Denali Foods Vice President of Operations

Job Description

Job Description

Vice President of Operations

Denali Foods, Inc., Taco Bell of Alaska

Location: Anchorage, Alaska (Field-Based / Anchorage HQ)

Organization Size: 14 Units | $55M+ Sales | 500+ Team Members

Our Culture: Live Más

At Denali Foods, Inc., we operate 14 Taco Bell restaurants across Alaska with a singular purpose: To Feed People’s Lives with Más . To us, "Más" means doing more and giving more with passion and creativity. We are dedicated to serving more than just food; we serve careers, build community, and create moments that matter. This spirit of innovation and "breakthrough thinking" drives everything we do, ensuring we deliver unique experiences for both our team members and our guests.

The Opportunity

Are you a strategic leader who thrives at the intersection of world-class brand systems and local business agility? We are seeking a VP of Operations to serve as a pivotal leader within our organization. This role requires a unique balance: acting as the primary strategic partner to our President while providing inspired, collaborative leadership to our tenured operations team.

We are looking for a high-level communicator who leads through relationship-building and mutual respect. You will be responsible for bridging the gap between executive vision and daily restaurant excellence, ensuring our long-standing team members are empowered, heard, and supported in delivering the "Live Más" experience.

Partnership & Team Leadership

The VP of Operations sits at the heart of our organizational structure, balancing two critical collaborative fronts:

• Executive Partnership: You will work in a high-trust, high-frequency partnership with the President to translate annual growth goals into clear, quarterly execution plans. You will provide data-driven operational vision to support high-level decision-making and strategic growth.

• Operational Stewardship: You will guide and mentor a passionate team of tenured leaders. Your success is defined by your ability to delegate effectively, providing our Director of Operations, Area Coaches and GMs the autonomy to lead while ensuring their voices are elevated in company-wide discussions.

Key Responsibilities

• Operational Excellence: Maintain uncompromising standards for brand culture, guest experience, food and employee safety, speed with service (SWS) and compliance with all company and government policies and regulations.

• Financial Stewardship: Own the unit-level and company-wide economics. You will manage operational costs with precision, using data to coach restaurant leadership and improve performance.

• Innovation & Tech Integration: Lead the rollout of cutting-edge technology and tools—from digital ordering to back-of-house systems—ensuring our team has the best resources to succeed in a frictionless environment.

• Strategic Restaurant Development: Partner with the President and the brand to lead the expansion and evolution of our Alaska portfolio, including strategic site selection, new unit builds, and modernizing existing locations through brand-standard remodels and technology upgrades.

• "Grow Our Own" Career Development: Drive the bench planning process, ensuring every team member has a clear, supported path to advance their career and fostering aspirations for growth.

• Empowered Leadership: Provide a platform for our tenured staff to contribute to operational improvements, ensuring we leverage their experience to solve challenges and innovate.

Job Requirements & Key Attributes

To flourish in this role, the following attributes are essential:

• Industry Mastery: You possess a deep understanding of QSR operating systems (BOH and POS) and a functional knowledge of every role within the operations team structure to effectively coach and delegate.

• Data-Driven Expert: You are comfortable diving into P&Ls and operational metrics. You possess a deep understanding of the drivers of profitability and growth within a multi-unit QSR environment. You use data to identify trends, solve problems, and back up your strategic recommendations to the President.

• Strategic Execution: You are an optimistic solution-seeker with a demonstrated ability to develop and implement strategic plans that deliver desired results, and you can manage multiple complex projects simultaneously.

• Project Management: You have an interest in leading the end-to-end lifecycle of restaurant development projects, ensuring all designs align with both brand requirements and local operational needs while managing timelines, budgets, and vendor relationships. The ability to read construction plans and functional knowledge of the build process is desired.

• Proven Communication & People Skills: You are an expert at navigating diverse personalities and building consensus. You communicate with clarity, empathy, and transparency at every level of the organization. You lead through influence rather than authority and possess a “people first” mindset with Live Más flavor.

• Commitment & Presence: You are dedicated to the time necessary to achieve our goals, typically a minimum of 50 hours per week. You are accountable to your calendar and to your teams. The team knows you “have their back” and you show up regularly in restaurants to deliver one-on-one coaching and support.

• Professional Experience & Education: You bring a minimum of 10 years of experience leading others at various organizational levels, with a proven track record in multi-unit QSR management. Taco Bell brand experience is a huge plus. An undergraduate degree or equivalent is desired.

• Mobility: You’re ready to go the distance! Travel is an essential part of this role; you must possess a valid driver’s license and be available for local and long-distance travel on a regular basis, including monthly visits to Fairbanks, Matanuska Valley, and the Kenai Peninsula, as well as attending frequent national and regional meetings held throughout the lower-48.

• Physical Vitality: This is a hands-on role requiring the ability to stand or sit for extended periods, manually move up to 50 lbs., and engage in the physical flow of a restaurant environment when coaching on-site.

Why Join Us?

We offer the stability of a global brand with the heart of a local business. Here, you are a key decision-maker in a tight-knit leadership circle. We value authenticity, transparency, a commitment to excellence, and a workplace where every leader’s voice helps shape our future. Industry-leading compensation including a generous performance-based bonus plan and profit-sharing, car allowance, and benefits package.

A resume and a cover letter outlining your philosophy on "Leading and Empowering Tenured Teams" is required.