Operational Excellence Senior Program Manager, Customer

foodpanda is part of the Delivery Hero Group, the world’s pioneering local delivery platform, our mission is to deliver an amazing experience-fast, easy, and to your door. We operate in around 65 countries worldwide. Headquartered in Berlin, Germany. Delivery Hero has been listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since 2017 and is part of the MDAX stock market index.

Job Ref ID: JR0087492

Job Description

Are you passionate about driving impactful service transformation across global markets? As an Operations Excellence Program Manager, you will be pivotal in executing large-scale programs that optimise operations and experience, and scale service delivery across 17 markets in APAC, Europe, and Turkey. Your mission is to ensure that "Excellence" isn't just a goal, but a scalable, measurable, and sustainable reality across our entire service ecosystem.

You will work closely with leadership to drive initiatives that enhance operational and cost efficiency, improve the experience of customers, riders, and vendors, standardise best practices while safeguarding local nuances, and support service transformation through structured, data-driven initiatives. This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a high-performing team, contributing directly to the company’s global growth and success.

Program Management

• Lead high-impact programs that drive operational efficiency, customer experience, vendor experience, and scalable growth by planning, executing, monitoring, and ensuring timely and high-quality delivery.
• Develop clear program goals, milestones, and success criteria for assigned POCs, ensuring alignment with broader business strategy.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to manage timelines, risks, and resources, ensuring program objectives are met on time and within budget.
• Use project management tools to track progress, escalate issues, and report on key KPIs to leadership and stakeholders.
• Prioritise workstreams, coordinate dependencies, and provide guidance, feedback, and course correction throughout the project lifecycle.
• Monitor feedback from stakeholders and team members to adjust plans and ensure continuous progress throughout the change journey. Implement new initiatives to meet and go beyond defined goals.

Project-Based Leadership & Team Enablement

• Operate in a matrix environment, translating strategy into execution while leading cross-functional teams through influence rather than formal hierarchy.
• Act as a program-level leader for assigned POCs from OPEX, local markets, or functional teams for the duration of initiatives.
• Provide guidance and support to teams within OPEX and stakeholders, helping them navigate complex projects and achieve functional and organisational goals.
• Assist in tracking team progress and performance to ensure successful delivery of initiatives.
• Provide structured input and feedback on POC performance within the context of the project, in collaboration with line managers.
• Contribute to capability building and best practice sharing across the Experience Excellence community.

Stakeholder Management & Influence

• Effectively influence senior stakeholders and drive consensus without direct authority.
• Work closely with senior leaders to ensure alignment and foster a collaborative culture of continuous improvement.
• Support and challenge local markets to ensure consistent program execution while remaining pragmatic about local realities.
• Play a key role in cross-functional programs as a POC of the CX & Service Ops organisation.

Performance Tracking, Governance & Reporting

• Track the success of excellence initiatives and programs using data-driven metrics and analytics. Report on program performance, identify improvement opportunities, and ensure KPIs align with business objectives.
• Define robust tracking mechanisms to monitor progress and measure program impact.
• Prepare executive-ready updates, data-backed recommendations, and decision documents for leadership.
• Proactively identify potential risks and develop mitigation strategies.
• Contribute to post-implementation reviews and lessons learned.
• Benchmark practices across Delivery Hero regions to scale best practices or establish new global models.

• 6+ years of experience in program management, operations, or process optimisation, with a focus on experience (customer, rider, vendor), service transformation, or operational excellence.
• Strong understanding of program management methodologies and tools, with hands-on experience delivering complex projects.
• Exposure to managing cross-functional teams and initiatives, ideally in global or multi-market environments.
• Familiarity with change management frameworks and tools.
• Experience in developing and applying program management standards and governance.

Analytical & Technical Skills

• Proven ability to analyse data and use insights to drive decision-making and process improvement.
• Experience analysing large datasets using tools such as SQL, Excel, Python, or similar.
• Experience using data visualisation tools (e.g. Tableau, Power BI) to report on performance and identify trends.

Core Competencies

• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to engage stakeholders at all levels.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively to achieve shared goals.