Work and Live Fully in Crested Butte Colorado.
Elk Ave Hospitality is a growing restaurant and hospitality group rooted in Crested Butte and the Gunnison Valley. Our venues are built around distinct concepts, strong hospitality, quality products, thoughtful service, and the belief that great restaurants are powered by great people.
As our group continues to grow, we are seeking a Director of Operations to lead the operational performance of our venues and help guide the next chapter of Elk Ave Hospitality.
This is a high-impact, venue-facing leadership role for a proven operator who understands how to lead teams, strengthen guest experience, drive revenue, support training, and execute with consistency in a seasonal hospitality market.
The right candidate will bring strong operational instincts, high standards, emotional intelligence, and a genuine passion for building teams and hospitality experiences that people are proud to be part of. This means high standards without ego, structure without rigidity, and accountability without losing the warmth that makes hospitality meaningful.
This is an opportunity to lead operations for a growing hospitality group in one of Colorado’s most unique mountain communities.
The Role
The Director of Operations is the operational leader for Elk Ave Hospitality venues. This role is responsible for the performance, consistency, readiness, and execution of restaurant operations across the group.
The Director of Operations leads venue-level performance with direct focus on product quality, guest experience, venue presentation, leadership development, training execution, revenue growth, market share, and controllable profit.
This leader works directly with General Managers, Chefs, FOH leaders, BOH leaders, and venue teams to ensure each concept operates with excellence while maintaining its own unique identity and guest experience.
The ideal candidate is a proven multi-unit hospitality operator who can move comfortably between strategy and service, financial discipline and team development, accountability and support.
Key Responsibilities
Operational Leadership
Lead operational execution across all Elk Ave Hospitality venues, ensuring each concept is prepared, consistent, well-presented, and operating to company standards.
Maintain a strong presence in the restaurants, working directly with venue leadership to support daily execution, strengthen operating rhythms, and reinforce a culture of hospitality, ownership, and follow-through.
Protect the individual identity of each venue while aligning teams around the shared values, standards, and long-term goals of Elk Ave Hospitality.
Product Quality & Guest Experience
Lead the full guest-facing experience across the group, ensuring product quality, service, hospitality, atmosphere, and venue presentation are consistently aligned with each concept’s standards.
Work with venue leaders to elevate the details that shape the guest experience while ensuring teams understand and execute the standards that define each restaurant.
Create an environment where guests want to return and employees are proud to represent the brand.
Revenue Growth & Market Share
Drive revenue growth, guest capture, repeat visitation, average per guest, and market share across Crested Butte and the Gunnison Valley.
Lead venue teams in identifying and executing opportunities tied to local engagement, visitor capture, reservation strategy, private dining, group business, seasonal promotions, and shoulder-season performance.
Position each venue to compete, grow, and lead in a way that is authentic to its concept and valuable to the broader hospitality group.
Seasonal Market Strategy
Lead operations through the realities of a seasonal hospitality market, including peak-season demand, shoulder-season planning, staffing transitions, tourism cycles, and shifting guest behavior.
Build and execute operating plans that align staffing, training, hours, leadership coverage, and product readiness with expected business levels.
Seasonal, resort, mountain-town, tourism-driven, or comparable market experience is strongly preferred.
Training & Leadership Development
Lead the development and execution of strong training systems across Elk Ave Hospitality.
Develop managers as operators, trainers, communicators, coaches, and decision-makers.
Create accountability around hiring, seasonal training, service standards, leadership development, advancement pathways, training completion, and practical application of standards.
The ideal candidate has experience building training infrastructure that improves consistency, confidence, retention, and performance.
Financial Performance & Controllable Profit
Lead performance against revenue goals, controllable profit, labor targets, COGS expectations, prime costs, guest capture, average per guest, and budget.
Use reporting tools, scorecards, and performance data to guide decisions, identify opportunities, and support strong operating results.
Ensure growth is supported by disciplined planning, consistent execution, and sound financial leadership.
Systems, Standards & Communication
Lead the consistent use of company systems, SOPs, reporting tools, and operating standards across all venues.
Ensure systems support communication, planning, accountability, and continuous improvement.
Create clarity around expectations, follow-through, and shared standards across the organization.
What We Are Looking For
The ideal candidate will bring:
Multi-unit restaurant, bar, resort, or hospitality operations experience.
Experience leading multiple concepts or high-volume hospitality environments.
Seasonal, resort, mountain-town, tourism-driven, or comparable market experience strongly preferred.
A proven ability to grow revenue, guest capture, market share, and controllable profit.
Experience building and executing robust training programs.
Strong understanding of both FOH and BOH operations.
A demonstrated ability to coach managers, develop leaders, and hold teams accountable.
Financial literacy across labor, COGS, prime costs, forecasting, budgets, and controllable profit.
Comfort with restaurant technology, reporting systems, and performance scorecards.
A strong and positive presence in the restaurants.
Clear communication, organization, urgency, emotional intelligence, and follow-through.
A hospitality-first leadership style rooted in Communication, Humility, Accountability, Integrity, and Respect.
Success Looks Like
Success in this role will be reflected in:
Revenue growth, guest capture, repeat visitation, average per guest, and market share.
Strong guest satisfaction, product quality, service execution, and venue presentation.
Achievement of controllable profit, labor, COGS, and prime cost targets.
Confident, capable, and accountable venue leadership teams.
Consistent execution of systems, standards, and operating expectations.
Training programs that improve employee readiness, confidence, consistency, and retention.
Successful seasonal planning and execution.
A polished, profitable, hospitality-driven group of venues that continues to grow with intention
Compensation & Benefits
Compensation: $130,000–$150,000 annually
Bonus Program: Eligible for company bonus program
Benefits: Standard company benefits package
Location: Crested Butte - Almont, and Gunnison Valley, Colorado
Schedule: Full-time, on-site leadership role. Nights, weekends, holidays, and peak seasonal periods are required based on business needs.
