Labor Engineer, Restaurant Operations

Who is Taco Bell?

Taco Bell was born and raised in California and has been around since 1962. We went from selling everyone’s favorite Crunchy Tacos on the West Coast to a global brand with 8,200+ restaurants, 350 franchise organizations, that serve 42+ million fans each week around the globe. We’re not only the largest Mexican-inspired quick service brand (QSR) in the world, we’re also part of the biggest restaurant group in the world: Yum! Brands. 

Much of our fan love and authentic connection with our communities are rooted in being rebels with a cause. From ensuring we use high quality, sustainable ingredients to elevating restaurant technology in ways that hasn’t been done before… we will continue to be inclusive, bold, challenge the status quo and push industry boundaries.   

We’re a company that celebrates and advocates for different, has bold self-expression, strives for a better future, and brings the fun while we’re at it. We fuel our culture with real people who bring unique experiences. We inspire and enable our teams and the world to Live Más.

At Taco Bell, we’re Cultural Rebels. Want to join in on the passion-fueled fun? Learn more about the career below. 

About the Job:

The Labor Engineer, Restaurant Operations will support our labor strategy initiatives by providing analysis and insight to back business decisions. This role will apply Lean Six Sigma problem-solving skills to continuously improve processes, align them with customer needs, and deliver a positive impact on cost savings. The Engineer will apply a mix of quantitative and leadership skills to identify areas of improvement and prioritize resources. This role will partner with multiple cross-functional business and product owners during the design and development phase of future platforms and initiatives. They will drive a culture of self-inspection and continuous improvement where acting on facts and eliminating defects and waste is the norm. This role will lead and mentor projects, conduct training events, develop materials, and provide metrics on the improvement and performance of the program.

Projects for this role will be highly visible in nature and require working closely with multiple cross-functional groups including engineering, technology, human resources, legal, finance, and field teams. This role will report to the Manager, Restaurant Evolution.

The Day-to-Day:

• Support the work content-based labor model by conducting or leading in-depth analysis, including time standards, work measurement, simulation modeling, layout analyses, and develop innovative ways to continue to grow sales and profit.
• Study restaurant and business operations, identify opportunities for improvement in quality, throughput, capacity, and labor utilization. Work cross-functionally to develop and guide the implementation of optimized solutions.
• Collaborate on developing more efficient kitchen and equipment designs to simplify and streamline operations to improve speed, throughput, and capacity; Test and quantify improvements in processes and designs.
• Collect data and develop models to quantify the benefits of investments, savings, and financial break-even analysis in addition to back-of-house capacity, plan for growth, and support LTO implementation.
• Be involved in initiatives that include planning, designing, and disseminating standard/custom reports for field leaders in managing labor costs.

Is This You?

• Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering with 3 years of experience, OR 5 years of practical, analytical experience without a degree; Master's Degree preferred
• The required experience should encompass work content-based labor systems, time standards, work/performance measurement, and modeling
• Experience with data analytics and engineering tools (e.g., Excel, Access, Power BI, Tableau, Simio, LaborPro, StandardsPro, MicroStrategy, R, Minitab, CAD, SolidWorks)
• Experience in restaurant/retail operations, management consulting, or engineering/automation while driving for continuous improvement and championing a Six Sigma and Lean approach
• Project management skills to define objectives, scope, cost, and schedule projects. Passion for ideas that grow productivity, throughput, capacity, and profit
• Strong analytic skills with experience building Excel models and database tools to provide fact-based analysis of business issues and opportunities with a proven ability to multi-task and prioritize time in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment

Work-Hard, Play-Hard:

• Hybrid work schedule (onsite expectation Tues, Wed, Thurs) and year-round flex day Friday
• Onsite childcare thro