Chief Operating Officer - Restaurants

Position Overview

The Chief Operating Officer (COO) acts as a strategic ally to the CEO, overseeing operational efficiency, profitability, and scalable growth of our restaurant brand. We seek a dynamic hospitality leader capable of translating broad brand objectives into flawless execution across multiple locations.

Key Duties

• Manage daily operations of all corporate and franchise sites, ensuring optimal guest experiences, consistent food quality, and quick service.
• Create and continually improve standard operating procedures to maintain uniform brand standards as the business expands.
• Streamline supply chain, procurement, and vendor relations to safeguard margins while upholding quality.
• Collaborate with executive leadership to implement market growth plans, including site selection, design, and opening of new restaurants.
• Evaluate and upgrade operational technologies such as POS, inventory, labor scheduling, and customer loyalty systems.
• Maintain overall profit and loss responsibility, focusing on revenue growth and controlling prime costs like labor and COGS.
• Develop, track, and report on KPIs including table turnover rates, labor productivity, waste reduction, and EBITDA margins.
• Lead annual budgeting and capital expenditure planning across all units.
• Foster a hospitality-centered company culture that reduces employee turnover and enhances employer brand.
• Directly supervise and mentor regional and district management teams and corporate operational staff.
• Enhance recruitment, onboarding, and ongoing training programs for front- and back-of-house team members.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 10 years of advancing leadership experience in hospitality, with 3-5 years at an executive level managing multi-unit high-growth restaurant operations.
• Demonstrated success scaling a restaurant brand significantly (e.g., expanding from 10 to over 50 units).
• Strong financial expertise in managing P&L, forecasting, labor cost modelling, and supply chain logistics.
• Leadership approach focused on servant leadership, comfortable both in boardroom presentations and frontline restaurant operations.
• Preferably holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Hospitality Management, or related fields; MBA is highly advantageous.