CKE Restaurants, the company holder of the iconic brand Carl’s Jr., is a well-known leader in the restaurant industry. The CKE Asia Pacific team is seeking a Country Business Director dedicated to the support and development of Carl’s Jr. Franchisees in Australia and to help accelerate the company’s leadership position in the Australian QSR market. This role will be a critical part of the organization’s field franchise support team. It will play a key role in leading and executing a bold strategic plan to drive transformational support to franchisees.
Reporting to the General Manager, Asia, the Country Business Director will be a resource to Franchise Business Consultants and the broader Australian cross-functional team as they deliver winning results combined with disruptive, industry-leading innovation through best-in-class processes and systems and execution of key initiatives for improvement. Success in this role will involve driving execution against key initiatives for improvements across the system in support of franchisees and an improved customer and team member experience.
1-6 direct employees; 1-10 International franchise/master-franchise entities; 30-300+ franchised restaurants.
POSITIO N SUMMARY
The Director of International Operations will be a critical part of the organization's Field Operations team. They will report to the Regional General Manager and provide in-region expertise and guidance to franchisees operating in the region on all aspects of restaurant operations supporting sales, growth, and EBITDA objectives while ensuring franchisees meet their obligations including but not limited to marketing, financial, and operational and trademark integrity. Directors will also lead, coach, and guide Franchise Business Consultants.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
May perform any or all of the following duties:
1. Partner with the General Manager and CKE Regional and International Teams to establish and deliver strategy to support the growth of Carl’s Jr. Restaurants throughout Australia.
2. Make decisions and consult as appropriate on general business and operational activities and tactics to support relevant business needs.
3. Directly manage, develop, and lead a team of Franchise Business Consultants to achieve brand success as defined by periodic, quarterly, and annual performance targets. This includes training and motivating the team and providing employees with the knowledge and skills to be trusted resources and partners to franchisees.
4. Support franchisees in their pursuit of sustainable and continuous improvement in restaurant-level performance as measured by the operations scorecard metrics (QA/OA assessment, Customer Satisfaction, Training Compliance, Speed of Service, etc.) and profitability targets (including same-store sales, EBITDA, transaction counts, and other relevant KPI’s).
5. Identify, prioritise, advocate for, and support franchisees in implementing transformational improvements to operations that will create a superior customer experience.
6. Lead and effectively collaborate with regional and corporate functional resources, including marketing, finance, restaurant excellence, IT, supply chain, quality assurance, legal, and global operations peers.
7. Identify, quantify, achieve, and measure ambitious but realistic business development goals for the market.
8. Develop and maintain successful working relationships with key CKE team members, including those at the Restaurant Support Center. Function as an advocate for the needs of the franchisees you support.
9. Continuously evaluate, develop, and coach Franchise Business Consultants to develop and demonstrate sufficient problem-solving capabilities and the ability to be a trusted resource and partner to franchisees.
10. Be a highly visible and accessible leader available to his/her team and the franchisee community.
11. Ensure compliance with all country, state, provincial, and local laws and regulations.
POSITION QUALIFICATIONS/CORE COMPETENCIES
Critical Skills/Knowledge
12. 7+ years of operating experience in multi-unit, consumer-facing businesses; QSR, restaurant, and/or food-service industry experience preferred.
13. Deep understanding of the Australian QSR market, including entry into new geographies.
14. Demonstrated ability to drive measurable, sustainable results that exceed expectations.
15. Collaborative & Influential leadership
16. Critical thinking & creative problem-solving
17. Ability to build, lead, and develop high-performing teams.
18. Experience in the delivery of business-critical projects requiring cross-functional and multiple stakeholder engagement.
19. Excellent presentation skills
20. Competency in using MS PowerPoint, Excel, Word, and Teams
21. Entrepreneurial approach to work; operates with a high sense of urgency.
22. Effective communication with franchisees and across various levels of leadership
23. Commitment to honesty, transparency, and integrity
24. Ability to travel throughout the country. Travel 35% required.
25. Fluency in English required (verbal & written)
26. Ability to Expand Responsibilities into a Regional Role
Metrics (Applied across the operating region)
27. Operations balanced scorecard results including but not limited to: Operational Assessment (OA) & Quality Assurance (QA) assessment resultsCustomer Satisfaction (OSAT) resultsTraining complianceSpeed of service
28. Financial targets include but are not limited to: Restaurant-level profitabilitySame Store SalesTransaction CountsEBITDA
29. Development New restaurant development strategies and new restaurant site assessmentNew restaurant growth targets
30. People leadership results (turnover, development targets for employees)
31. Franchisee and employee satisfaction
THE COMPANY RETAINS THE RIGHT TO CHANGE OR ASSIGN OTHER DUTIES TO THIS POSITION AS DEEMED APPROPRIATE WITH OR WITHOUT NOTICE