Chief Development Officer / VP Franchise Development

JOB DESCRIPTION —CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER / VP FRANCHISE DEVELOPMENT

Reports to: Founder & CEO

Location: Phoenix, Arizona preferred; remote considered with regular travel to HQ

Employment type: Full-time, Executive — founding equity participation

Start: Pre-launch — role should be filled before Hero Johns' initial capital raise

Company Overview

Hero Johns is building the first veteran-owned national portable sanitation franchise, addressing a $4B+ U.S. market with roughly 1,300 operators and no dominant national brand. Backed by a founding equipment partnership with PolyJohn, Hero Johns will create a structured pathway for the 200,000+ service members who transition out of the military each year to become franchise owners and skilled operators in the portable restroom, septic pumping, and waste hauling industry.

Position Summary

Hero Johns is seeking a Chief Development Officer / VP Franchise Development to design, launch, and lead the franchise sales and development function from the ground up. This executive will turn the franchise tier structure (Bronze through Platinum) into a fully compliant, sellable offering, build the sales pipeline and process for recruiting franchisees — including veterans sourced through Hero Johns' TAP, SkillBridge, and veteran-organization pipeline — and own the franchisee relationship from first inquiry through territory award and opening. This is a founding role: there is no existing franchise development function to inherit, and the candidate will build the playbook, the team, and the pipeline simultaneously.

Key Responsibilities

1. Own the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) process end-to-end in partnership with General Counsel, translating the franchise tier structure into a compliant, sellable offering.
2. Design and manage state-by-state franchise registration and compliance strategy as Hero Johns expands into regulated franchise states.
3. Build the franchise sales process and pipeline from first inquiry through discovery day, territory award, and signed franchise agreement.
4. Set territory strategy and pricing across all franchise tiers (Bronze, Silver, Silver+, Gold, Platinum), working with the CEO and CFO on unit economics and target market sequencing.
5. Partner closely with the Head of Veteran Pipeline Partnerships to convert candidates sourced through TAP, SkillBridge, VBOC, and veteran organizations into qualified, financeable franchise buyers.
6. Lead the Arizona pilot program's franchise recruitment — identify, qualify, and close the first 3 Hero Johns franchisees in Phoenix.
7. Build franchisee onboarding, territory support, and renewal/growth processes that scale as the network expands toward the 500+ location, five-year target.
8. •Represent Hero Johns at franchise expos, PSAI Expo, WWETT Show, and veteran business events to drive franchisee lead generation.
9. Contribute franchise development projections and territory rollout timelines to investor and crowdfunding materials.

Minimum Qualifications

1. 7+ years of experience in franchise development, franchise sales, or multi-unit business development, including direct ownership of franchisee recruitment from lead to signed agreement.
2. 3+ years of direct experience with the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) process and state franchise registration/compliance requirements.
3. Demonstrated track record of building or scaling a franchise sales pipeline and closing multiple franchise territory sales, ideally in a founding or early-stage franchise system.
4. Strong working knowledge of franchise unit economics and territory/market planning.
5. Comfortable operating without an existing playbook, building process and infrastructure from scratch in a founder-stage company.

Preferred Qualifications

1. Experience launching franchise development at a new or early-stage franchise brand (as opposed to only managing development within a mature system).
2. Background in field-service, home-service, or route-based franchise categories (portable sanitation, waste, pest control, lawn care, restoration, etc.).
3. •Existing relationships with franchise brokers, franchise expos, or franchise development consultants.
4. Familiarity with veteran transition programs (TAP, SkillBridge) or veteran business organizations (NaVOBA, VBOC, Student Veterans of America).

Veteran Preference

Hero Johns is a veteran-owned company, and building an all-veteran executive team is a core part of our mission and brand. Consistent with that mission, qualified veterans are strongly encouraged to apply, and veteran status will be considered a meaningful, positive factor in the evaluation of candidates who otherwise meet the qualifications above. This preference reflects Hero Johns' founding purpose and is applied consistent with applicable federal and state law; it is not used to exclude or disadvantage any applicant based on a protected characteristic.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Hero Johns is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

Compensation & Equity

Base salary commensurate with experience, plus founding executive equity in Hero Johns. Compensation is expected to include a performance component tied to franchise territories sold. Specific details will be discussed directly with qualified candidates.

Hero Johns | Chief Development Officer / VP Franchise Development | Confidential

To apply, contact Tony Hudson, Founder & CEO| 480-217-5514 | tony.hudson@herojohns.com