Senior Franchise Development Manager

Bakers Delight Holdings; City of Melbourne; Hybrid; AUD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Reward and bonus structure

Corporate casual dress environment

Health and wellness activities

Novated Lease options

Job summary

Bakers Delight Holdings is seeking a Senior Franchise Development Manager to lead the Network Growth team in Victoria and New South Wales. You will identify, assess and support the next generation of Bakers Delight franchisees, driving growth through structured processes and hands-on relationship building.

The role combines commercial acumen with franchise expertise, offering exposure to multiple approval pathways, high-volume activity, and regular travel across Victoria and NSW to nurture

Qualifications

• Experience within a franchise network or franchise development is essential.
• Strong commercial and business acumen.
• Ability to manage multiple opportunities and stakeholders simultaneously.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills.
• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail.
• CRM and reporting experience.

Responsibilities

• Manage franchise candidates from initial discussions through to conditional approval.
• Support and assess existing franchisees seeking expansion opportunities.
• Build strong relationships across the franchise network.
• Identify and progress growth opportunities within existing portfolios.
• Collaborate with Operations, Commercial, Legal and Network Growth teams.
• Manage multiple approval pathways in a fast-paced environment.
• Maintain accurate CRM records and report on pipeline activity.
• Ensure development processes remain compliant and commercially sound.

Skills

Franchise development

Stakeholder management

CRM & reporting

Networking

Commercial acumen

Tools

CRM software

Job description

At Bakers Delight our vision is to be the most loved bakery in every community. We've built our business through commitment to the quality of our product, the development of our people and by providing a delightful experience to all of our customers.

The Opportunity

At Bakers Delight, we're passionate about helping people achieve their dream of business ownership. As one of Australia's most successful franchise brands, we've spent decades supporting franchisees to build thriving businesses and become part of their local communities.

We're looking for a Senior Franchise Development Manager to join our Network Growth team and play a key role in identifying, assessing and supporting the next generation of Bakers Delight franchisees.

This is more than a recruitment role. It's an opportunity to combine commercial acumen, relationship building and franchise expertise to help people turn their business ambitions into reality. With 50+ franchise transactions annually, this is a fast-paced, high-volume role that will suit someone who thrives on variety, momentum and meaningful stakeholder engagement.

Reporting to the Head of Franchise Development, you'll manage franchise development activity across Victoria and New South Wales, supporting:

• External franchisee recruitment and selection
• Existing franchisee expansion opportunities
• Manage to Own (MTO) applications
• Stakeholder engagement across the network

This is a highly collaborative role that combines structured process management with field-based relationship building. You'll work closely with prospective franchisees, existing franchisees and internal teams to drive network growth and deliver an outstanding candidate experience.

Regular travel throughout Victoria and periodic travel to New South Wales forms part of this role.

Are you ready to rise to the challenge and bake a difference by:

• Managing franchise candidates from initial discussions through to conditional approval
• Supporting and assessing existing franchisees seeking expansion opportunities
• Building strong relationships across our franchise network
• Identifying and progressing growth opportunities within existing franchisee portfolios
• Working collaboratively with Operations, Commercial, Legal and Network Growth teams
• Managing multiple approval pathways simultaneously within a fast-paced environment
• Maintaining accurate CRM records and reporting on pipeline activity
• Ensuring franchise development processes remain compliant, consistent and commercially sound

Let’s hear about you!

We're looking for someone who understands franchising and loves working with people.

You'll bring experience from franchise development, franchise operations, multi-site retail, or another network-based business model where you've managed diverse stakeholder groups and balanced relationship-building with process excellence.

You'll thrive in this role if you have:

• Experience within a franchise network, ideally in franchise development, or operations
• Strong commercial and business acumen
• The ability to manage multiple opportunities and stakeholders simultaneously
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills
• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail
• CRM and reporting experience

Just as importantly, you'll be approachable, adaptable and collaborative. You know how to build trust quickly, work effectively across teams and balance relationship management with process discipline. Success in this role comes from being commercially astute, relationship-focused and adaptable in your approach, with the ability to connect quickly with a diverse range of stakeholders.

Why Bakers Delight?

You’ll "loaf" being part of the Bakers Delight family!! As well as the opportunity to work for a leading and successful international food retailer and well-respected franchisor with bakeries in over 500 locations across Australia, Canada and the USA, Bakers Delight offers a professional, fun, and friendly working environment.

You’ll also have access to a range of benefits and programs that aim to support, reward, and inspire:

• Reward and bonus structure
• Corporate casual dress environment
• Health and wellness activities
• Novated Lease options

Please, no recruitment agencies at this stage.