Job Purpose
This role will be responsible for executing a combination of critical Ops Services support functions: Cafe Event Management, Initiative Management, and Shared Services. While executing this work, the role will interact with, and be a key conduit in success, with both field-facing personnel and internal support center resources across all departments.
Duties & Responsibilities
- Cafe Event Management:
- Act as the primary owner and flywheel associated with the Cafe Events inbox for Ops Services, ensuring all events are supported end-to-end within the framework of team responsibilities, standards, and processes.
- Event Types = NBCO, RELO, Closure, DT Retro, Remodels, Capacity and Market Transitions
- This role will interact with both cafe-level and above-cafe level individuals from the field (Company and Franchise), as well as internal contacts across all departments to resolve issues.
- Ensure all PDP standards are followed and met for each event and all date related elements are kept up to date based on audit documents and processes.
- Ensure all PMA standards are followed and met for each event and all date related elements are kept up to date:
- Initiative entries
- Open Item management (360-degree approach)
- Support all cross-functional teams accordingly for each event type and provide guidance and direction as needed.
- Provide ongoing team training and support associated with the limited number of NBCO events that additional teammates will be assigned to manage.
- Report on all opportunities for process improvement to team leadership for further discussion.
- Act as the primary owner and flywheel associated with the Cafe Events inbox for Ops Services, ensuring all events are supported end-to-end within the framework of team responsibilities, standards, and processes.
- Initiative Management:
- Analyst effectively works within all Deployment standards and processes to provide end-to-end support for all assigned initiatives, with the goal of ensuring each initiative lands as effectively as possible in all targeted cafes. This is accomplished through the following:
- Attend and participate in weekly planning and cross-functional meetings:
- RISE, Portfolio, Rollout Readiness, and Deployment Collab
- Schedule/attend 1 on 1s with applicable cross-functional team members when required
- Voice appropriate and applicable points of view and concern that contribute to the successful testing and deployment of each initiative
- Communicate effectively with support team and/or field personnel when asked or required to do so, using standard tools and processes
- Attend and participate in weekly planning and cross-functional meetings:
- Documentation of all required test details for the applicable initiatives.
- Provide communication support to all levels of the Retail Ops organization and internal support groups as needed for all test phases and rollout aspects as required by the Initiative Management standards.
- 360-degree open item execution related to tasks, issues, and feedback associated with each assigned initiative, which will include the documentation, owner assignment, follow-up, journaling, and closure of each item as needed.
- Act as a collaborative member in creating support materials and communications for all phases of an initiative.
- Act as a representative and standard bearer for proper Initiative Management process as defined by the Deployment and Program Services team, which means ensuring other department contacts are following the appropriate ROEs related to initiative testing and rollout flow.
- Provide support to the Retail Ops and Franchise communities as needed through the Initiative Management inbox, documenting and escalating issues and tasks as needed.
- Create and manage reference documents (single source of truth) for large-scale initiatives and act as the owner and keeper of the information within said document(s), until the initiative is complete.
- Complete updates and validation within internal systems such as PDP and eCommerce platforms as needed based on the assigned initiatives.
- Analyst effectively works within all Deployment standards and processes to provide end-to-end support for all assigned initiatives, with the goal of ensuring each initiative lands as effectively as possible in all targeted cafes. This is accomplished through the following:
- Shared Services:
- Act as the owner on a rotational basis for the following shared services for the organization:
- ePAM – eCommerce, POS, and Cafe Configuration
- Hierarchy – Company based cafe to division alignment details
- Act as the owner on a rotational basis for the following shared services for the organization:
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications (Education & Experience)
- 1 to 3 years of experience with Panera Retail Operations.
- 1 to 3 years of experience as a project manager or similar role.
- Highly motivated self-starter with a drive to succeed and the ability to perform well under pressure.
- Highly accountable for results; both individually and as a team.
- Demonstrated high-level problem-solving skills.
- Outstanding organizational skills with strong attention to detail.
- Excellent communication (written & verbal) and presentation skills; including ability to communicate effectively with senior level executives.
- Ability to execute tasks across multiple projects simultaneously and to adapt to changing priorities.
- Demonstrated understanding and experience with technology in a retail environment.
- Ability to work effectively with both technical and business teams across all levels of the organization.
- Demonstrated above average to expert level experience working with Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook.
- Committed to excellence and world class customer service.
Working Conditions
Physical Requirements
- While performing this job, the incumbent is regularly required to stand, sit, talk, hear & use hands, and fingers to operate keyboards.
Direct Reports
- This position will have approximately 0 direct reports.
Competitive Pay $64,638 to $77,565 Annually.
The actual pay offered will be determined by multiple factors, including but not limited to the candidate’s relevant experience, job-related knowledge, skills, and geographical location. Individual compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate.
Saint Louis Support CenterSkills Required
- 1 to 3 years of experience with Panera Retail Operations
- 1 to 3 years of experience as a project manager or in a similar role
- Highly motivated self-starter with the ability to perform well under pressure
- Strong accountability for individual and team results
- High-level problem-solving skills
- Outstanding organizational skills and strong attention to detail
- Excellent written, verbal, and presentation communication skills, including communication with senior executives
- Ability to execute tasks across multiple projects and adapt to changing priorities
- Understanding and experience with technology in a retail environment
- Ability to work effectively with technical and business teams across all organizational levels
- Above-average to expert experience with Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook
- Commitment to excellence and world-class customer service
What We Do
Panera began in 1987 as St. Louis Bread Company, a humble community bakery founded with a sourdough starter from San Francisco and a dream of putting a loaf of bread in every arm. While our business has expanded well beyond St. Louis since then, that same sourdough starter is still used in our iconic sourdough bread and the craft of baking bread fresh each day remains at the heart of Panera Bread. Each day, our trained bakers fill our bakery shelves with delicious freshly baked cookies, pastries, bagels, and a range of breads from focaccia to classic baguettes. We believe in serving delicious, freshly prepared, clean food made with carefully selected ingredients that we are proud to serve our own families. Our menu, crafted by chefs and bakers, features classic, comforting dishes, each with an intriguing twist. We respect our planet and take measures to lessen our impacts. We believe in treating people with warmth, kindness, and respect, whether it’s a guest in our cafe or one of our associates. And we believe in helping our local communities, especially in times of need. We’re also focused on improving quality and convenience. With investments in technology and operations, we offer omni-channel access to your Panera favorites – like mobile ordering, catering, and Rapid Pick-Up® for to-go orders, Curbside pick-up and delivery – all designed to make things easier for our guests. Today, Panera operates as both Panera Bread® or Saint Louis Bread Co St. Louis Bread Company in 48 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. Panera Bread is privately held by JAB Holding Company. Panera Bread is part of Panera Brands, one of the largest fast-casual restaurant platforms in the U.S., comprised of Panera Bread®, Caribou Coffee® and Einstein Bros.® Bagels.








