| Technology |
Operators: Technology improves training, saves time and money
Second-generation digital teaching tools, including compact video players and new content management and authoring technologies, are augmenting the initial benefits of online and computer-based training by accelerating knowledge transfer and improving test score averages, operators say.
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Guests get their say quickly and easily with electronic aids
Managers have told restaurant employees about customer calls of complaint or praise since the advent of the telephone, but new technology providing real-time distribution of call recordings is changing worker-coaching initiatives.
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Papa John?s boosts sales with text message ordering system
Officials of Papa John?s Pizza, based here, say a text message ordering application launched late last year is delivering ?sales lift? to the chain?s approximately 2,700 U.S. stores.
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Doing ?The Wave? and other news, test talk from FS/TEC
Recall Tom Cruise and his projected, motion-controlled display in the future-world flick, ?Minority Report,? and you get a sense of the visual impact of one of the visual aids exhibited at FS/TEC 2008 in Grapevine, Texas. The large, high-definition, flat-screen display, on which content could be manipulated with hand gestures and without contact, was from Solaris Labs of Westmount, Quebec. It is slated for unspecified use by interactive-restaurant developer uWink Inc. in a Cupertino, Calif., branch expected to open within months.
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Tech guru Burrus: ?Transform? your restaurant business or get left behind
When your customers are learning faster than you are learning, we?ve got trouble,? technology trends forecaster Daniel Burrus told FS/TEC 2008 attendees recently gathered here. ?And let me tell you, your customers are starting to learn fast. Are we??
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IT exec changes at EPL, Back Bay, IHOP, Red Robin
Adding to a recent string of changes in foodservice information technology executive circles, El Pollo Loco Inc., based here, has named Allison A. Watanabe vice president of IT for the operator and franchisor of 391 grilled chicken restaurants in multiple states.
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FS/TEC draws deeper from experts? well in ?08
Given the challenging economy, organizers of FS/TEC 2008 worked to maximize the conference experience for attendees by offering an expanded slate of experts and new program formats all aimed at ?Putting the I.T. in Prof. I.T.$.?
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FS/TEC 2008 Special Report: A friendly reminder regarding tech convergence: Just because you can, doesn?t mean you should
Here is an easy pick for silliest recent example of convergence, or the coming together of technologies or business practices: a leopard-print stun gun from Taser International that can be accessorized with a combination holster-MP3 player.
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FS/TEC ?08 boasts slate of educational programs
The educational program of the foodservice industry?s leading technology conference, FS/TEC, will run here April 16-19 and cover issues as diverse as ?Putting the ?Green? in IT? and ?Digital Menu Boards & Mobile Ordering: Lots of Talk, but Where?s the Action??
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Top tech forecaster Burrus to assess strategies at FS/TEC
Daniel Burrus, one of the world?s leading technology forecasters and business strategists, will deliver the keynote address during the 2008 International Foodservice Technology Exposition April 16-19 at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center here.
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Operators navigate challenges, rewards of self-order kiosk initiatives
Trials or deployments of computerized kiosks, primarily for guest self-service, are on the rise. But what types of business challenges are foodservice companies throwing at them?
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Scheduling software gives time-starved managers valuable solutions
Get in, set up an effective staff schedule and move on to the next task: That?s what most restaurateurs want out of their scheduling software. But knowing that doesn?t necessarily make their search for the right software any easier, as the schedulers available today run the gamut from elementary point-of-sale-system modules to high-end workforce management applications.
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Technology lets chains give consumers more order channels
Anticipating greater demand for systems allowing consumers to order food remotely and electronically, operators big and small are adding technologies that enable ordering via text messages and Internet-capable mobile devices.
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POS selection, customization a hot topic among restaurants
?POS in transition? was the subject of a recent Nation?s Restaurant News story, but beyond that report there?s been no shortage of point-of-sale technology activity.
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Operators: Decentralized POS tools help build sales
Even as point-of-sale technology saves chains more money and time with such centralized administrative functions as automated systemwide menu price adjustments, the trend toward decentralized transaction management is helping operators improve sales and service ratings, users said.
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UWink prototype clears $2M in first-year sales, adds pay-at-table features
UWink Inc., the Nolan Bushnell-led company whose initial ?interactive restaurant? notched first-year revenue exceeding $2.2 million, has added pay-at-table functionality to tech features that let guests place touch-screen food and bar orders and play game from tabletop consoles.
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Panel: ?Smart? equipment surfacing, but ?smart? facilities will take time
Tech-savvy operators increasingly turn to ?smart equipment? as a way to improve operations, maintain consistency, ease labor pressures and increase the speed of service.
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Keeping IT ?Real? and in ?Focus? are key after M&A action
Developing and executing a successful information technology strategy can be challenging under the best of circumstances, but the IT drill is further complicated when a company acquires or is acquired by another.
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Food safety, crisis communications tools win chains? attention
In the aftermath of high-visibility foodborne illness outbreaks during the past 18 months, some restaurant chains are achieving enhanced food safety or improved crisis communications by leveraging technology that might not immediately come to mind for those purposes.
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CEOs, COOs share what the boss wants from technology at FS/TEC 2007
Concerned that its lagging speed of service was putting it at a disadvantage compared with quick-service competitors, the 400-unit Zaxby?s fast-casual chain turned to next-generation drive-thru timers that are integrated with its point-of-sale system.
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