July 21, 2025 • 17 mins
Send me a Text Message. I'd love to hear from you.
Are you struggling to balance technology and hospitality in your restaurant?
You're not alone. This eye-opening speech from this year's EdTalks reveals how the right mindset toward restaurant technology can transform your operations without sacrificing the human touch that makes your establishment special.
Through the compelling story of Tim, a restaurant owner drowning in operational tasks and burning out while trying to preserve his legacy, we see the familiar struggle many operators face today. The industry has evolved dramatically from the days of binders and clipboards, yet many resist embracing technological solutions due to unfounded fears.
The game-changer comes with a simple mindset shift: view technology not as a burden but as your most reliable employee—one that never calls in sick, never gets tired, and continuously works behind the scenes to provide data for smarter decision-making. When implemented thoughtfully, tech doesn't replace hospitality but enhances it by freeing you to focus on what matters most.
Data removes the guesswork from restaurant operations, providing clarity on crucial questions about sales patterns, staffing needs, and profitability drivers. As demonstrated by the restaurant owner who discovered his scheduling was misaligned with actual business patterns, just 20 minutes of data analysis can reveal insights that transform operations and improve both team member and guest experiences.
When selecting technology, align it with your core values by asking three essential questions: Does it enhance the guest experience? Will it improve the employee experience? Will it make your restaurant more profitable? Involve your leadership team early to ensure buy-in and identify potential implementation challenges before they arise.
Ready to transform your restaurant's operations and reclaim your time? Start by identifying your biggest current challenge and exploring technology solutions that could address it. The restaurant industry isn't getting easier, but with the right tools and mindset, you can build a more efficient, profitable operation while protecting what makes hospitality special.
Resources:
What the full EdTalk speech here on YouTube
Grab Your Free Copy of Christin's New Book, Multi Unit Mastery: Simplify Operations, Maximize Profits and Lead with Confidence
P.S. Ready to take your restaurant to the next level? Here are 3 ways I can support you:
- One-on-One Coaching - Work directly with me to tackle your biggest leadership challenges and scale your operations with confidence. Learn more at christinmarvin.com
- Multi-Unit Mastery Book - Get the complete Independent Restaurant Framework that's helped countless owners build thriving multi-location brands. Grab your copy at https://www.IRFbook.com
- Group Coaching & Leadership Workshops - Join other passionate restaurant leaders in transformative group sessions designed to elevate your entire team. Details at christinmarvin.com
Podcast Production: https://www.lconnorvoice.com/
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Welcome to the Restaurant Leadership Podcast,
the show where restaurantleaders learn tools, tactics and
habits from the world'sgreatest operators.
I'm your host, kristen Marvin,with Solutions by Kristen.
I've spent the last two decadesin the restaurant industry and
now partner with restaurantowners to develop their leaders
(00:29):
and scale their businessesthrough powerful one-on-one
coaching, group coaching andleadership workshops.
This show is complete withepisodes around coaching,
leadership development andinterviews with powerful
industry leaders.
You can now engage with me onthe show and share topics you'd
(00:50):
like to hear about, leadershiplessons you want to learn and
any feedback you have.
Simply click the link at thetop of the show notes and I will
give you a shout out on afuture episode.
Thanks so much for listeningand I look forward to connecting
.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Hi, good morning.
I'm Emily Biederman.
I am with Secret Sauce Food andBeverage.
So the same week that I wasasked to introduce our next
speaker was also the week that Ifinally decided to address my
doubts and try chat GPT for thefirst time.
Needless to say, it was ajourney.
(01:37):
Somehow I ended up.
I downloaded the wrong one.
Who knew that there was morethan one?
Ran into so many really specialerror messages, couldn't figure
out how to upload the stuffthat it needed me to upload it
so that it could do what Ineeded it to do.
Frustration levels were veryhigh and the intended progress
was exceptionally low.
However, I kept trying and witha little bit of help, I finally
(02:02):
got to where I had my firstsuccessful chat.
Now I know that that might notsound like a very big moment to
a lot of you, but for any of youthat know me, you know that my
patience for trying newtechnology is not awesome.
So for me, this was like areally big deal.
(02:24):
It's not awesome, so for methis was like a really big deal.
So I managed to get through andget to this point where I had
an open mind to try this throughsome personal and professional
growth work that I have beendoing over the past few months
and really learning what itmeans to show up and how to have
the tough conversations, how toask the hard questions, take
(02:47):
the risks and really embrace theunknown, even if that's
something like trying AI.
This small moment, as well as somany others, is why I am
especially excited to introducesomeone who really embodies that
same spirit of growth andtransformation Kristen Marvin.
(03:07):
Kristen is a restaurant coach,she's an author, a speaker,
she's the host of the RestaurantLeadership Podcast and, with
over 20 years of experience inboth fine dining and high volume
growth concepts, she really hasbecome a leader and an
authority in our industry.
