Director Restaurants Technology

Job Purpose: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 2,600+ 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 2,600+ 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 VisionDefine 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 ExperienceDesign, 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 & PlatformsSelect and govern the right technologies to support multi-brand, multi-country operations, including (but not limited to):POS Platforms (NCR Aloha)Kitchen Automation & KDS (NCR)Digital Menu Boards (DMB)Self-Ordering KiosksDrive-Thru SystemsHandheld Ordering & PaymentsRestaurant IoT & hardware ecosystemsEnsure consistent architecture, integrations, and performance across 2,600+ restaurants.Implementation & Rollout GovernanceOversee 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 AlignmentPartner 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 PartnershipsApprove 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, payment providers, network partners, kiosk suppliers, etc.).Manage contractual SLAs, performance KPIs, service-level governance, and vendor compliance.ITIL-Aligned Service Management & BAU ExcellenceEstablish and enforce ITIL-driven processes for:Incident ManagementProblem ManagementChange & Release ManagementService Request FulfillmentKnowledge & Configuration ManagementEnsure all business-as-usual (BAU) activities are delivered within SLAs across all countries and brands.Lead continuous service improvement (CSI) initiatives to enhance system stability, reduce downtime, and increase operational efficiency.Team Leadership & Operating Model OptimizationBuild and optimize a high-performing Restaurant Technology team with the right mix of skills across markets.Define an operating model that combines in-house capabilities with strategic outsourcing for non-core functions, ensuring scalability and efficiency.Provide coaching, development opportunities, and succession planning to ensure long-term organizational strength.Innovation, Market Intelligence & Competitive AdvantageStay ahead of global QSR and retail technology trends (AI automation, predictive cooking, contactless ordering, robotics, IoT, smart drive-thru, etc.).Continuously evaluate advancements that can be piloted and scaled across Americana restaurants to improve operational performance, reduce cost, and enhance customer experience.Education:Bachelor’s degree in information technology, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field is required.A master’s in technology, Computer Science, or an MBA is strongly preferred and considered a significant advantage.Additional certifications in ITIL, Cloud Technologies, POS Systems are desirable.Experience:15+ years of progressive leadership experience in a large multi-market and/or multi-brand Quick Service Restaurant companies- this is mandatory due to the scale and operational complexity of the role. Optional areas of experience could be multi market Retail, or Hospitality also among others. Proven experience managing large, geographically distributed teams across multiple countries or regions.Demonstrated capability in leading major transformation initiatives within a retail or restaurant technology ecosystem, including modernization, digitalization, and operational change.Extensive experience working within a franchise-driven operating model of comparable size and complexity to Americana (multi-brand, multi-country, high-volume operations).Strong background in designing, architecting, and implementing restaurant IT systems, including POS, kitchen automation, kiosks, drive-thru, digital menu boards, handheld ordering, and related store technologies.Deep experience in end-to-end IT implementation lifecycle including strategy, design, development, rollout, testing, UAT, deployment, and hyper care.Hands-on experience collaborating with cross-functional teams and global vendors, managing SLAs, and driving service excellence in a high-pressure operational environment.Knowledge:Strong knowledge and work experience with POS NCR Aloha or close equivalent is a mustExcellent knowledge of Restaurant Technology systems and infrastructure, knowledge of NCR Skills:Superior analytical and problem-solving capabilitiesA strong strategic and business mindsetExcellent organizational and leadership skillsOutstanding communication and interpersonal abilitiesHas the ability to extract and distill requirements, and know how to turn these into reality using technologyStrong business relationship management skills and stakeholder managementAttention to detail and excellent time management skillsAbility to work effectively in a fast paced, dynamic environment – ability to deal with ambiguity and think outside the boxStrong vendor management skills