Regional Operations Manager - East Region
Location: Field-based across East area (Stevenage, Hatfield, Welwyn, Cheshnut, Surrey, Hampshire, Reading, North East London, Enfield, East Essex) with regular regional travel (Head Office: Mundells, Welwyn Garden City)
Salary Range: £57,094 - £60,746 per Annum (DOE)
Salary Grade: M4 + Car Allowance
Hours: Full-time, 37 hours per week
Contract: Permanent
Reports to: Head of Operations
Lead Operational and People Excellence Across Our Catering Portfolio
Are you a driven, people-centred leader passionate about delivering outstanding food and service in education? Join HCL as a Regional Operations Manager, taking ownership of people, performance, safety, service quality and commercial outcomes across a diverse regional portfolio of approximately 220 sites spanning multiple counties including London, Essex, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Cambridgeshire.
What You’ll Lead
* Inspire and develop a team of Senior Operations Managers, ensuring consistent service, food quality, presentation and safety.
* Workforce planning and leadership development for operational teams.
* Regional performance reviews, incident management and continuous improvement plans.
* A strong QHSE culture, ensuring audit action closure across all sites.
* Commercial growth through client retention, upsell opportunities and strategic engagement.
* Executive-level relationships with MATs/Trusts, shaping long-term account value.
* Full regional P&L ownership, including budgeting, forecasting and margin improvement.
What You’ll Bring
* Being an ambassador for HCL with a fresh enthusiastic vision that will inspire your teams, by being purpose lead and reflecting our values
* Proven leadership in multi-site operations within contract catering (education desirable).
* Strong commercial and financial acumen, with full P&L accountability.
* QHSE expertise and compliance governance whilst delivering continuous improvement.
* Authentic engagement of senior stakeholders including Trust executives.
* Experience leading change (digital systems, pricing, innovation).
* A calm, resilient leadership style with strong service and safety focus.
Why Join HCL?
· Competitive salary + car allowance
· Generous holiday entitlement
· Good pension scheme
· Life assurance & Employee Assistance Programme
· Excellent development and career progression opportunities
· A values-driven organisation dedicated to improving food experiences in schools
Apply Now
If you’re ready to lead a region and shape the future of school food services, we’d love to hear from you.
Closing Date: 17/05/2026