Optage Meals Nutrition & Menu Systems Manager

Overview

Presbyterian Homes & Services is seeking an Optage Meals Nutrition & Menu Systems Manager to join their team.

Optage Meals Nutrition & Menu Systems Manager provides organization-wide nutrition leadership, menu development oversight, regulatory compliance management, and Menu.ai system administration for Optage Meals. This position establishes nutrition and menu standards, ensures the integrity and effective governance of menu and recipe systems, and promotes consistent, compliant, and high-quality meal programs. As the licensed Registered Dietitian, the position exercises independent professional judgment and serves as the organization's authority for menu approval, nutritional analysis, therapeutic diet modifications, and compliance with applicable nutrition requirements.

Responsibilities

• Home-Delivered Meals, Congregate Dining, and Cook Chill Nutrition Oversight
  • Establish and oversee organization-wide nutrition and menu standards, leading standardization initiatives and monitoring consistent application across programs and service lines.
  • Complete and document nutrition analyses, menu reviews, and nutrient evaluations within established timelines; validate compliance with applicable federal, state, contractual, and Older Americans Act requirements and ensure identified gaps are resolved before menu approval.
  • Establish, evaluate, document, and approve therapeutic diets and special dietary accommodations, ensuring nutrition accuracy, operational feasibility, consistent execution, and timely escalation of complex or high-risk matters.
  • Analyze participant feedback, dining trends, participation, and satisfaction results to establish improvement priorities, lead evidence-based menu enhancements, and evaluate whether implemented changes improve outcomes.
  • Serve as the nutrition authority and subject matter expert for Optage Meals, providing consultation, independently approving matters within professional scope, and escalating significant clinical, compliance, operational, financial, or reputational risks.

• Menu Development and Management
  • Develop and maintain the annual menu-planning calendar and lead the development, review, approval, communication, and implementation of menu cycles and revisions across Home-Delivered Meals, Congregate Dining, and Cook Chill programs, ensuring nutrition, compliance, and operational concerns are resolved before implementation.
  • Establish and maintain accurate, current, and operationally feasible recipe, serving-size, production, and portion-control standards; monitor adherence, address variances, and verify sustained compliance.
  • Evaluate, document, and approve recipe and nutrient modifications based on nutrition requirements, product quality, operational feasibility, participant needs, and cost impact.
  • Oversee nutrition labeling for Congregate Dining, Home-Delivered Meals, and Cook Chill products, ensuring labels are accurate, compliant, current, and periodically validated.
  • Coordinate menu changes with culinary and production teams, confirm operational readiness, resolve implementation barriers, and communicate final requirements before launch.
  • Evaluate food trends and innovation opportunities against participant preferences, nutrition standards, production capabilities, and cost objectives, and recommend appropriate menu changes.
  • Analyze menu cost, ingredient utilization, and waste trends and optimize menus and recipes to balance nutrition requirements, product quality, participant satisfaction, operational efficiency, and food-cost objectives.

• Menu.ai System Administration
  • Serve as the business owner and administrator of Menu.ai for Optage Meals, establishing system strategy and priorities and maintaining accountability for performance, risk management, and alignment with operational needs.
  • Establish and maintain documented system governance, including decision rights, change controls, data standards, review cycles, and accountable process owners.
  • Establish data-quality controls and routinely monitor, validate, and correct Menu.ai data to maintain accuracy, consistency, and integrity; report recurring or material issues to appropriate stakeholders.
  • Define, document, and periodically review user roles, permissions, workflows, and approval processes to ensure alignment with job responsibilities and internal controls.
  • Oversee recipe databases, ingredient records, nutrient data, and menu records, establishing standards for completeness, accuracy, version control, ownership, and timely maintenance.
  • Produce and maintain accurate nutrition-analysis reports and menu documentation in accordance with established reporting schedules, audience needs, and record-retention requirements.
  • Review, validate, and approve menu and recipe workflows to ensure they support appropriate controls, clear accountability, and timely execution.
  • Plan and oversee menu builds, updates, and system maintenance using defined schedules, quality checks, issue tracking, and release validation.
  • Develop, maintain, and periodically review Menu.ai standard work and system documentation to ensure alignment with approved processes.
  • Provide and coordinate user support within established response and resolution expectations, analyze issue trends, and escalate unresolved or high-risk concerns.
  • Manage coordination with Menu.ai, DSSI, and related vendors, including issue escalation, follow-through, service-performance monitoring, and communication of vendor-related risks.
  • Lead system testing, upgrades, enhancements, and implementations by documenting requirements, coordinating stakeholder readiness, validating results, obtaining approvals, communicating changes, delivering training, and completing post-implementation review.
  • Maintain a prioritized system-improvement roadmap based on business needs, user feedback, compliance requirements, and operational value, and measure the results of implemented changes.
  • Partner with stakeholders to evaluate system performance, adoption, risks, and unmet needs and ensure Menu.ai capabilities remain aligned with operational and organizational goals.

