Director Restaurants Technology - Relocation To Uae

Americana Restaurants; Johannesburg; Hybrid; ZAR 1 665 000 - 2 166 000; Full time

Job summary

A leading restaurant operator is looking for a Director of Restaurant Technology to oversee the technology strategy across their extensive network. This role requires strategic leadership, collaboration with various stakeholders, and the ability to drive operational excellence through technology. The successful candidate will have a strong background in technology management within multi-site environments and a proven ability to implement innovative tech solutions. This position is based in Johannesburg, South Africa, with relocation options to UAE.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Relocation assistance

Health benefits

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in restaurant technology leadership.
• Proven track record of driving technology strategy in multi-site operations.
• Strong understanding of vendor management and procurement.

Responsibilities

• Lead technology strategy for Americana restaurants across multiple countries.
• Collaborate with various stakeholders to drive technology solutions.
• Ensure high standards of technology support and performance across locations.

Skills

Leadership

Technology strategy

Process improvement

Vendor management

Customer experience enhancement

Education

Bachelor's degree in relevant field

Tools

POS Platforms (NCR Aloha)

Drive-Thru Systems

Job description

Director Restaurants Technology - Relocation to UAE

The Director of Restaurant Technology is responsible for defining and leading the end-to-end technology strategy that powers Americana's restaurant / QSR ecosystem across 2,+ restaurants in 12 countries.

This role provides strategic direction, governance, and execution oversight for all restaurant-facing technologies across dine-in, delivery, drive-thru, and pickup channels including POS systems, kitchen automation, digital menu boards, kiosks, handheld ordering, drive-thru technology, and transactional cost-control platforms.

The Director is accountable for ensuring that all technologies deployed within the restaurants are stable, secure, scalable, and aligned with brand, market, and operational requirements.

The role partners closely with Operations, IT, Digital, Procurement, and vendor ecosystems to ensure technology delivers measurable value, improves customer experience, and enhances operational efficiency.

A core responsibility of this role is to lead the IT Service Management capability for all restaurant technologies.

The Director builds and governs an ITIL-aligned support framework, ensuring disciplined, structured processes across :

• Incident Management (rapid and consistent issue resolution across markets)
• Problem Management (elimination of recurring issues through root-cause analysis)
• Change Management (controlled deployment of updates, patches, and enhancements)
• Release & Deployment Management (standardized, risk-free rollouts)
• Service Request & Knowledge Management (scalable and documented support models)
• Vendor, SLA & Compliance Management (ensuring partners deliver high uptime and quality)

The role ensures that all restaurants receive consistent, high-performing technology support, both onsite and remotely, enabling store managers and frontline teams to operate efficiently and deliver an exceptional customer experience.

This leader continuously evaluates innovative and fit-for-purpose solutions that support Americana's growth, operational excellence, and customer-centric mission.

Scope

Restaurants Division Across All Markets.

Key Responsibilities

As the largest restaurant operator in the MENA region, Americana Restaurants runs 2,+ restaurants across 12 countries, representing world-leading brands including KFC, Pizza Hut, Hardee's, Krispy Kreme, TGI Fridays, Wimpy, Peet's Coffee, and several proprietary brands.

The Director of Restaurant Technology plays a mission-critical role in enabling operational excellence, customer satisfaction, and scalable digital transformation across all these markets and brands.

Strategic Leadership & Technology Vision Define and lead the Restaurant Technology strategy in alignment with executive leadership, including the CEO, Brand Leaders, CFO, COO, and Digital & Technology Heads.

Serve as the primary architect of restaurant technology innovation across all Americana ME markets : UAE, KSA, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, and beyond.

Collaborate with Group Technology teams including Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, Cloud, and Enterprise Applications to ensure restaurant-specific requirements are seamlessly delivered.

Design, Innovation & Customer Experience Design, enhance, and customize technology systems that elevate customer experience, improve speed of service, and empower restaurant employees across all dine-in, drive-thru, delivery, and pickup channels.

Identify and implement innovative, fit-for-purpose solutions that strengthen Americana's competitive advantage in the QSR and fast-casual sectors.

Restaurant Technology Systems & Platforms

• POS Platforms (NCR Aloha)
• Drive-Thru Systems

Restaurant Io T & hardware ecosystems

Ensure consistent architecture, integrations, and performance across 2,+ restaurants.

Implementation & Rollout Governance

Oversee the planning, implementation, pilot phases, and full deployment of all new restaurant systems across all brands and markets.

Provide strategic direction and technical oversight to internal teams, vendor partners, systems integrators, and implementation SMEs.

Own end-to-end rollout governance including testing cycles, cutover planning, migration, training, documentation, and hyper-care.

Stakeholder Collaboration & Business Alignment

Partner with Brand Leadership, Operations Excellence, Supply Chain, Finance, Digital, and Market GMs to ensure technology solutions meet business needs.

Drive clarity in business requirements, end-to-end process mapping, and UAT planning for new and existing systems.

Vendor, Procurement & Technology Partnerships

Approve the procurement of technology hardware, software, and services to meet the needs of Americana restaurants across regions.

Build and maintain strong partnerships with global and regional vendors (POS vendors, device manufacturers,