Full Time Group Vice President - Head of Innovation Jobs, in Hospitality.SG - Maukerja

Our client is one of Asia's largest and most established hospitality and Food & Beverage (F&B) groups, with an extensive portfolio of hospitality assets, restaurant brands, dining concepts and lifestyle businesses across multiple markets.

With a strong regional presence and ambitious international growth plans, the Group is committed to redefining hospitality and dining experiences through innovation, technology, operational excellence and new business models.

The Group is seeking an accomplished and visionary Group Vice President & Head of Innovation to lead its enterprise-wide innovation agenda, accelerate business transformation and identify new opportunities for sustainable growth.

Position Overview

The Group Vice President & Head of Innovation will be responsible for developing and executing the Group's innovation strategy across its hospitality, F&B and related lifestyle businesses.

The role will drive innovation across guest experiences, products, services, business models, digital technologies and operational processes, translating emerging trends and technologies into commercially viable solutions.

Working closely with the Group CEO, business leaders and functional heads, the incumbent will establish a structured innovation ecosystem that encourages experimentation, accelerates commercialization and strengthens the Group's competitive advantage.

The successful candidate will combine strategic foresight, entrepreneurial thinking, technological fluency and strong commercial acumen, with the ability to convert innovative ideas into measurable business outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

1. Group Innovation Strategy & Leadership

• Develop and execute a comprehensive Group innovation strategy aligned with corporate growth priorities.
• Identify emerging trends, disruptive technologies and new business opportunities across hospitality, F&B and lifestyle sectors.
• Establish innovation priorities, governance frameworks and investment criteria across business units and markets.
• Advise Group leadership on industry disruption, competitive threats and opportunities for strategic differentiation.

2. New Business Models & Revenue Innovation

• Identify and develop new revenue streams, business concepts and scalable commercial models.
• Lead innovation in hospitality offerings, restaurant concepts, delivery channels, loyalty ecosystems and customer engagement.
• Explore opportunities in subscription services, platform businesses, strategic partnerships and adjacent industries.
• Develop business cases, pilot initiatives and commercialization strategies for new concepts.

3. Digital Transformation, AI & Emerging Technologies

• Champion the adoption of artificial intelligence, automation, robotics, advanced analytics and emerging technologies.
• Identify technology applications that improve guest experiences, workforce productivity, operational efficiency and profitability.
• Partner with IT and business leaders to evaluate and scale solutions such as AI-enabled personalization, intelligent kitchens, predictive analytics and smart hospitality.
• Ensure technology innovation delivers measurable business value while meeting cybersecurity, data privacy and governance requirements.

4. Customer Experience & Product Innovation

• Lead initiatives to reimagine guest journeys, dining experiences and service delivery.
• Drive product, menu, service and experience innovation through customer insights and market intelligence.
• Leverage customer data, behavioral analytics and design thinking to develop differentiated experiences.
• Support the development of innovative hospitality and F&B concepts tailored to evolving consumer preferences.

5. Operational Innovation & Productivity

• Identify opportunities to redesign operating models, streamline workflows and enhance productivity.
• Drive innovation in food production, kitchen operations, procurement, supply chains, workforce deployment and service delivery.
• Collaborate with business units to pilot and scale solutions that improve cost efficiency, quality, consistency and sustainability.
• Establish measurable productivity and operational performance improvements.

6. Innovation Ecosystem, Partnerships & Investments

• Develop strategic relationships with startups, technology companies, universities, research institutions and industry partners.
• Identify opportunities for joint ventures, venture investments, technology licensing and strategic collaborations.
• Evaluate emerging solutions and potential acquisition opportunities that strengthen the Group's innovation capabilities.
• Represent the Group in relevant innovation, technology and industry ecosystems.

7. Innovation Culture & Organizational Capabilities

• Build an enterprise-wide culture that encourages creativity, experimentation and continuous improvement.
• Establish innovation programmes, internal incubators, cross-functional teams and employee-driven initiatives.
• Develop innovation capabilities among business leaders and employees.
• Introduce structured processes for ideation, experimentation, validation and scaling.

8. Innovation Portfolio & Performance Management

• Establish and manage the Group's innovation portfolio, investment budgets and project priorities.
• Develop frameworks for evaluating innovation opportunities based on commercial viability, scalability, strategic alignment and risk.
• Track innovation performance through defined KPIs, financial returns and operational outcomes.
• Present innovation strategies, investment proposals and performance updates to Group leadership and the Board.

Candidate Requirements

Education & Professional Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, Technology, Hospitality Management or a related discipline; MBA or postgraduate qualification preferred.
• Typically 15–20 years of progressive leadership experience, including significant responsibility for innovation, strategy, digital transformation, business development or corporate ventures.
• Proven track record of leading innovation initiatives and delivering measurable commercial results in large, complex organizations.
• Experience in hospitality, F&B, consumer businesses, retail, lifestyle or related service industries strongly preferred.
• Exposure to multiple Asian markets and international business environments.
• Experience engaging C-suite executives, boards, external partners and investment stakeholders.

Leadership & Technical Competencies

• Strong strategic thinking and ability to anticipate industry disruption.
• Deep understanding of emerging technologies, AI applications, digital platforms and evolving consumer business models.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, including business-case development, investment evaluation and ROI management.
• Demonstrated ability to take innovations from concept through pilot to commercialization and enterprise-wide deployment.
• Excellent stakeholder management, influencing and cross-functional leadership capabilities.
• Entrepreneurial mindset, creativity, adaptability and willingness to challenge conventional business practices.
• Strong execution discipline and ability to balance innovation with operational realities.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a commercially driven innovation leader with an entrepreneurial mindset and the ability to operate effectively within a large, diversified organization.

The individual should possess the strategic vision to identify future growth opportunities, the creativity to challenge traditional hospitality and F&B business models, and the execution capabilities to translate innovation into tangible commercial outcomes.

Experience leading transformation across multiple business units, brands and geographic markets will be particularly valuable.

Above all, the successful candidate must demonstrate that innovation is not simply about adopting new technologies, but about creating new value, improving business performance and building sustainable competitive advantage.