Director Restaurant Technology; QSR​/FOH​/BOH​/Menu Pricing

DETAILS

Location: Remote

Position Type: Direct-Hire

Hourly / Salary: to $225K+ base + 25% bonus + annual RSU equity grants

Travel: ~25% travel (1-week monthly / potentially more depending on planning and design sessions)

• Accelerate Learning Curve: Meet teams and participate in workshops, etc.
• Team Alignment: Front of House (FOH) and of POS / Menu teams are in the San Diego office 3days per week | Back of House (BOH) is remote but will align for joint San Diego sessions.
• Ongoing Travel Expectations: Travel will continue beyond ramp-up (more frequent than once per quarter) for key planning sessions, design workshops, and strategic initiatives over the next 2-3 years.
• All-Hands Meetings: 1-2 times per year, entire IT team flies into San Diego, CA.
• Fit Considerations: Candidates that are unwilling or unable to travel regularly (especially early on) are not a good fit.
• Location Flexibility: Role is primarily remote / national once ramped, but San Diego, CA travel is non-negotiable for success in the first 6-12 months and key project phases.

Vaco is currently seeking a Director of Restaurant Technology (QSR / FOH / BOH / Menu Pricing) for a Direct-Hire opportunity that is remote with 25% travel to San Diego. The Director of Restaurant Technology will immediately step into a high-visibility role providing both visionary strategic leadership and hands-on operational management of the entire restaurant technology stack across all corporate and franchised locations.

The Director will have direct oversight over 3 key strategic leaders and ~5-10+ indirect reports (Systems Analysts / BOH Systems Engineers / POS Data Systems Admins).

• Solution Architecture / Design: Designing Complex Engineering Solutions Covering End-to-End Integration / Platform Architecture / Scalability / Availability / Performance / Reliability / Stability / Administration
• Architecture Documentation / Planning: Documenting Designs (Topologies / Hardware Specifications / Server Configs / Capacity Planning / Availability / Performance / Operational Metrics / Network and Client Impacts)
• Requirements Analysis / Solutioning: Assessing Customer Requirements / Analyzing Business Events/Data Architecture / Evaluating Solutions / Determining Optimal Technical Approach
• Strategic Technology Alignment: Partnering with Technology / Operations Leadership to Identify / Deliver Optimal Restaurant Technology Solutions
• Risk Management / Mitigation: Assessing System Risks / Recommending Mitigation Strategies | Ensuring Stability / Security
• Process Optimization / Future Planning: Re-Engineering / Maintaining Processes to Improve Efficiency with a 3-5 year Future-Focused Strategy Minimizing Impact to Corporate / Restaurant Teams
• Domain Expertise / Systems Ownership: SME for Front-of-House (FOH) Systems (Architecture / Features / Integrations) and Complementary Platforms
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Working Closely With Operations / Marketing / Finance to Design and Deliver Solutions That Meet and Exceed Business Requirements
• Vendor / Integration Management: Collaborating With External Vendors and Internal Teams to Integrate Programming / Hardware / Networking / Operational Requirements
• Product Evaluation / Innovation: Participating in Product Reviews / Testing / Pilots With IT, Business Partners, and Customers
• Executive Partnership / Strategy: Partnering With Executive Leadership to Define Long-Term Goals, Strategies, and Process Improvements
• Project Leadership / Delivery: Guiding Technology Initiatives From Inception Through Implementation
• People Leadership / Performance Management: Driving Team and Individual Goal Setting / Performance Monitoring / Coaching / Evaluation
• Mentorship / Talent Development: Mentoring 3 Direct / ~5-10 Indirect Reports Towards Excellence / Growth

The ideal leader must possess extensive expertise within QSR (menu / POS / pricing platform focus) with 5-7+ years of experience within a management and/or leadership role. It is essential that the Director of Restaurant Technology possesses the ability to "drink from the fire hose" and ramp quickly within the first 90days. Ideal Directors will possess strong thought leadership, proven success implementing new systems (using formal SDLC), strategic re-engineering, and a results-oriented track record.

This is a hybrid role with significant early onsite presence required in San Diego for rapid onboarding, team integration, and cross-functional collaboration. This Director must blend strategic vision with tactical execution to accelerate menu / pricing modernization, maintain operational stability, support franchisee success, and position their restaurant technology for long-term scalability and growth. The role is ideal for a hands‑on, diplomatic, QSR-experienced technology leader who thrives in a fast-paced, franchisee-focused environment and is ready to make an immediate impact.

Leadership Over 3 Teams:
1) Front of House (FOH) Hardware / Software,
2) Back of House (BOH) Inventory / Labor…