• Regulatory Compliance
  • Ensure and document program-level compliance with Older Americans Act requirements, Minnesota nutrition standards, and contractual nutrition obligations; address identified gaps and escalate material risks.
  • Monitor nutrient standards and dietary guidelines on an established schedule, assess the impact of changes, and ensure applicable requirements are implemented in a timely manner.
  • Maintain continuous audit and regulatory-review readiness by establishing documentation controls, conducting routine internal reviews, and ensuring required nutrition records are complete, accurate, current, accessible, appropriately retained, and supported by timely issue remediation.
  • Coordinate accurate, complete, and timely nutrition reporting for funding partners and community stakeholders and ensure data discrepancies are resolved before submission.
  • Lead nutrition-related corrective action by identifying root causes, assigning owners and deadlines, monitoring completion, validating effectiveness, and escalating overdue or unresolved risks.
  • Monitor regulatory and contractual changes, assess operational impacts, recommend and lead required policy or process updates, communicate changes, and confirm sustained compliance.

• Education, Training, and Cross-Functional Leadership
  • Establish and deliver role-based training for Congregate Dining staff and operational teams on menu standards, approved requirements, portion control, and serving practices; monitor completion, evaluate understanding, and address identified performance gaps.
  • Develop, obtain approval for, communicate, and maintain nutrition-related policies, procedures, and standard work, ensuring they remain current, accessible, and reviewed on an established schedule.
  • Develop and periodically review participant nutrition education materials and resources to ensure accuracy, accessibility, audience appropriateness, and alignment with applicable requirements.
  • Develop and execute communication and education plans for nutrition initiatives and menu-related programs, tailoring content to intended audiences and assessing understanding and adoption.
  • Develop and deliver role-based Menu.ai training and best-practice guidance; monitor completion, proficiency, and adoption and address recurring support, knowledge, or performance gaps.
  • Lead cross-functional initiatives related to nutrition quality, menu governance, compliance, and menu systems by establishing goals, work plans, responsibilities, timelines, decision points, performance measures, and reporting expectations; identify and escalate risks and ensure agreed-upon outcomes are achieved.
  • Demonstrate good stewardship of available resources. Assist in the care and maintenance of departmental equipment, supplies, work areas, and facilities; obtain supplies and equipment as needed.

• Promote continuous self-development and growth. Exhibit technical competence in the field by being familiar with and ensuring compliance with regulations and established best practices.

• Maintain current knowledge of community resources and organization and industry policies and practices. Use discretion and independent judgment to compare and evaluate possible courses of action and decision-making.

• Support the integration of Christian Culture through communication and education systems.

• Other areas as identified to support aligned goal setting and achievement as driven by the Optage Meals Director.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in dietetics, nutrition, food service management, or a related field; master's degree preferred.
• Registered Dietitian Nutritionist credential and current Minnesota dietitian licensure, or ability to obtain licensure within a defined period.
• Three + years progressively responsible experience in nutrition, menu development, food service operations, or a related environment.
• Experience leading programs, projects, staff, or cross-functional teams and holding others accountable for quality, timelines, and results.
• Demonstrated ability to establish standards, governance practices, workflows, and performance expectations across multiple programs or locations.
• Experience administering a menu-management or nutrition-analysis platform, including system governance, data integrity, testing, training, and process improvement.
• Working knowledge of the Older Americans Act, food service regulations, therapeutic diets, nutrition labeling, and audit or regulatory-review requirements.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze operational, nutrition, satisfaction, and cost information and translate findings into recommendations and decisions.
• Ability to exercise independent professional judgment, resolve complex issues, and make decisions that balance nutrition, compliance, service quality, and operating needs.
• Strong change leadership, stakeholder management, communication, and training skills.
• Demonstrated compatibility with PHS' mission and operating philosophies.

Pay Range

The estimated starting pay range for this role is $70,000- $85,000 per year. This good faith estimate is based upon PHS’s typical starting pay range for this role. Actual pay range depends upon many factors including each individual employee’s qualifications and market conditions and is subject to change.

Benefits

Full-time benefits-eligible employment begins at a minimum of 30 hours per week:

• Health, and dental, including applicable HSA & FSA
• Employer Contribution to HSA for eligible Health Plans
• Life insurance (AD&D)
• Retirement, with eligibility for an employer match
• Holiday pay and extended sick

Full and Part-time benefits-eligible employment working between 20-29 hours per week:

• Vision insurance
• Voluntary short-term & long-term disability
• Accident & hospitalization coverage
• Education assistance programs

All employees:

• Accrue PTO (Paid time off)
• Same-day pay
• Employee assistance program (EAP)
• College partnership educational discounts
• Access to Learn to Live Resources

About PHS

Presbyterian Homes & Services (PHS), based in St. Paul, Minnesota, is a nonprofit, faith-based organization providing a broad array of high-quality housing choices, care and services options for older adults. Some 8,000 employees serve more than 41,800 older adults through 60 PHS-affiliated senior living communities in Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin, and through Optage® home and community services. PHS is also co-owner of Genevive, the largest geriatric primary care practice in Minnesota, providing comprehensive care for more than 15,500 older adults. Established in 1955, PHS has earned the reputation as an innovative leader dedicated to promoting independence, purposeful living and the overall well-being for those they serve. Today, PHS is one of the largest nonprofit providers of senior housing and services in the nation.

PHS is an EEO/AA employer. All applicants will receive consideration for employment regardless of their race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, or status with regard to public assistance.