Head of Operations, Sessions
£65-75k
+ Bonus + Share Options
Senior and Expert level
London
3-4 days a week in office (Victoria, London)
Licensing and franchising of founder led food brands
Posted today
Licensing and franchising of founder led food brands
101-200 employees
HospitalityB2BEnterpriseFoodVenture Capital
Posted today
£65-75k
+ Bonus + Share Options
Senior and Expert level
London
3-4 days a week in office (Victoria, London)
101-200 employees
HospitalityB2BEnterpriseFoodVenture Capital
Company mission
Bridging non-stop originality for every kitchen.
Role
Who you are
- Leadership: Extensive experience operating at a senior leadership level within hospitality, or as a senior customer experience/operations leader within a marketplace or scale-up ecosystem. You have a proven track record of driving operational excellence through the lens of world-class customer delivery
- Franchise Model Expertise: A background in a franchisor environment - with an understanding of franchise agreements and royalty structures - is a plus, but not essential. More importantly, you possess the rare ability to manage "influence without authority," allowing you to align independent partners, cross-functional teams, and external stakeholders around shared operational goals
- International Expansion & Localisation: Experience launching into new countries or global territories
- P&L & Financial Management: Commercial accountability for large-scale multi-unit networks, with a history of helping partners maximise EBITDA
- Operational Blueprinting: Ability to design, document, and scale standard operating procedures (SOPs), workflows, and training programs across vastly different brand profiles
- Data-Driven Performance Management: Proficient in leveraging tech-stack analytics to diagnose performance gaps across the network
- Supply Chain & Procurement Savvy: Ideally have a strong understanding of central supply chain logistics and procurement strategies to maintain product consistency and combat ingredient inflation for partners
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Skilled at acting as the bridge crucial departments
- Strategic Relationship Builder: Possesses high emotional intelligence (EQ) with the ability to build trust, navigate complex partner dynamics, and align independent business owners with corporate brand goals
- Assertive yet Diplomatic: Capable of firmly enforcing brand standards and auditing compliance while maintaining a collaborative, supportive relationship with franchisees
- Agile & Adaptable: Thrives in a fast-paced, high-growth environment, with the mental flexibility to jump between different brand identities and diverse international regulatory landscapes
- Solutions-Oriented Leader: A proactive problem-solver who anticipates systemic operational bottlenecks and implements scalable fixes before they impact the network
- Right to Work: must hold Right to Work in the UK
- English Language: Fluent in written and spoken English
What the job involves
- With plans to double our QSR franchise footprint, we’re looking for a Head of Operations to architect our next phase of growth
- Reporting to the MD of QSR
- As the Head of Operations for our fast-growing Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) division, you will be the chief architect of our operational excellence
- You will be directly responsible for driving profitability, efficiency, and brand standards across our current portfolio of 20 franchise sites - with ambitious growth plans to double this estate within the year
- Managing multiple brands, including SoBe Burger, Ivan Ramen, Mikos and future star concepts, you will ensure seamless execution and maximum guest satisfaction across all locations
- This is a high-impact leadership role requiring a blend of strategic foresight, sharp financial acumen, and exceptional people management. Leading a lean corporate team (initially managing 1 Operations Manager), you will build and individually execute a scalable system that drives peak performance (revenue, operations, CX) across a rapidly expanding footprint
- Your success will rely on your ability to ensure operational simplicity even as we add complexity (new brands, more locations)
- Success will be defined by your ability to develop and execute a comprehensive operational strategy across multiple headline brands
- You will be judged on your ability to hit financial targets, maintain audit-ready brand compliance, and establish a culture of continuous improvement, ultimately establishing Sessions QSR brands as the best-performing, most reputable concepts in the UK and beyond
- Pioneering Franchise Operations Strategy: Create, develop, own, and execute the comprehensive operational support and compliance strategy for the 20-site QSR franchise network. This includes leveraging multi-site performance metrics, mystery shopper data, and brand audits to identify and prioritise efficiency gains, cost-saving opportunities, and operational consistency across all multi-brand franchise partners
