Director of Operations

Taste Buds Kitchen - HQ; Chester (MD); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Opportunity for advancement

Paid time off

Training & development

Vision insurance

401(k) matching

Competitive salary

Dental insurance

Employee discounts

Job summary

Taste Buds Kitchen - HQ seeks a Director of Operations to lead and scale its franchise network as it grows from 26 to 50+ units. You will bridge corporate strategy with on-the-ground execution, leading an expanding operations team and ensuring profitability and consistency across locations.

You will drive NSO readiness, governance, and cross-functional rollout programs while maintaining strong franchisee relationships and delivering data-driven performance improvements.

Qualifications

• 7–10+ years in multi-unit operations leadership.
• 3–5 years leading operations within a fast-growing franchise system.
• Proven track record in franchise coaching, franchisee relationships, unit economics, and NSOs.
• Strong leadership, executive communication, and negotiation skills.
• Fluency in P&Ls, Prime Cost management, and unit economics benchmarking.
• Hybrid work: 2–3 days in-person at Corporate HQ in Chester, MD.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor the corporate operations team to support franchisee success.
• Design and scale regional field coaching model with studio-visit cadences and audit standards.
• Analyze unit economics using monthly P&Ls and system scorecard to drive coaching.
• Oversee NSO execution for 15–20 new studios over 18 months.
• Set annual and quarterly rollout calendars for initiatives, tech updates, and product launches.
• Coordinate cross-functional rollout workflows with Marketing, Culinary, Systems and Onboarding.

Skills

Leadership

Franchise coaching

Franchisee relations

Unit economics

Strategic thinking

Cross-functional leadership

Hybrid work

Job description

Benefits:

• Health insurance
• Opportunity for advancement
• Paid time off
• Training & development
• Vision insurance
• 401(k) matching
• Competitive salary
• Dental insurance
• Employee discounts

Position Overview

The Director of Operations is the operational leader responsible for building, scaling, and protecting Taste Buds Kitchen’s franchise system’s core operating engine as we expand from 26 locations to 50+ units over the next 18 months. Reporting directly to executive leadership, this role bridges high-level corporate strategy with real-world, unit-level execution. You will lead the operations department to ensure our franchise network operates as a cohesive, high-performing system designed for maximum franchisee profitability, operational consistency, and rapid unit growth.

In this role, you will build and direct a growing operations team, architect system-wide operational frameworks, govern new studio opening (NSO) execution, oversee supply chain health, and maintain strong, trust-based relationships with our franchisee network.

Key Responsibilities

1. Team Leadership, Field Architecture & Financial Benchmarking

• Operational Leadership: Direct and mentor the corporate operations team (Operations Systems Specialist, Franchise Business Coaches and Culinary Lead) to maintain a cohesive, support-driven culture focused on franchisee success.
• Field Support Architecture: Design and scale our regional field coaching model as our footprint grows; establish studio-visit cadences, audit standards, and business-consulting playbooks that transition field support from simple "policing" to strategic financial coaching.
• Financial Benchmarking & Unit Economics: Leverage monthly P&Ls and our system scorecard to rigorously analyze unit-level economics across all locations. Use this data to drive proactive coaching and lead targeted operational interventions for units to improve location margins and protect overall network health.
• Resource Allocation & Budgeting: Manage the operations department budget, vendor allocations, and team priorities to maximize return on effort as the studio counts scale.
• Cross-Functional Growth & Marketing Team Leadership: Directly lead and manage the Creative & Brand Marketing Manager and Operations Systems Specialist. Ensure brand marketing campaigns, localized franchisee toolkits, digital agency execution, and CRM technical workflows are seamlessly integrated, measured against ROAS/CPA targets, and directly drive unit-level customer acquisition and studio profitability.

2. Operational Strategy, Process Systems & Supply Chain

• Operational Architecture: Establish, evaluate, and continuously refine the operational standards, platforms, and operating manuals that govern daily studio operations.
• Supply Chain Health: Partner with executive leadership to manage vendor contracts and monitor order guide compliance.
• Unit-Level Execution Frameworks: Translate brand strategy into clear, executable operational frameworks that simplify studio operations for multi-unit operators, general managers, and studio teams across the franchise system.
• SOP & Best Practice Governance: Partner with the Operations Systems Specialist to ensure all brand manuals, training materials, and Operandio workflows reflect current best practices and brand standards.

3. NSO Governance & Strategic Rollouts

• New Studio Opening (NSO) Operational Execution: Own operational readiness and soft/grand opening execution for 15–20 new studio launches over the next 18 months, managing the formal operational hand-off from onboarding to sustained field support.
• Master Rollout Scheduling: Set the annual and quarterly rollout calendar for all new corporate initiatives, technological updates, vendor transitions, and product/menu launches.
• Cross-Functional Execution: Oversee cross-functional rollout workflows, coordinating with Marketing, Culinary, Systems, and Onboarding to ensure seamless execution from kickoff to studio-level adoption.
• Post-Launch Evaluation: Track system-wide adoption rates, franchisee feedback, and ROI metrics for all major updates, using data to refine future launch playbooks.

4. Franchisee Relations & Multi-Unit Capacity

• Multi-Unit Operator Strategy: Evaluate operational capacity and studio performance for existing multi-unit operators before approving additional studio development, delivering specialized frameworks tailored for multi-unit district leaders.
• Policy Communication & Enforcement: Clearly communicate corporate policies, system modifications, and compliance expectations to the network, balancing firm brand enforcement with empathy and support.
• Escalation & Dispute Resolution: Act as the senior escalation point for complex franchisee relations issues, working constructively with franchise owners to resolve operational hurdles and protect brand integrity.

Qualifications & Requirements

• Experience: 7–10+ years of progressive leadership in multi-unit operations, with at least 3–5 years leading operations within a fast-growing franchise system (prior experience navigating the 20-to-50 unit growth scaling phase is highly preferred).
• Proven Track Record: Proven track record in franchise business coaching, franchisee relationships, unit economics, and managing New Studio Openings (NSOs).
• Leadership & Influence: Outstanding leadership, executive communication, and negotiation skills—capable of inspiring corporate team members while building deep trust with independent franchise business owners.
• Financial & Business Acumen: Fluency in P&Ls, Prime Cost management, and unit economics benchmarking.
• Strategic & Process Mindset: Ability to toggle seamlessly between high-level operational strategy, supply chain management, and tactical execution oversight.
• Work Model: Hybrid (2-3 days in-person at Corporate HQ in Chester, MD)
• Travel: Willingness to travel up to 25–35% for site visits, new studio openings, regional franchisee meetings, and team alignment.
• Compensation: Commensurate with multi-unit/franchise growth experience. Performance bonus potential.

Performance Metrics (KPIs)

• Network Financial Performance: System-wide Same-Studio Sales (SSS) growth and average franchisee unit-level profitability (Prime Cost targets).
• NSO On-Time Execution: Opening 15–20 planned units on schedule and meeting 90-day post-opening operational and financial benchmarks.
• Initiative Adoption Rate: Percentage of studio-level adoption and compliance on key corporate rollouts within designated timeframes.
• System Compliance & Studio Health: Average system-wide audit scores and percentage of studio meeting operational brand standards.
• Franchisee Satisfaction & Retention: Overall franchisee sentiment, FAC alignment, and brand health metrics.