About ARAMARK Higher Education: When it comes to on-campus dining, facilities services, sports arenas and conference center services, ARAMARK is the real head of the class. Partnering with close to 600 colleges and universities throughout the United States, we strive to provide the best residential, retail, and catering options, service and facilities for students, faculty and administrator. Our programs are second to none in their innovation, excellence and results. As part of our commitment, we are determined to build and develop the best team of professionals in the industry - people who aren't afraid of spearheading change, who know how to lead and who appreciate endless opportunity.
Position Summary:
Reporting to the Associate Vice President of Strategic Development, as the Director of Strategic Development (DSD) with ARAMARK Higher Education you will direct and lead the efforts for advancing our market position and value proposition at our existing higher education client accounts. This is a senior level position with industry-leading financial rewards for top performance. A successful DSD candidate will be expected to provide keen analytical skills to help identify and align with the goals and aspirations of our current business partners, create customized solutions based on mutually beneficial strategic considerations, and successfully communicate to our existing clients the differential advantages of ARAMARK, resulting in long-term partnerships and industry-leading client retention rates. Candidates must have demonstrated the ability to collaborate with operating leadership and functional support staff to develop, lead and execute customized account strategies for our existing business partners.
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to account diagnostics, relationship analysis and engagement planning, regional training and coaching of Frontline Managers, District Managers and functional support staff, annual account objectives development, formalized client communications, proposal development, client presentations, and contract negotiations. This Director of Strategic Development will focus on managing a portfolio of Dining and Facilities Services accounts associated with the Eastern Region, based in Philadelphia, PA.
Essential Job Functions:
- Effectively use deliberate influence strategies to impact, shape, or re-direct the behaviors of others, without formal authority.
- Promote a spirit of cooperation within operations in order to best leverage capabilities and resources to serve client needs.
- Posses a genuine desire and ability to discover the changing needs of clients and respond accordingly with solutions that target these needs.
- Successfully build alliances and influence key decision makers.
- Manage customer relationships through creative problem solving and customer savvy at the C-level of client organizations.
- Demonstrate a solid understanding of the broader market picture and applies it to make mutually beneficial business decisions in a mature service industry.
- The successful candidate will have completed a 4 year Business-related degree. MBA preferred.
- Minimum of 8 years demonstrated experience in a senior operational, marketing or sales capacity in Dining services.
- Previous experience in contract-managed services and the higher education marketplace is preferred. Operational acumen and savvy (including dining, facility and conference services technical understanding and proforma development)
- Ability to identify and apply quantifiable client-centered performance metrics and operational results to existing and proposed services.
- Position requires excellent interpersonal and communication skills, sound judgment and ability to learn quickly while working in a fast-paced dynamic environment.
- Position requires approximately 70% travel.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications (Outlook, PowerPoint, Excel and Word) is required.
Additional Information:
