General Manager
No salary listed
Junior
Brookfield, WI, USA
In Person
Business & Strategy
About the job
Requirements
- A minimum of 1–2 years of restaurant, retail, or guest service management experience, or a combination of experience and education.
- Must be 18 years of age or older.
- Must have a valid driver's license and reliable transportation for supply chain, operational, and marketing tasks.
- Must have reliable transportation to and from the workplace.
- Must be able to work full-time, 40–47 hours per week; the role regularly requires overtime, including early mornings, evenings, weekends, and holidays.
- Must bring the company's core values to work: supporting one another, making fun happen, being yourself, taking ownership, and serving with love.
- Must build trust through transparent communication and consistent follow-through.
- Must display resilience and composure, maintaining focus and perspective in dynamic environments.
- Must act as a change leader, embrace growth, foster adaptability in the team, and provide a coffeehouse environment with equitable standards for people development and goal achievement.
- Must support General Manager peers through partnership and collaboration.
- Must provide and receive feedback with positive intent, demonstrating empathy and professionalism, and handle challenging situations and confidential information with empathy and consistency.
- Must take ownership of difficult conversations by seeking to understand team members and providing timely resolutions.
- Must be willing to learn new systems and tools as they are introduced to support the business.
- Must be able to meet the physical demands of seeing, hearing, speaking, reaching, lifting up to 50 pounds, sitting, standing for 4 to 8 hours, bending, and moving intermittently, with or without reasonable accommodation.
Responsibilities
- Maintain staffing levels across shifts, create accurate demand-based schedules, publish them on time, and develop bench strength and succession plans.
- Build and retain a skilled team by setting goals, coaching performance, recognizing contributions, and using company tools and resources to strengthen engagement and reduce turnover.
- Own role-based training, promotional window training, onboarding, and related development initiatives.
- Understand team members' motivations, address concerns promptly, and provide individualized coaching and support.
- Model and uphold company policies, practices, and standards, and maintain a safe, supportive environment for team members and guests.
- Use designated systems and tools accurately and on time to complete administrative and operational tasks, maintain records, monitor performance, and support follow-up and decisions.
- Lead delivery of the STAR guest service model on every shift, empowering the team to provide outstanding experiences through craft, hospitality, and consistency, and reinforce standards through training, coaching, and recognition.
- Improve guest satisfaction, speed of service, and loyalty using guest feedback and coffeehouse data to guide specific, repeatable actions.
- Ensure beverages and food meet standard operating procedures and brand standards throughout the day.
- Coach the team to anticipate guest and daypart demand and prepare the coffeehouse for peak periods.
- Own guest experience across in-store, drive-thru, mobile order, and delivery channels, maintaining speed and accuracy and managing channel flow during peak periods.
- Facilitate timely resolution of guest, team, supply chain, and asset-related issues.
- Own coffeehouse performance and lead sales, profitability, and operational excellence, including local marketing execution.
- Maintain a consistent, adaptable presence in the coffeehouse according to scheduling standards, including peak periods, inventory, administration, promotional sets, and holidays.
- Ensure the coffeehouse is open, staffed, and operational during expected hours by covering shifts and providing direct operational support when needed.
- Manage inventory, replenishment, waste, and assets to maintain accurate levels, minimize loss, allocate resources efficiently, and support uninterrupted operations.
- Apply financial planning knowledge to manage the coffeehouse profit and loss and safeguard company resources.
- Grow sales while managing expenses, monitoring labor as a percentage of sales, cost of goods, waste, and controllable expenses, and maintaining ethical fiscal responsibility.
- Drive performance against sales goals during promotions, seasonal windows, and daily operations.
- Own cash controls and loss prevention; enforce accurate cash handling and register accountability, manage cash overages and shortages to standard, and protect against internal and external loss.
- Maintain food safety, sanitation, and health protocols.
Desired Qualifications
- ServSafe certification, or ability to obtain it within 90 days of employment.
- Experience with sales building, profit and loss statements, recruitment, and training.
- Proficiency with coffeehouse systems including Toast, CrunchTime, Teamwox, EcoSure, Medallia, Workday, and Beekeeper.
- High school diploma or GED equivalent.
About the company
Caribou Coffee sells specialty coffee and espresso drinks, teas, and pastries through a mix of company-owned cafes, franchised locations (domestic and international), non-traditional sites like airports and campuses, and a consumer-packaged goods line sold in stores and online. Its products come from a menu of proprietary blends, single-origin coffees, and seasonal drinks, served in a welcoming café setting, with a loyalty program called Caribou Perks to reward repeat customers. The company differentiates itself through long-standing sustainability practices, serving 100% Rainforest Alliance Certified coffee since 2012, plus a focus on community-oriented spaces and shared resources within Panera Brands for growth. The goal is to broaden its footprint and offerings while maintaining sustainable sourcing and a strong customer loyalty base.
Company Size
1,001-5,000
Company Stage
N/A
Total Funding
N/A
Headquarters
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
Founded
1992
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- September 2, 2026 COO hire Zane Thomas-Rogers sharpens operations across the chain.
- June 9, 2026 CFO Gene Komsky strengthens finance discipline for growth execution.
- Georgia reached 19 stores on September 15, 2026, proving active Southeast expansion.
What critics are saying
- NLRB Case 10-CA-381400 in Athens, filed February 19, 2026, signals labor exposure.
- Everyday Value Menu starting at $2 compresses margins against Starbucks and Dunkin'.
- Panera Brands leverage and JAB ownership threaten Caribou through capital-starved expansion or asset sales.
What makes Caribou Coffee unique
- Rainforest Alliance coffee since 2012 gives Caribou a sustainability brand moat.
- August 20, 2026 fall menu blends pumpkin, Honeycrisp apple, and packaged coffee.
- Caribou Perks and app ordering reinforce repeat traffic across drive-thru and pickup.
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Benefits
- Employee Discount
- Flexible Work Hours
- Tips