Executive Sous Chef – Central Kitchen

The Executive Chef (Food Engineering Focus) is responsible for leading large-scale production of savory Vietnamese and Western cuisine, butchery, and ready-to-eat meals while integrating modern food engineering, sustainability, and dietary inclusivity into daily operations.

This role blends culinary mastery with financial, operational, and R&D leadership. The Executive Chef ensures scalable recipe execution, cost efficiency, manpower productivity, food safety compliance, and innovation that addresses today's consumer trends—including plant-based diets, vegetarian offerings, and dietary needs such as Halal and Kosher.

I/ Key Accountabilities:

Planning & Budgeting:

• Manage food cost, labour cost, and productivity to meet budget targets.
• Support the Head of Production in developing annual production plans, manpower forecasts, budgets, and Capex, ensuring alignment with growth and automation strategies.
• Track productivity KPIs (output per FTE, yield per batch) and drive improvements.
• Identify cost-saving opportunities through recipe optimization, by-product utilization, and supplier negotiations.
• Contribute to long-term capacity planning to meet store expansion, partnerships, and B2B opportunities.

Culinary & Production Leadership

• Lead operations in commissary across various sections: receiving, hot kitchen, butchery, soups, sauces, grills, and RTE lines, product waste lines.
• Ensure consistent production of authentic, premium ingredients and RTE products, balancing traditional recipes with efficiency at scale.
• Oversee and train teams in advanced culinary techniques (e.g., sous-vide, smoking, braising, steaming, grilling) as well as core chef skills and product knowledge, ensuring store-based associates meet brand standards.
• Mentor chefs, butchers, and line cooks to strengthen technical, cultural, and leadership skills.
• Create a team culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate closely with Supply Chain, QA/QC, Marketing, and Operations to ensure seamless alignment of production with business needs.

Food Engineering & Operational Excellence

• Design and optimize food processing layouts and workflows to maximize efficiency, safety, and scalability.
• Integrate automation and advanced technologies (combi steaming, pressure cooking, sous vide cooking, vacuum, MAP, pasteurization, freezing).
• Standardize recipes for high-volume production while maintaining flavours, nutrition and consistency.
• Monitor yields, batch performance, and process productivity with data-driven controls.
• Supervise protein handling from receiving to finished goods, ensuring portion control, cold chain compliance, yield optimization, and by-product utilization.
• Lead HACCP, ISO, and cold chain programs across production, conducting audits, enforcing SOPs, and aligning with export standards.
• Ensure hygiene systems and in-store compliance, including dietary and religious requirements (Halal, Kosher, vegetarian), in coordination with the Hygiene & Sanitation Manager.

Innovation, Sustainability & Consumer Trends

• Develop and implement waste reduction and sustainability programs for raw, cooked, and packaging materials.
• Lead initiatives in energy efficiency, water usage reduction, sustainable sourcing, and eco-friendly packaging/storage solutions.
• Partner with NGOs and community partners for food donation initiatives.
• Collaborate with relevant stakeholders and suppliers to design scalable savoury recipes and detect/respond to consumer trends.
• Research and develop plant-based and vegetarian options to meet modern dietary trends.
• Integrate health-conscious, functional, and sustainable food solutions.
• Stay ahead of global and local food trends (clean label, organic, low-carb, wellness-driven).
• Ensure inclusivity in offerings by addressing Halal, Kosher, Vegan, allergen-free, and other dietary requirements.
• Conduct trials and validations for automation, shelf-life extension, and consumer acceptance.

II/ Job Requirements:

Education/ Training Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain, Food Technology, or related field.

Experience

• 8–10 years of culinary leadership in 5* hotels, banquets, airline catering, or central kitchens.
• Strong expertise in savoury Vietnamese and Western cuisine, butchery, and large-scale meal (automatized) production.
• Experience in recipe scaling, dietary-compliant production (Halal, Kosher, vegetarian).
• Proven success in financial management, manpower planning, and operational efficiency.

Knowledge of:

• HACCP, ISO, and Cold Chain standards.
• Advanced cooking and preservation techniques.
• Advanced packaging and preservation techniques.
• R&D methodologies, food trends, plant-based innovation.
• Waste management and sustainability in large-scale production.

Skills (Ability to):

• Bilingual (Vietnamese - English) with excellent communication.
• Leadership and mentoring skills with cross-functional collaboration.
• Strong financial acumen and analytical problem-solving.
• Forward-thinking mindset to integrate trends and consumer demands.
• High attention to detail, with a balance of creativity and operational discipline.
• Integrity and accountability in enforcing hygiene, compliance, and food safety.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-growing, dynamic, and high-pressure environment
• Ability to travel to commissaries, suppliers, and outlets as required.