Bakery and Kitchen Lead

ANTHEM Coffee is a well-established multi-unit coffee and bakery operator serving communities across the Pacific Northwest for over twenty years. Renowned for their commitment to Heroic Hospitality, the company operates with a strong focus on community connection, leadership development, and proactive problem-solving. Unlike typical corporate chains, ANTHEM Coffee positions itself as a community hub that values authenticity, teamwork, and a set of 12 guiding principles that drive daily operations and culture throughout its locations. With a reputation for fostering a supportive environment, ANTHEM is currently expanding the bakery side of the business, applying systematic management practices that have long been successful on the retail side. This growth phase presents exciting opportunities for professionals eager to contribute meaningfully to a brand that values quality and community engagement.

The Bakery and Kitchen Lead position at ANTHEM Coffee is a full-time, hourly role offering a competitive pay range of $20 to $22 per hour, depending on experience. Reporting directly to Matia Long, Director of Operations, this role is vital to overseeing bakery and kitchen production across all ANTHEM’s retail locations. The position requires a hands-on leader who balances production expertise with administrative acumen, dedicating approximately 70% of their time to hands-on production duties such as baking, plating, decorating, and station management, while spending 30% on administrative tasks including production planning and vendor coordination. The ideal candidate will possess a deep understanding of a fast-paced production environment and will be actively involved in creating and refining systems, ensuring consistent quality, and fostering team professionalism. This role demands early morning availability due to pre-dawn production schedules.

Key responsibilities center on managing production planning anchored in an established par sheet system, adjusting daily production based on sales trends, maintaining vendor relationships, and ensuring consistent standards across multiple stations. The lead is also tasked with upholding kitchen team accountability, including dress code, timing, and product quality, while promoting cross-unit consistency in both product and presentation. Importantly, candidates will be expected to embody and promote ANTHEM’s core values within the kitchen environment, nurturing a culture of respect, quality, and teamwork. While this position currently does not include full control over the bakery and kitchen profit and loss statements or hiring decisions, these areas offer growth potential with experience.

ANTHEM Coffee emphasizes the importance of a dual-skilled professional comfortable both in baking and savory kitchen operations. Candidates should be adept in both realms to effectively lead during busy shifts across various production demands. Experience working with production schedules and an analytical mindset to interpret cost of goods and labor metrics are essential. Moreover, a passion for system building and continuous improvement is highly valued, alongside effective communication skills to both give and receive feedback constructively. The role is not a desk job; therefore, comfort with physical, on-the-floor work is critical.

Joining ANTHEM means becoming part of a dynamic team that values your contribution, provides health benefits, paid time off from day one, and plenty of coffee to fuel your shifts. The company fosters leadership development with the promise of career advancement to an Assistant Manager role within 12 to 18 months. New hires will spend their first 90 days learning, observing, building trust, and documenting existing systems before implementing changes. ANTHEM Coffee welcomes candidates who are passionate about making a meaningful impact, embodying hospitality in the kitchen, and growing with a company deeply rooted in community values.