Are you passionate about food and driving high performing teams across multiple café locations? If that sounds like you, our Area Manager role could be your next big move! Join our Food by WHSmith team as an Area Manager for NSW! Be a part of growing global business and oversee multiple dynamic food sites. Lead a diverse site-based team and drive a culture focused on improvement, accountability, and top performance. About WHSmith With a proud heritage spanning over 230 years and stores in more than 30 countries, WHSmith is continuing to grow in Australia through the expansion of our dedicated food operations. Our Food by WHSmith cafes are located in some of Australia’s largest hospitals, offering a fast-paced and vibrant work environment for team members who thrive in a collaborative setting. We are driven by our core values: Value our People, Drive for Results, Customer Focus & Accountability. When you join Food by WHSmith, you’ll step into a vibrant, fast-paced café operations environment where quality, service, and community are at the heart of everything we do. This is your opportunity to lead with purpose, make a real impact, and grow a rewarding long-term career within a truly unique and expanding food business. How You’ll Make an Impact As an Area Manager for NSW, you’ll take the lead across three areas: People Management, Operations & Compliance and Reporting & Administration. Here’s how you’ll play a key role at WHSmith: Conducting regular café store visits to all stores in the NSW region, setting store standards and objectives in line with business requirements. Lead, mentor, and develop your operational teams to deliver against KPIs and SLAs. Support recruitment, onboarding, and ongoing training to build capable and confident store teams. Actively participate in the Annual Performance Review process and oversee reviews across all stores. Effectively communicate with all levels of staff including internal and external providers. Build and maintain effective working relationships that reflect our values and strengthen our brand. Continually review and improve current processes, always looking for ways to enhance service delivery and drive efficiency in a customer first culture. Champion high standards in stock management, ensuring accuracy, availability, and minimal loss. Ensure the compliance with Time and Attendance data to the Fast Food Industry Award (FFIA) including shift patterns, rosters and clocking data in the system. Ensure the adherence to health and safety standards (HACCP) across all sites in NSW. Drive the operational compliance and growth of our cafés while also supporting the successful launch of new store openings. Use internal and external data to monitor performance, identify trends, and drive continuous improvement. What You’ll Need to Succeed The ideal candidate is a proactive and strategic leader, dedicated to driving operational excellence and fostering a positive, high-performing team culture. The successful candidate will also possess: A minimum of 5 years’ experience as an Area Manager within hospitality. Experience managing food compliance alongside HACCP guidelines. Strong leadership and mentoring capabilities, with a passion for developing others. Track record of driving operational improvements across food sites while maintaining consistency and a customer-first mindset. Proven experience in managing the stock lifecycle. Experience in managing labour costs across a multi-site business unit. Experience with managing new store openings would be advantageous. A good understanding of rostering requirements and compliance standards. Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills. A track record of delivering results, achieving KPIs, and driving business performance. A determined and goal-oriented mindset, with a strong sense of accountability. Flexibility with work hours and locations as travel across NSW will be required on a regular basis. What’s in it for You? Attractive remuneration package on offer! Access to 24/7 wellbeing support through our confidential Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Generous employee discounts across a range of our products and from our partner network. Access to online learning and development resources. Be part of an excellent company culture and a supportive, collaborative team environment. If this opportunity aligns with your goals and experience, we encourage you to apply today! Our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion WHSmith is an equal opportunity employer and considers all applicants for employment. We recognise the importance of equity in everything we do, and we actively promote a culture of inclusion through our policies, procedures, and working practices. If you have any support requirements, please let us know at the time of your application so we can assist you appropriately during the recruitment process. *All candidates will be contacted or notified once your application is reviewed
