10 KFC operations directors
Sr. Director Operations, Director of Restaurant Excellence and Head of Restaurant Excellence are among the roles held by these ten KFC operations directors, some of whom have since moved on. A reader can learn how operations directors work at KFC from people who have held the role.
Professionals to explore
Charlene Willoughby
LinkedInExperience: Director of Restaurant Excellence · KFC UK & Ireland
Charlene Willoughby has been Director of Restaurant Excellence at KFC UK & Ireland since September 2025, based in Glasgow. Charlene Willoughby was Head of Operational Excellence at KFC UK & Ireland from 2023 to 2025, Head of Equity Operations there from 2020 to 2023 and Digital Operations Lead from 2017 to 2020.
James Pounsett
LinkedInExperience: Dir. Restaurant Excellence · KFC South Pacific (Yum! Brands Subsidiary)
James Pounsett has been Dir. Restaurant Excellence at KFC South Pacific (Yum! Brands Subsidiary) since October 2025, based in Sydney. James Pounsett was Director of Restaurant Excellence at KFC UK & Ireland from 2024 to 2025 and Director of Operations - Greater Asia at KFC from 2023 to 2024.
Jeff Griffin
LinkedInExperience: Director-National FIeld Operations KFC · KFC
Jeff Griffin is a former Director-National FIeld Operations KFC at KFC, a role held from 2018 to 2022 in Louisville, Kentucky, and describes leading both franchise and equity-owned field operations teams in it. Jeff Griffin was a Region Coach at Yum! Brands from 2010 to 2018.
Matt Kemp
LinkedInExperience: Operations Director · KFC
Matt Kemp has been Operations Director at KFC since January 2025, based in Manchester, England. Matt Kemp was Head Of Operations at KFC from 2022 to 2025 and Regional Manager at KFC from 2020 to 2022, and held retail roles at Co-op, including Retail Area Manager from 2019 to 2020.
Matthew Forsyth
LinkedInExperience: Operations Director – Franchise · KFC South Pacific (Yum! Brands Subsidiary)
Matthew Forsyth has been Operations Director – Franchise at KFC South Pacific (Yum! Brands Subsidiary) since March 2023 and describes leading a multidisciplinary team in the role. Matthew Forsyth was Restaurant Technology Partner (Senior Manager), APAC at KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN from 2021 to 2023 and Customer Experience Manager at KFC South Pacific (Yum! Brands Subsidiary) from 2018 to 2021.
Melinda Votano
LinkedInExperience: Director of Restaurant Excellence · KFC Canada (Yum! Brands Subsidiary)
Melinda Votano has been Director of Restaurant Excellence at KFC Canada (Yum! Brands Subsidiary) since June 2025 and was Director of Field Operations there from 2024 to 2025. Melinda Votano was Senior Manager, Technical Product Management at Yum! Brands from 2023 to 2024 and Operations Manager - Greater Asia at KFC from 2020 to 2022.
Mmenyana Ranku
LinkedInExperience: Director Of Operations- KFC SA · Yum! Brands
Mmenyana Ranku is a former Director Of Operations- KFC SA at Yum! Brands, a role held from 2020 to 2022, and was Operations Director- KFC Corporate Restaurants there from 2017 to 2020. Mmenyana Ranku has been GM - Branded Retail at MTN South Africa since January 2023, based in Johannesburg.
Natasha Prakash
LinkedInExperience: Director, Operations · KFC India
Natasha Prakash has been Director, Operations at KFC India since August 2025, based in Gurugram, India. Natasha Prakash was Associate Director, Customer Experience at KFC India from 2022 to 2025 and a Consultant at Boston Consulting Group (BCG) from 2020 to 2022.
Piotr Nowak
LinkedInExperience: Head of Restaurant Excellence · KFC
Piotr Nowak has been Head of Restaurant Excellence at KFC since January 2025, based in Switzerland, and the profile names the role's scope as Central and Eastern Europe within Yum Brands. Piotr Nowak was Regional Head | General Management at Restaurant Brands International from 2019 to 2022 and held the same title at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen over the same years.
Praveen Reddy Cheruku
LinkedInExperience: Sr. Director Operations - KFC Corporation, USA · Yum! Brands
Praveen Reddy Cheruku has been Sr. Director Operations - KFC Corporation, USA at Yum! Brands since April 2024, based in Plano, Texas. Praveen Reddy Cheruku held the title Chief Operations Officer : KFC MENAPakT & CIS at Yum! Brands from 2022 to 2024 and was Director Restaurant Excellence : KFC Sub-Saharan Africa there from 2019 to 2021.
Choose the right perspective
Match the person's market and area, such as field operations, restaurant excellence or franchise operations, to the question you bring. Check whether each person's KFC role is current or past and when it started or ended.
Questions to take into the conversation
- 01Which operating problems took most of your time in your director role, and why?
- 02How did you decide which restaurant standards to focus on first in your area?
- 03What did you change first when you took on your operations director role, and what happened?
Reaching KFC operations directors
How can I contact one of these KFC operations directors?
Pick one of the 10 people on this page and choose "Book a paid call", or describe your project to find others. You offer a fee for a 15-minute call or a written answer, Instant Expert finds the person's work email and sends the invitation, and they decide whether to accept. The list covers 6 companies, including KFC UK & Ireland, KFC South Pacific (Yum! Brands Subsidiary) and KFC, based on profile data retrieved on October 24, 2026. Being listed here doesn't mean someone has agreed to take calls.
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About this directory
This is a professional research starting point based on business profile data retrieved on . Titles and companies reflect that source snapshot; roles marked former had ended by then. Check the linked profiles for current details. Inclusion does not imply Instant Expert membership or availability.
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