Position: Area Coach (Succession Pathway) Location: Hartswater Location: Northern Cape Region Initial Deployment: KFC Hartswater (Training Phase) Future Scope: Douglas, Kathu, Upington, Schweizer, Kalahari MallOverall Purpose of the Position: The Area Coach (AC) is the primary people developer and performance leader for a portfolio of restaurants. The AC will be responsible for coaching and enabling Restaurant General Managers (RGMs) to build strong teams, deliver a brand-consistent customer experience, and achieve sustainable sales growth and profitability. The AC will drive employee engagement and retention, embed operational routines and standards, and lead the local execution of Trade On’s brand initiatives. The AC champions ORIGINALS culture to create a workplace where people feel confident, valued, and empowered to succeed. This role forms part of a structured succession pathway, starting with a supervised training phase at Hartswater before assuming full AC responsibilities. Successful progression depends on passing all required training modules and certification assessments.Key Performance Areas (KPAs) & Responsibilities include, but not limited to: Build People Capability: • Leadership: Coaching and mentoring restaurant leaders to lead high-performing teams; role-model inclusive, values-led leadership and effective on-the-floor coaching. • Succession & benching: Identifying and accelerating high-potential talent; maintaining a healthy pipeline of Team Leaders, RMs and RGMs. • Engagement & retention: Partner with People Capability Leader (PCL) and operational leaders to design employee engagement plans (recognition and growth pathways) that improve retention. • Performance management: Ensuring clear goals, timely feedback, and result management; closing skill gaps through targeted development and training certification. • Wellbeing & compliance: Safeguarding safe staffing levels and balanced rosters; upholding safety, security and labour practice standards. Performance Indicators: Employee Engagement Score, Bench Strength & Internal Promotions, Training Completion & CertificationDeliver a Consistent Customer Experience: • Standardisation: Auditing and coaching CHAMPS (Cleanliness, Hospitality, Accuracy, Maintenance, Product Quality, Speed of Service), ROCC (Restaurant Operations Compliance Check), and CSL (Champs Standards Library) standards; ensuring brand-consistent service, quality and efficiencies across all restaurants. • Operational routines: Driving daily/weekly operational routines (CHAMPS checks, shift huddles, line checks, food safety, cash controls) and closing gaps with action plans. • Optimizing financial performance: Managing of food, staffing or staff resources, and overhead costs proactively, ensuring agreed service times, effective deployment profitability. • Risk & compliance: Ensuring H&S, food safety, security and cash handling compliance; reducing loss, waste and operational variance. • Continuous improvement: Sharing best practices; leading root-cause problem solving with operational leaders to drive sustainable improvements. Performance Indicators: CHAMPS/ROCC Audits, Customer Complaint Resolution Rate, Operational Routine ComplianceGrow the Brand, Sales & Profits • Strategic Brand Activation: Driving initiatives that translate to the broader brand strategy and embedding them for local success within your region. • Sales building: Guiding store marketing, delivering optimisation, product & promo execution; ensuring visibility and operational readiness. • Commercial discipline: Reviewing P&Ls with Operational Leaders(RGMs, RM and SS); driving cost/productivity initiatives and margin improvement. • Initiative leadership: Piloting, embedding and sustaining new ways of working; tracking post-initiative KPIs and scaling what works. • Cross-functional collaboration: Partner with PCL, Operational Leaders, Training Facilitators and fellow ACs to deliver impactful training and culture initiatives. Performance Indicators: Sales Growth vs Budget, Restaurant Profitability, Brand Initiatives Executed SuccessIdeal Requirements • Diploma/degree in supply chain, hospitality and/or related field (Advantageous) • Minimum 5 years’ management experience in leading…