[Hiring] Director of Design @Mendocino Farms Talent Acquisition Team

Role Description

Mendocino Farms is seeking a Director of Design to lead the evolution and delivery of our restaurant experience across new restaurants, remodels, refreshes, and strategic initiatives. This leader will own Mendo’s design function: the restaurant prototype, design standards, internal and external design resources, and the systems that turn brand strategy into distinctive, functional, and scalable restaurants. You will partner closely with Operations, Culinary, Facilities, Construction, Real Estate, and Marketing to create environments that strengthen the guest experience while supporting efficient operations, disciplined investment, and growth.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design function
• Lead, coach, and develop internal designers and external design resources; set clear expectations, effective working rhythms, and a high bar for quality and accountability.
• Align internal and external design resources to the development pipeline, identifying when specialized expertise is needed.
• Serve as the senior design leader for complex, high-visibility, or high-risk projects and decisions.
• Own the brand environment and design standards
• Own and evolve Mendo’s restaurant prototype, design standards, material palettes, finishes, furniture, fixtures, lighting, equipment integration, and reusable design details.
• Ensure every restaurant delivers a recognizable Mendo experience while adapting appropriately to site conditions, market needs, and business priorities.
• Use operating feedback, field learning, and market insight to keep the brand environment relevant, differentiated, and scalable.
• Set and elevate Mendo’s creative design point of view, translating brand strategy into memorable, functional restaurant environments that feel distinctive across markets and formats.
• Improve restaurant operations through design
• Maintain and evolve design standards that prioritize guest flow, ordering and pickup, digital and delivery activity, seating, accessibility, storage, serviceability, and day-to-day operations.
• Partner with Operations, Culinary, Facilities, Construction, and equipment vendors to improve kitchen planning, back-of-house flow, equipment integration, team ergonomics, throughput, food safety, and maintainability.
• Incorporate post-opening learning into future layouts, prototypes, and specifications.
• Drive quality, clarity, and design delivery
• Oversee design delivery for new restaurants, remodels, and refresh programs from feasibility test fits and concepts through permit-ready documentation and design-related construction support.
• Establish practical design QA/QC and phase-gate practices that produce complete, coordinated, code-aware, and timely deliverables.
• Lead cross-functional reviews using clear agendas, advance pre-reads, recommendations, concise decision requests, and thoroughly documented follow-through.
• Translate stakeholder input into clear direction for internal teams and consultants, surfacing risks and tradeoffs early.
• Partner with Construction to protect design intent, improve constructability, and reduce design-related rework, RFIs, and change orders.
• Manage partners and investment decisions
• Select, brief, manage, and evaluate architects, interior designers, engineers, and specialty vendors; set clear expectations for scope, quality, timing, communication, and accountability.
• Partner with Construction and Real Estate to understand design cost drivers and make value-engineering recommendations.
• Balance brand expression, operating performance, durability, cost, schedule, and long-term unit economics in design and specification decisions.
• Track design-function performance, capacity, risks, and priorities; use post-project reviews to improve standards, tools, and partner performance.
• Develop the annual design operating plan in partnership with Real Estate, including internal and consultant capacity, priorities, budget needs, and key risks; provide regular updates on design delivery.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of progressive experience in restaurant, retail, hospitality, architecture, interior design, or another related built-environment discipline.
• Experience leading a design team, studio, function, or substantial network of external design partners in a fast-moving, multi-project environment.
• Significant hands-on experience with restaurant or similarly operationally intensive commercial design, including prototype development, new-unit growth, remodels, and site-specific adaptation.
• Strong command of restaurant operations and design, including FOH/BOH flow, kitchen equipment, labor and ergonomics, guest circulation and accessibility, pickup/delivery, food safety, storage, and maintainability.
• Experience managing architects, interior designers, engineers, and specialty vendors against quality, schedule, scope, and budget expectations.
• Working knowledge of construction documentation, design QA/QC, permitting, building and health codes, design detailing, accessibility, shop-drawing review, and constructability.
• Financial fluency with design budgets, cost drivers, value engineering, specification tradeoffs, lifecycle durability, and unit economics.
• Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, Interior Architecture, Interior Design, Environmental Design, Product Design, or a related field; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
• Proficiency with Bluebeam Revu, Excel, PowerPoint, and project-management platforms; working knowledge of AutoCAD and/or Revit and SketchUp is preferred.
• Exceptional written, verbal, and visual communication skills, including the ability to develop concise recommendations and executive-ready presentations.
• Ability to travel occasionally for market visits, project milestones, and team meetings.

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Meal privileges
• Health benefits
• 401k Plan
• Paid Vacation

Physical Requirements

• Must be able to lift 25 pounds.
• Sitting / standing 6-8 hours.
• Hand use: single grasping, fine manipulation, pushing and pulling.
• Work requires the following motions: bending, twisting, squatting and reaching.