Hospitality Operations Director - Luxury Wine Estate - Franschhoek

Pay

ZAR 80000 - 80001 Monthly

Type

Permanent

Sector

Hospitality & Catering

Closes

in 30 days

Recruiter

Hospitality Jobs Africa · All jobs at Hospitality Jobs Africa

About the role

Our client is seeking an accomplished Hospitality Operations Director to take executive-level responsibility for the performance of a prestigious luxury wine estate's diverse hospitality operations in Franschhoek. This is a highly senior, hands-on leadership position overseeing multiple hospitality business units, including Food & Beverage, Wine Tasting, Events, Accommodation, Reservations and Leisure operations. The successful candidate will combine exceptional operational leadership with strong commercial acumen, financial accountability, people leadership and luxury guest-experience expertise. This is not a desk-based executive position. The Hospitality Operations Director is expected to maintain strong visibility across the operation, lead HODs effectively and translate commercial performance data into decisive operational action.

Reporting into senior executive management, you will take responsibility for the overall operational performance and service delivery of the estate's hospitality portfolio.

Key responsibilities include:

• Provide executive operational leadership across all hospitality departments
• Lead and hold HODs and supervisors accountable for performance
• Maintain exceptional luxury guest-experience and service standards
• Maintain a strong on-the-floor leadership presence
• Conduct operational walk-throughs and monitor service delivery
• Oversee revenue, costs, profitability and operational performance across business units
• Translate financial and commercial insights into clear operational action plans
• Contribute to budgets, forecasts and performance reviews
• Monitor labour costs, cost of sales, margins and departmental expenses
• Drive SOP compliance and consistent operating standards
• Oversee occupancy, reservations performance, arrivals, VIP guests and service delivery
• Manage escalated guest concerns and drive service improvement
• Oversee recruitment, onboarding, performance management and development of hospitality leadership teams
• Build a positive, accountable and high-performing workplace culture
• Drive stock, inventory, procurement and cost-control disciplines
• Work collaboratively with Finance, Revenue, Sales and Marketing
• Support promotions, packages, events and business-development initiatives
• Identify opportunities for revenue growth, upselling and cross-selling
• Oversee operational readiness for major events, peak periods and campaigns
• Drive continuous improvement and operational efficiencies
• Oversee hospitality-related compliance, risk, health and safety and asset management

The role carries measurable accountability for revenue and profit delivery, guest experience, people performance, inventory controls, projects and governance.

What they're looking for

• Bachelor's degree in Hospitality Management, Business Administration or a related field, and/or relevant hospitality, F&B or Events Management certification
• Minimum 10–12 years' experience in hospitality operations
• At least 5 years in senior leadership, executive management, General Manager, Operations Director or equivalent capacity
• Proven experience overseeing multiple hospitality departments or business units
• Experience across areas such as F&B, events, accommodation, guest services, wine tourism/tasting and leisure operations highly advantageous
• Luxury, boutique, wine estate or premium hospitality experience strongly preferred
• Proven ability to manage revenue, costs, profitability and operational performance
• Strong budgeting and forecasting capability
• Excellent commercial and financial acumen
• Strong understanding of luxury guest expectations
• Proven HOD leadership and people-management capability
• Strong operational systems and reporting knowledge
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving ability
• Sound knowledge of South African labour legislation
• Understanding of health, safety, compliance and quality-assurance requirements
• Strong inventory and cost-control knowledge
• Excellent communication, presentation and stakeholder-management skills
• Strategic thinker who remains highly hands-on operationally
• Professional, resilient and commercially astute
• Strong decision-maker with exceptionally high standards
• A Sales and Marketing background would be advantageous but is not essential.

Leadership Profile

We are particularly interested in candidates who can demonstrate a track record of:

• Leading multiple hospitality departments simultaneously
• Developing and holding senior HODs accountable
• Improving service standards and guest satisfaction
• Managing budgets and delivering against revenue and profitability targets
• Protecting gross margins through disciplined labour, stock and cost management
• Building effective operational structures and SOPs
• Creating healthy, respectful and accountable team cultures
• Managing VIP guests, major events and high-demand trading periods
• Turning performance data into practical operational improvements

The position requires a leader who can move comfortably between executive-level commercial discussions and visible operational leadership on the floor. The client's performance framework places significant emphasis on both operational/guest-experience excellence and measurable financial delivery.

Salary & Benefits

• Salary: R80,000 per month
• Cellphone Allowance: R1,500 per month
• Bonus: Performance-Based Bonus
• Location: Franschhoek, Western Cape
• Employment: Permanent
• Level: Executive Management

Candidates are requested to indicate their current remuneration and salary expectations when applying.

What's on offer

• Cellphone Allowance: R1,500 per month & Bonus: Performance-Based Bonus