, and executives
– Energized by launching new businesses and operational environments

Apply today! #LI-GS1 #LI-DNI

For more information, please email: Job-11816@thecarreraagency.com