Cloud Kitchens and their Talent Complexities : Technology in the Frontline

The following is an amalgamation of multiple conversations that I’ve had with the (now ex) VP HR of Rebel Foods India, Col Ranjan Prabhu. Col. Prabhu is a seasoned Army veteran with nearly 23 years of experience leading men and women in the Indian Army. He is everything you'd expect in a military man - tough, decisive, and on all counts, he puts his people first. 
We all know about the Rebel Foods that has become the world’s largest cloud kitchen company. But behind the scenes is a people organisation which marches efficiently to well coordinated execution SOPs. Managing this talent pool is mission critical for Rebel. In the conversation, we understand the challenges of running a cloud kitchen and how technology helps mitigate some of these challenges.

PS - I have summarised multiple threads of the conversation in the form of a Q&A blog to make it easier to read.

Q) Can you shed light on Rebel Foods' journey in India and elaborate on the current talent ecosystem in a Rebel Kitchen?

Rebel's history can be divided into two phases - an initial Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) phase primarily led by Faasos and a transformative pivot in 2015 towards a hyper-scalable cloud and delivery-only kitchen model, which I'll focus on.

Rebel pioneered the internet restaurant concept globally, driven by the insight that 74% of their customers had never physically visited a Faasos store. We realised early that this was scaleable not just geographically but also across complementary brands that maximised fixed cost leverage. Each brand complements customer “missions” of food and beverage consumption. Think of us as replicating a food court experience - multiple brands in one location, but only online.

Presently, Rebel operates 365 physical stores, including experimental dine-in concepts. Each kitchen operates under an "entrepreneur in residence" responsible for ensuring customer satisfaction, aptly titled as a Customer Delight Officer (CDO). The staff ranges from kitchen personnel to riders ensuring seamless last-mile delivery. Our workforce includes Full Timers, Freelancers, Gig workers, and Part Timers, reflecting diverse classifications.