As the founder of Solutions byKristen, she partners with
(03:31):
independent restaurant owners totackle their toughest
leadership and businesschallenges, helping them focus
on what truly matters Throughher personalized coaching and
leadership workshops.
She doesn't just give advice,she guides her clients through
transformative journeys thatbreak down barriers and unlock
new levels of success, and Ihonestly I can say this with so
(03:55):
much confidence because I amproudly one of her clients.
So please help me in welcomingKristen Marvin here to present
the Smart Restaurant PlaybookUsing Tech Without Losing
Hospitality.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Watching those little small moments, like Emily just
talked about, with using chat tothink differently about your
business, is what this is allabout.
Thank you so much for having me.
This very much feels likecoming home.
I had a conversation with arestaurant owner in Sydney,
australia, last week, named Tim.
Tim owns two restaurants onethat's been open for 12 years
(04:37):
and the other that's been openfor three.
The one that's been open for 12is thriving and doing a really
great job, but he's strugglingwith the one that's been open
for three years.
He's having a really hard timeretaining his heart of house
staff.
He is now in the role ofexecutive chef.
He's been there for a year.
It's not where he wants to be.
He thrives in being in thefront of the house.
He knows how to drive sales.
(04:58):
He knows how to motivate histeam.
He knows how to connect withguests.
His sales are slipping becausehe's stuck in a role that he
doesn't want to be in andunfortunately that is causing
him to be burnt out.
He's got a one-year-old, athree-year-old and a
four-year-old and he's desperatefor an exit strategy, but he's
so prideful in what he's builtthat he wants to go out with a
(05:20):
bang.
And he reached out.
He was desperate and he askedam I alone?
I don't understand what'shappening in the industry.
Why is this so hard right now?
And I assured him he's notalone.
I hear this story many, manytimes of owners and operators
being put in roles that theydon't want to be in, and there
(05:41):
are so many resources availableto all of you today in the form
of coaches and mentors andpodcasts and books, but today
we're going to focus on tech asa resource for you.
When I started my journey as arestaurant manager 20 years ago,
tech was pretty scarce.
We had a computer in the office, we had a POS system and we had
a landline telephone I don'teven know if those still exist
anymore when we wouldoccasionally.
(06:03):
Well, we would often checkguest reservations, and every
once in a while we would field adrunken voicemail from a server
that we had fired the nightbefore, who went out and just
had one more thing that they hadto say to the manager, and they
needed some closure, I guess.
So, anyway, we saved thosemessages and listened to them on
repeat.
Don't worry, philippe, wedidn't do it during service, it
(06:26):
was only during the shouldertimes.
So back in the day, but when itcame to onboarding and training
and inventory, we had to createour own systems.
It didn't mean that we weren'tinnovative.
We used our binders and ourclipboards and our spreadsheets
and our plexiglass and our Chinapens, but those systems only
gave us the amount of visibilityinto our business that we
really possessed in order tobuild those systems.
(06:48):
It was a very different worldthan it is today Didn't mean we
weren't innovative.
We figured things out, weadapted and we built the tools
that we needed for ourbusinesses to be successful.
We adapted and we built thetools that we needed for our
businesses to be successful.
Here's the thing 80% ofrestaurants fail because they
don't have the systems, notbecause they have bad food or
(07:08):
service.
If you're ready to stop beingthe bottleneck in your own
business and start buildingsomething that can actually
scale profitably, I want you toput Multi-Unit Mastery my new
book, directly in your hands forfree.
Go to irfbookcom right now andgrab your copy.
When you do, you're going toget access to some additional
tools that are not availableanywhere else.
(07:29):
This is about building a legacy, not just another location.
Stop putting it off and go getyour book Again.
That's irfbookcom.
Creating those tools took timeand a lot of guesswork.
Is this going to be right?
Is it going to show me what Ineed to truly operate the
business?
It allowed us to enhance thehospitality, but only as far as
(07:51):
the skill sets we had to buildthose.
My first experience usingtechnology to enhance
hospitality was rolling outOpenTable as a general manager.
In my mind, opentablecompletely revolutionized the
way that I ran the restaurantOvernight, we were able to fill
seats in our sleep.
We didn't have to worry if wehad cancellations.
(08:11):
We managed a wait list like itwas no big deal.
We had guest notes and weremore prepared before the guests
walked in the door than we'dever been in our entire career.
It turned running therestaurant, and the door
specifically, into a game forthe managers and the servers.
We had an absolute blast, andwe started competing with each
other to see how many coverseach manager could accommodate
(08:35):
on any given shift.
Open Table didn't and I'm notan affiliate of Open Table, by
the way.
I'm just going to say that Ijust loved.
I still love them, but I lovedthem very much back in the day.
Open Table didn't just improvethe guest experience for us,
though.
It made running the restaurantmore enjoyable for our entire
team and helped improve theirconfidence in the roles that
(08:55):
they were doing, which is soimportant when you're talking
about a guest-facing role,especially at the front door.
More than that, though,opentable, from a leadership
perspective, helped us developour strategic thinking skills,
become better problem solversand engage with guests on a
different level.
