Director of Hospitality and Resident Experience for NJ-PA-MD Market

Director of Hospitality and Resident Experience

Independent & Assisted Living Communities

We are seeking a hospitality-driven leader to elevate the resident and family experience across our independent and assisted living communities. This role bridges the gap between traditional hospitality service standards and senior living operations — training, coaching, and guiding front-line staff, department managers, and community leaders to deliver consistently exceptional, warm, and dignified service.

The ideal candidate brings a strong front-of-house management background (hotels, resorts, fine dining, or private clubs) and is passionate about translating those service standards into a senior living setting where residents call their community “home.”

Training & Development

• Design and deliver hospitality-based service training programs for dining, concierge, front desk, activities, and care-adjacent staff

• Create onboarding curricula that instill a “resident-first” service culture from day one

• Lead ongoing coaching sessions, service audits, and role-play scenarios to reinforce standards

• Develop training materials, service scripts, and standard operating procedures (SOPs)

Culinary & Dining Service Excellence

• Train dining and culinary staff on proper food presentation, plating techniques, and portioning consistent with fine-dining standards, adapted for resident dietary needs

• Partner with Executive Chefs and dining services managers to align front-of-house service with kitchen execution, ensuring food arrives to the table at the right temperature, timing, and presentation

• Coach servers on menu knowledge, ingredient familiarity, and the ability to speak confidently about dishes, preparation methods, and dietary accommodations

• Establish plating and presentation standards that elevate the dining experience while respecting texture-modified and special dietary requirements common in senior living

• Lead pre-shift dining meetings to review daily menus, plating expectations, and service flow

• Conduct regular dining room and kitchen-pass audits to ensure consistency between plate presentation and service delivery

Leadership & Coaching

• Partner with community Executive Directors, Department Heads, and Managers to identify service gaps and build improvement plans

• Serve as a mentor and resource for front-line staff, modeling best-in-class hospitality behaviors

• Coach managers on team accountability, service recovery, and leading by example

Standards & Quality Assurance

• Establish and monitor service quality benchmarks across communities (dining, housekeeping, transportation, front desk, activities)

• Conduct regular walkthroughs, secret-shopper style evaluations, and resident/family satisfaction reviews

• Track and report on service metrics; recommend corrective action plans where needed

Culture Building

• Champion a culture of warmth, dignity, and personalized service appropriate for older adults and their families

• Collaborate with HR and community leadership on recognition programs that reinforce service excellence

• Support change with management as new service standards or programs are rolled out

Cross-Community Collaboration

• Travel between communities to deliver consistent training and standards company-wide

• Act as a liaison between corporate hospitality vision and on-the-ground community execution

Required

• 5+ years of front-of-house hospitality management experience (hotel, resort, restaurant, club, or similar guest-services environment)

• Strong working knowledge of culinary fundamentals, menu composition, and food plating/presentation standards

• Demonstrated experience training, coaching, or developing service staff and/or managers

• Strong presentation, facilitation, and public speaking skills

• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to build trust with staff at all levels, from front-line associates to executive directors

• Deep understanding of what exceptional service looks and feels like — and the ability to teach it

• Comfortable working in and adapting hospitality standards for a healthcare-adjacent, senior living environment

• Willingness to travel between communities as needed

Preferred

• Prior experience in senior living, assisted living, or healthcare hospitality

• Culinary training, culinary arts education, or back-of-house kitchen experience

• Certification or coursework in hospitality management, training and development, or adult learning

• Experience developing SOPs, training manuals, or service playbooks

• Familiarity with resident/family satisfaction survey tools and service quality metrics

• Working knowledge of texture-modified diets, dietary accommodations, and food safety standards relevant to senior living dining

• Service Mindset: Genuine passion for hospitality and elevating the guest (resident) experience

• Culinary & Dining Acumen: Strong eye for food presentation, plating, and the details that turn a meal into an experience

• Coaching & Mentorship: Ability to develop others through modeling, feedback, and encouragement — not just instruction

• Empathy & Emotional Intelligence: Sensitivity to the unique needs of older adults and their families

• Communication: Clear, warm, and persuasive communicator across all levels of an organization

• Adaptability: Comfortable adjusting polished hospitality standards to fit a residential, non-transactional care setting

• Accountability: Holds self and others to high standards with consistency and follow-through

• Front-line staff consistently deliver warm, attentive, and dignified service across all resident touchpoints

• Dining service reflects consistent, elevated plating and presentation standards across all communities

• Managers and community leaders feel equipped and confident to reinforce service standards independently

• Measurable improvement in resident and family satisfaction scores

• A recognizable, consistent service culture across all communities