“The golden ticket” is how Leisa Bryant describes her appointment to director, Food and Nutrition Service, at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2017. She was appointed executive director, Food, Nutrition & Patient Transportation Services, in 2021. 

Leisa Bryant, RD, CPXP, FACHEWhen she started in the role as director in 2017, Bryant quickly realized the full scope of the task at hand. Her mission was to align two separate departments, Clinical Nutrition, which included dietitians and room service programs (self-op), and Dining Services (contract management). Each functioned as its own entity and lacked coordination and a shared mission. “I was told I was hired to put the divorced parties back together,” she says. 

As it turned out, both departments aligned in one key area, patient care. Each cited that as the most important factor of their mission. This commitment to the patient over everything else, says Bryant, served as the “North Star element” that brought the two departments together to form what is now the Food and Nutrition Services Department (FNS). About 425 employees make up this hybrid team.

Bryant proudly speaks of the team going from “ordinary to extraordinary by utilizing a single goal, which is patient care.” She describes her team as one of the most cohesive she has ever worked with, collaborating on strategic planning that drives the day-to-day operations as well as coming together for social gatherings. 

A collaborative and solution-oriented approach guides Bryant’s leadership style. It is not just what she does, but how she does it. She is known as being both easygoing but also someone who holds her team accountable. She finds “great joy in mentoring, guiding and coaching.” It is no accident that she has found the sweet spot in curating a safe team culture, setting expectations, and holding both herself and the team accountable. Bryant credits her values, intent to always be transparent, her relatability, and ability to be vulnerable as qualities that make her team’s perception of her as “tough but fair.”

Bryant was recognized with MD Anderson’s Excellence in Leadership Award in 2024 and her acumen for serving and leading has funneled into contributing to the greater good of the foodservice industry overall. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Association for Healthcare Foodservice; she served as AHF president in 2024. Bryant openly shares her experiences and insights as a panelist and speaker. She was a speaker for the Manufacturers’ Agents Association for the Foodservice Industry and Foodservice Consultants Society International The Americas. 

Even more impressive, Bryant’s dedication to her own learning never ceases. She routinely participates in training programs offered by equipment manufacturers and has attended a FEED (Foodservice Essentials for Effective Design) workshop run by the FCSI Educational Foundation.

Adding Responsibilities

Bryant also leads the Patient Transportation Services team, which consists of roughly 200 employees who maintain hospital throughput. Under Bryant’s leadership, MD Anderson’s FNS team has been recognized internally with the Excellence in Safety Award multiple times.

Bryant is now embarking on a new adventure in foodservice as MD Anderson’s plans for a central distribution center unfold. The proposed new build kitchen will sit roughly two miles from the MD Anderson Houston facility and both inpatient services and the cafes will benefit from the facility, she adds. Space availability to expand in the current footprint was not an option, which she adds was a key driver for the move to a central kitchen, along with a need to expand catering services. “The completion of this facility will mean more variety, control and certainly a reduction in costs as well as a reallocation of labor,” Bryant says.

As a registered dietitian, Bryant remains passionate about viewing the patient experience holistically. “Nutritional, mental, and financial considerations” are all weighed when planning patient care, she says. The commitment is to provide healthy food for patients, Bryant notes. 

Bryant oversees 15 retail food venues, which generated almost $17 million in revenue for 2024. To keep pace with volume and to keep things fresh, MD Anderson added specialty vending machines that offer everything from hot foods, such as dumplings, to fresh-made smoothies and pre-made salads. Bryant proudly shares that under her leadership, The Houston Chronicle recognized MD Anderson’s Waterfall Cafe as one of the best places to eat within the Texas Medical Center. Additionally, MD Anderson chefs who support patient foodservice, earned first place in the  AHF National Culinary Competition in 2023. 

Recently, MD Anderson rolled out an app for room service ordering that is giving more autonomy back to the patient. 

Another patient bonus: nightly turn-down service that includes a beverage and last check-in as part of the facility’s white glove service (with a ratio of 1 waitstaff personnel to 35 patient beds).  “This is an added initiative to further enhance the hospitality services of our program,” says Bryant.

Above all, Bryant strives to make a difference and have maximum impact in any role. Indeed, she recently had a full-circle moment when one of her clinical dietitians, who was a former student of her’s acknowledged her class assignment in helping her to develop her team building skills alongside her creative ones. “That was a proud moment,” she says. No doubt Bryant will continue to use her experience, knowledge and soft skills to advocate, influence, and positively drive change in the foodservice industry on a global stage. 

What is a lesson learned you have never forgotten?

After 90 days in my new role, a feedback survey enlightened me that staff appreciation is a key ingredient in building a recipe for team success. The voice of my staff is at the center of all strategies and decisions.

What would your team say is your superpower?

My ability to connect and build relationships through trust. Technical skills are something to champion, but leadership is about influencing. Influencing and inspiring are two things I do well with my team.

Where or whom do you turn for inspiration?

As a young girl, I admired Nelson Mandela’s servant leadership. He said, “I never lose. I either win or I learn.” There is always something to gain from every experience.