Kitchen Training Specialist

Kitchen Training Specialist The key responsibilities are to support the success of foodservice training participants during our 12-week program offered at no cost to them in our social enterprise restaurant. The Kitchen Training Specialist supports participants in meeting their employment and economic security goals through helping them gain culinary and career skills so that they can obtain and maintain employment, participating in restaurant and catering activities; assessing and documenting progress, assisting with restaurant and catering activities, maintain the cleanliness of the kitchen; to work with foodservice training and restaurant/catering operations teams to coordinate training and operations activities; occasional pick-up and deliveries. General responsibilities include demonstrating Inspiration Corporation's core values, exhibiting professionalism and high standards in all aspects of performance, ensuring the efficient and effective provision of foodservice training and restaurant operations with dignity and respect in accordance with the agency's mission, working with all departments as appropriate to ensure that the needs of the agency's participants, programming and operations are addressed, attending department and agency meetings, and upholding Policies and Procedures of Inspiration Corporation and Inspiration Kitchens. Essential duties and responsibilities include providing balanced and growth-oriented assessment and feedback to participants, planning for restaurant and catering activities and providing clear, supportive instruction to participants, providing lecture, demonstration and experiential support to participants, supporting preparation of family meal, tours, utilizing strengths-based approaches such as trauma-informed care, harm reduction and motivational interviewing, using client data system to record participant strengths and challenges weekly, partnering with Chef Instructors, Employment Specialists, Case Managers and Workforce Development Program Manager to meet team goals, serving as liaison between Foodservice Training team and Restaurant/Operations team in planning training activities, scheduling participants; attending team meetings and sharing information. Inspiration Kitchens is the social enterprise restaurant, catering and foodservice training and employment program of Inspiration Corporation. The restaurant prepares contemporary American cuisine and is top-rated in the Chicagoland community (4+ stars on Yelp, featured on Check Please!). Inspiration Kitchens' culinary skills job training program for low-income job seekers equips participants with basic culinary, sanitation and restaurant operations skills and offers participants paid, on-the-job experience. Revenue from Inspiration Kitchens' restaurant and catering helps to support the larger goals of Inspiration Corporation and its mission. Kitchen specialist responsibilities include working with the on-duty Restaurant Chef in restaurant and catering preparation, assisting in the set up and break down of kitchen areas, prioritizing work to accomplish daily, weekly and monthly tasks as assigned by supervisor, following restaurant/kitchen policies and procedures for operational flow at each station, maintaining a clean, orderly, and sanitized kitchen by washing dishes, sanitizing surfaces, equipment, and taking out trash, performing cleaning tasks, upholding and following health, safety and sanitation standards and guidelines and working as a kitchen team member, receiving, labeling, dating and appropriately storing all deliveries from vendors and donors while following standards for stocking, rotating, and storing all products. F.I.F.O. (First In First Out), maintaining inventory of restaurant and catering prep items on hand, updating weekly, reporting needs of essential working supplies within a 3-day notice, assisting with food recovery efforts that support restaurant/catering activities, Meals program and Foodservice Training & Employment program, including recording the weight and type of produce and donated goods to maintain accurate donation data, collaborating with culinary staff to utilize recovered ingredients into family meals and foodservice training, ensuring recovered food is used creatively and effectively within program offerings, maintaining a safe environment inside kitchen and throughout facility, being flexible with hours for catering and special events throughout the year. Customer service (catering, partners, donors) responsibilities include giving a friendly greeting, sharing information about Inspiration Corporation's mission and work, including the foodservice training program to customers, discovering customer's needs and appropriately suggesting products with every delivery to enhance service and meet production goals, delivering Inspiration Kitchens food proudly and with care, pick-up perishable and non-perishable food from donors, informing the Restaurant Chef or General Manager on duty of any concerns or complaints in a timely manner. Education, experience and skills: Knowledge of cooking techniques, understanding of ingredients, recipes, kitchen safety and sanitation, familiar with general kitchen equipment, catering equipment and appliances, patience with the ability to stay positive, perform under pressure, complete work on time while maintaining focus in a fast-paced environment, manual dexterity to operate cooking tools such as knives, a team player with good communication skills, able to follow instructions, ability to bend, stretch, lift, carry and/or move heavy material, physically able to stand for long periods, high school diploma or equivalent, flexibility to work shifts, weekdays, weekends, and nights, a clean driving record is required, along with a current, valid, state issued driver's license, if the applicant is under 25 or over 65 years of age, an MVR (Motor Vehicle Report) demonstrating a clear driving record must be provided, food and sanitation certificate preferred, and manager's level held or to be earned after hire, teaching, training and experience supervising preferred. Physical demands: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to stand, walk, talk and hear. The employee frequently is required to walk and stand for long periods. The employee must be able to lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Work environment: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Schedule: The standard schedule for this role aligns with the Inspiration Kitchens' operations schedule; currently Tuesday-Saturday. Some evening, Sunday or Monday hours may be required. Inspiration Corporation is an equal opportunity employer.

Created: 2026-03-04