- Performance & Franchise P&L Accountability: Establish, monitor, and enforce ambitious, data-driven targets across the franchise network (including labour cost benchmarks, food waste/yield, speed of service, and guest satisfaction scores). Consult with franchise partners to maximise their site EBITDA, thereby securing corporate royalty streams and brand health. A key part of the role is ensuring all additions to the estate are set up really strongly and continually revising the system based on learnings from the existing estate and issues that arise as we grow
- Cross-Functional Leader & Compliance Excellence: Act as the Executive Sponsor and primary liaison with the Brand, Culinary, Sales and Supply Chain teams to ensure seamless menu rollouts and supply chain compliance across the franchise network - hold other departments within the business to account for activities that are required for operational success. Proactively resolve systemic operational bottlenecks to guarantee a "right first time" execution of new brand compliance standards by franchise partners
- Franchise Partner Value Maximisation & Retention: Direct and empower Franchise Business Partners (FBPs) to holistically monitor, coach, and improve franchise operational compliance. Maximise partner lifetime value and overall system profitability, and own the proactive intervention strategy to support underperforming franchisees and prevent critical partner churn
- Team Leadership & Capability Building: Mentor, and performance manage the QSR team’s Franchise Business Partners and the Operations Manager & QSR Training Manager. Build a robust team capable of influencing without direct authority, fostering a culture of mutual respect, high performance, and operational accountability among franchisees. Don’t be afraid to have the hard conversations when required
- Strategic Margin & Supply Chain Intervention: Collaborate closely with Buying & Supply Chain, and Finance functions to protect franchise margins. Ensure franchise compliance with nominated suppliers, optimise central procurement power to combat food inflation for partners, and roll out optimised labour scheduling matrices to help franchisees control costs
- International Market Expansion & Localisation: Act as the operational architect when expanding into new global markets and countries. Partner with international master franchisees to adapt operating manuals, secure localised supply chains, ensure regulatory compliance, and establish robust training frameworks that safeguard core brand standards while respecting local market nuances
- Executive Reporting & Franchise Forecasting: Deliver high-stakes monthly and quarterly network performance reviews and brand compliance audit results to the Managing Director and the wider Executive Team (including the COO/CEO), clearly articulating franchise health, strategic operational risks, and necessary course corrections
Application process
- We usually respond within a week
Salary benchmarks
Our take
The traditional food industry can struggle with innovation and bringing new concepts to consumers. Scaling these concepts and maintaining consistent quality across locations can be another hurdle.
Led by former executives from Deliveroo, Brew Dogg, and Soho House, Sessions tackles this problem by acting as a launchpad for exciting new food brands. Considered 'the record label of food' it leverages expertise in technology, branding, and franchise operations to help brands flourish. This includes everything from initial concept development to partnering with existing kitchens to fulfil orders.
With a brand portfolio that includes UK crowd favourites, Sobe Burger, Little Bao Boy, and Kenny Tutt's Patty Guy, Sessions is focused on becoming the go-to platform for innovative food experiences.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (2 rounds)
Oct 2023
$4.4m
EARLY VC
Jan 2022
$10m
SERIES A
Total funding: $14.4m
Company benefits
- Monthly commission (sales roles only)
- Work from home opportunities
- Pension
- Wear what you like dress code!
- Paid after work socials
- £2,000 employee referral scheme
- Paid volunteer days
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Bonus Scheme
- Potential for Share Options in some roles
- 25 days holiday (excl. bank holidays)
- Health & Dental Benefit - Virtual GP
- Financial Benefits via Mintago
Company values
- Data-Led
- Ambitious
- Agile
- Fun
Company HQ
Belgravia, London, UK
Leadership
Dan Warne
(CEO)Director of Warne Consulting (for tech and hospitality sectors) and former Managing Director at Deliveroo.
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