Ekrem Etöz
10582 Reeds Landing Burke ,Virginia
Summary
I am a seasoned business leader with 30 years of extensive experience in the restaurant and finance sectors. This includes 17 years in various managerial roles within the banking industry, across three countries. Additionally, I have spent 13 years as an investor and managing partner of the Tavuk Dunyası (Gagawa) restaurant franchise. I am also a husband and a father of two. I possess strong experience in restaurant and project management in diverse international settings. My goal is to leverage my 30 years of experience at Citibank, Global, and the restaurant business to enhance metrics and improve efficiency in restaurant management.
Overview
29
29
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Managing Partner
Etoz LLC dba Gagawa
McLean
09.2024 - Current
- As the Founder and Managing Partner of Etoz LLC, I led the Gagawa Restaurant's inaugural opening project in the U.S.
- I oversaw the entire development process of Gagawa's first branch, which spanned 14 months, from initial design through to the final opening.
- I organized and directed all project efforts, coordinating the design, permitting, construction, and validation phases.
- I successfully managed the acquisition of permits from Fairfax County and guided the team through 21 inspections to secure the Certificate of Occupancy.
- Additionally, I upheld Gagawa's global standards for service and quality, optimized cost of goods sold (COGS) and staffing expenses, and consistently achieved a customer satisfaction rating of 4.7 out of 5.
Managing Partner
ENE Management Ltd. Co.
Istanbul , Turkey
10.2012 - 09.2024
- Founded two restaurant companies, Kerem Restaurant in 2012 and ENE Management in 2013 as Tavuk Dunyasi franchisee.
- Achieved designation of Top Performer branch for Kerem Restaurant, sold to franchisor for $ 1.5 M in 2020.
- Managed Tavuk Dunyasi franchise, successfully opening eight locations with approximately 150 staff in Turkey.
- Invested in opening two Gagawa Restaurants in Shanghai, China in 2016.
- Established Koala Restaurant in Podgorica, Montenegro in 2018 as founder and owner.
EMEA Digital Operations Director
Citibank
London
11.2011 - 08.2013
- Coordinator EMEA Consumer Banking Digital Ops Projects across 14 countries, responsible for non-direct banking channels operations and new developments.
PMO Head
Citibank Turkey
Istanbul
05.2010 - 11.2011
- In this role, I oversee the O&T group's business analytics and manage a budget of $100 million across 36 departments, 750 staff focusing on capacity and expenses.
- I lead a team of six Business Analysts and report directly to the O&T Director.
- I spearheaded a project to streamline the process integration within Citibank Turkey.
- Additionally, I organized Lean Reengineering efforts across O&T functional units to enhance efficiency and productivity, achieving a 6% improvement year over year.
Credit Ops Manager, Vice President
Citibank Turkey
Istanbul
12.2008 - 05.2010
- Managed centralized consumer credit operations department for 2 years, implementing Blaze decision engine and various automations projects.
- The process was heavily manual, resulting in a high rate of incorrect decision-making.
- I took on the role of Project Manager to implement the Blaze Decision Engine, a project that lasted one year.
- This implementation successfully automated the end-to-end consumer credit underwriting processes.
- The project went live, achieving a 99% accuracy rate in automated bank-level credit decisions and realizing a 75% reduction in staffing requirements and average decision timeline reduced to seconds from 2 days.
Consumer Bank Credit Policy Manager
Citibank Turkey
Istanbul
10.2005 - 12.2008
- Responsible for implementing Collections Strategies and Remedial Programs.
- Taken role in Credit Bureau Integration project.
Credit Collection Manager
Citibank
Milan
12.2002 - 10.2005
- Assigned to Milan, Italy, in 2002 as Credit Manager, I was responsible for developing the Consumer Credit Collection system and hiring and training staff.
- By the end of 2002, all system setup and staffing targets were successfully achieved, and we passed the first business audit with a satisfactory rating.
- In 2004, I was given an additional role as Credit Collection Manager for the Rome Diners Club, where I focused on restructuring and streamlining processes.
- In 2005, we successfully completed the first business audit with a satisfactory rating.
- Additionally, in 2005, I executed the outsourcing project for the Rome Diners Club Credit team to the Barcelona operation center.
- Developed and implemented effective credit collection strategies to reduce NCL (Credit Loss) and improve delinquency rates.
Credit Collection Asst.Manager
Citibank Turkey
Istanbul
02.1999 - 12.2002
- Managed a team of credit collectors, providing training and performance evaluations to enhance team efficiency and effectiveness.
Credit & Collections Officer
Citibank Turkey
İzmir
10.1996 - 02.1999
- Started a professional career as Branch Credit officer for consumer loans.
- Responsible for Consumer Credit operations in the city of Izmir.
Education
Bachelor's Degree - Business Administration, English
Dokuz Eylül University
IZMIR, Türkiye01.1995
Skills
- Leadership and management
- Lean Re-engineering Process optimization
- Consumer Credit Risk Management
- Restaurant Management
- Project Management
- Operation Management
- Business Planning & Expense Management
Websites
Certification
- Business Professional and Occupational Licence (BPOL), Etoz LLC dba Gagawa Restaurant, 01/01/25
- Lean Reengineering Trainer, Citibank UK, London, 05/01/10
- EMEA Region Credit Trainer, Consumer Credit Training, Citibank US, Tampa, 09/01/04
Awards
- Top Sales Performance, Tavuk Dunyasi (Gagawa), 2019, Recognized as one of the Top 10 Highest Sales Restaurants in 2018 and 2019.
- Best Project Award, Citibank Turkey, 07/01/09, Awarded for the Blaze Credit Decision Engine implementation that automated the entire credit decisioning process.
Languages
Turkish
Native
Native
English
Advanced (C1)
C1
Italian
Intermediate (B1)
B1
Timeline
Managing Partner
Etoz LLC dba Gagawa
09.2024 - Current
Managing Partner
ENE Management Ltd. Co.
10.2012 - 09.2024
EMEA Digital Operations Director
Citibank
11.2011 - 08.2013
PMO Head
Citibank Turkey
05.2010 - 11.2011
Credit Ops Manager, Vice President
Citibank Turkey
12.2008 - 05.2010
Consumer Bank Credit Policy Manager
Citibank Turkey
10.2005 - 12.2008
Credit Collection Manager
Citibank
12.2002 - 10.2005
Credit Collection Asst.Manager
Citibank Turkey
02.1999 - 12.2002
Credit & Collections Officer
Citibank Turkey
10.1996 - 02.1999
Bachelor's Degree - Business Administration, English
Dokuz Eylül University
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