Job Description

At El Pollo Loco, we are on a mission to be the nation’s leading fire-grilled chicken restaurant. When it comes to our people, we are all about growth. Whether that means specialized training, a clearly laid out career trajectory or collaborating cross-functionally, we are committed to the success of our people the same way we’ve been committed to the success of the El Pollo Loco brand for the last 50 years. In fact, we see you as our secret ingredient. While our chicken is fire, it’s our people who set us ablaze.

Our restaurants are only the tip of the flame! If you’re looking for an innovative, winning, and welcoming workplace, then a flamin’ good career in our Restaurant Support Center is right for you.

At our Support Center, we believe our best work is done Together, when departments collaborate and everyone is confident in contributing their ideas. This is why we are in the office 3 days per week.

Let’s Get Loco!

What’s in it for you!

• STRONG office culture recognized as a Great Place to Work® and driven by our core values: Simple. Together. Relentless. Ownership. Nimble. Growth
• Career growth opportunities
• Competitive pay and bonus potential
• Medical + Dental + Vision Insurance + HSA Savings Account
• 401(K) Retirement Plan with company match and immediate vesting
• Paid Vacation + Sick Pay + 12 Paid Holidays
• Employee Assistance Program
• Free El Pollo Loco food + restaurant discounts
• PerkSpot discounts program

Company & Culture

For over 35 years El Pollo Loco continues to dominate the market in delivering the best citrus-marinated fire-grilled chicken. We opened our first restaurant in 1980 in Los Angeles, and today we are over 450 restaurants strong and still growing! From our products to our people, we’re truly amazing!

Job Summary

This role owns El Pollo Loco’s recipe and food inventory systems and serves as the single source of truth for recipe and inventory data. The Manager keeps that data accurate, turns it into insights that improve food cost and profitability, and makes sure menu items are built and maintained consistently across all El Pollo Loco locations.

Key Focus Areas

• Data cleanup and integrity
• Recipe and prep optimization
• Actual vs. theoretical variance analysis
• System maintenance and new item setup
• Vendor integration (Supply Chain partners/vendors)
• Operations and franchise partner support
• Reporting cleanup, access management, and analytics

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

Data Integrity

• Audit recipe and inventory data to find and fix inconsistencies, errors, and outdated entries.
• Clean the recipe database: remove duplicates, standardize formatting, and verify ingredient quantities across all locations.
• Clean inventory data: fix discrepancies, standardize units of measure, and archive inactive items.
• Monitor data daily so small errors don’t compound.

Cost Control & Profitability

• Keep recipe costing current in Recipe & Food Inventory System, updating for vendor price changes.
• Standardize portion sizes, build efficient prep schedules, and roll out digital checklists to reduce waste.
• Calculate actual vs. theoretical food cost and find root causes of loss, such as portioning, spoilage, or theft.
• Implement new platform features that improve ordering, waste tracking, and food cost performance.

Supply Chain & Operations

• Own new item and recipe setup, with clear protocols for accurate and timely entry, working with Supply Chain and Culinary.
• Support consistent inventory practices at restaurants, including physical counts, FIFO/FEFO, and usage-rate monitoring to right-size stock levels.
• Manage the Supply Chain partners/vendors integration: secure FTP data exchange, GDSN product data and images, and troubleshooting of transmission errors.

Operations Partnership

• Act as the go-to resource for company and franchise operators on recipe & food inventory system questions, data validation, and system inquiries.
• Work with restaurant teams to troubleshoot recipe, inventory, and costing issues, and resolve them quickly.
• Validate operator-reported discrepancies against system data and follow through on corrections.
• Gather operator feedback to improve system setup, training, and day-to-day usability.

Reporting & Platform Administration

• Audit and clean up existing reports: retire outdated or duplicate reports and consolidate the rest into a clear, usable set.
• Streamline the data points operations sees so restaurant and field leaders get the metrics that matter, without clutter.
• Manage platform access and user roles so company, franchise, and corporate users have the right access levels, and review them regularly as people change roles.
• Build and maintain food cost, variance, and inventory reports for Operations, Finance, and franchise partners.
• Spot trends and opportunities, and bring clear, actionable recommendations to leadership.

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of restaurant back-office experience in inventory, costing, or finance; multi-unit QSR preferred.
• Hands-on experience with food management systems (e.g., CrunchTime, Restaurant365).
• Proven track record of data cleanup and data integrity work.
• Working knowledge of FTP (File Transfer Protocol), GDSN (Global Data Synchronization Network), and POS systems; advanced Excel.
• Experience supporting field or franchise operators, with the ability to explain technical issues in plain language.
• Analytical, detail-oriented, and proactive, with strong communication skills.
• Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, hospitality, or a related field preferred, or equivalent experience.

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Our Company

In 1980 the first American El Pollo Loco opened on Alvarado Street in Los Angeles, quickly becoming a destination for the best citrus-marinated, fire-grilled pollo in town. Over the past four decades, El Pollo Loco has grown into more than 500 restaurants across 9 states, becoming an L.A. mainstay and cultural benchmark along the way. Today, we continue to work just as hard to always provide our customers with Quality Chicken. Fast. Easy. Affordable.

The pay range identified is the hourly or salary rate El Pollo Loco expects to pay for the posted position. This range does not include any benefits or bonus opportunities that might be available for the position based on position and eligibility criteria. At El Pollo Loco, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the high end of the range. Individual pay decisions will vary based on a variety of factors including years of experience, industry experience, education, geography, etc.

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