This single tool streamlinedour operations, strengthened our
hospitality and made therestaurant more profitable, all
(09:18):
without losing the human touch.
But here's the reality what wedid 20 years ago is not enough.
Today, the industry is changingso much.
Labor and food cogs needconstant oversight Guess what
experiences that fit into theirlifestyles and the margins are
slimmer than we've ever seenthem before.
On top of that, today'srestaurant employees have less
(09:42):
experience than we've ever seenbefore, and that's putting
pressure on you, as leaders, tospend more time solving problems
and putting out fires andanswering questions from your
team than it is actually runningyour business.
By the end of this talk, I'mhoping that you'll have a new
perspective on how tech can workfor you, understand how to use
data to enhance the guestexperience, how to choose the
(10:05):
right tools for your businessand how to implement them
without losing the human touchthat makes hospitality so
special.
I'm a coach, so I've got tochallenge your mindset a little
bit when it comes to technology.
Today, instead of seeing techas just another tool that you're
(10:25):
going to have to integrate intoyour business and train your
team on, I would challenge youto think about tech as an
assistant for you, a strategicthinking partner that works for
you 24-7 to give you insights,help you streamline decisions
and make better businessdecisions.
What if, instead of addingcomplexity to your business, the
right technology could actuallyfree you up to spend time and
energy where you want to most inyour business?
Before we dive into specifictools and strategies, we need to
(10:48):
start with mindset.
If you're thinking abouttechnology in terms of it being
intimidating or unnecessary, youmay be thinking about it the
wrong way.
Many operators avoid technologybecause of three reasons.
One, they tell themselves thatthey're not tech savvy, to which
I call bullshit, because wehave more tech in the world
today than we ever have before.
Two, they don't necessarilyunderstand how it's going to
(11:11):
impact or benefit theirrestaurant.
Or three, they feel like addingtech makes them corporate.
The truth is that theselimiting beliefs could be
holding you back from running amore productive and profitable
business.
Think of tech as your mostreliable employee Never calls in
sick, it never gets tired andit's constantly working for you
behind the scenes to providedata to help you make better
(11:33):
decisions every single day.
Once you shift your mindset andstart to see tech as an ally,
the next step is learning how touse data to make smarter
decisions.
Data removes the guesswork andreally gives you clarity on
what's actually happening inyour business.
Restaurants are super emotionalbusinesses.
We make decisions based offwhat we feel is right, but
sometimes those decisions cancost us money.
(11:55):
For example, I had a client whowas writing a schedule for all
four of his locations based offhis gut feeling that the morning
hours of operation were busierin the afternoon.
This became alarming to himwhen he started to see a rise in
turnover and negative guestcomplaints.
It was only when we looked intohis hourly sales and spent
(12:15):
about 20 minutes that he had amoment of insight and realized
that he'd been scheduling peoplein the wrong places and that
his afternoon business wasactually busier than his morning
business.
It's those little bitty momentsthat can completely transform
your business.
Show of hands how many of youin the room know if your sales
are up or down compared to lastyear, okay, keep your hands up.
(12:35):
If you know if that's becauseof guest count or average guest
spend, hands up.
If you know if that's becauseof guest count or average guest
spend, great, love it.
Using tech to answer questionslike these helps again remove
the guesswork and gives youpermission to strategize how you
want to grow your business inthat right area so that you can
improve your profitability.
I would challenge you to thinkabout what your life looks like
(12:58):
with a healthier bottom line,less stress, more freedom, an
expansion plan, maybe an exitstrategy.
Once you start getting curiousabout how data can help you get
clarity around your business,the question then becomes what
technology should you actuallyinvest in?
There's so many optionsavailable and choosing the right
technology can be really,really overwhelming.
(13:20):
There's a tech solution foreverything, but it doesn't mean
that you need everything.
The key here is to be really,really intentional.
You do that by measuring yourtech measuring the tech that
you're looking at against yourcore values, your mission and
your vision.
Does it fit with how you wantto deliver the experience and
does it match where you'retrying to go in your business?
(13:40):
Ask yourself three questionswhen you're thinking about
implementing new technology.
Does it help us enhance ourguest experience?
Will it help enhance theemployee experience, and will it
make our restaurant moreprofitable?
If the answer to these threequestions is yes, it's worth
exploring.
Another important step in thedecision-making process is
involving the right key peoplein the process your leaders and
(14:03):
your managers the people thatare going to be using this
technology from the get-go.
Including them early in theprocess helps increase their
buy-in, identify potentialpitfalls that you may not see as
the owner, and ensure thattechnology fits within your
current systems, instead ofworking against them.
When your leadership team isinvolved, they become champions
of the technology, which makesthe implementation process so
(14:25):
much smoother for your team.
After you choose the righttechnology, how you implement it
into your restaurant can makeor break its impact in the
business.
A poorly implemented tool cancause a lot of chaos, friction
and mistrust with your team,which all leads to a negative
guest experience.
The good news is, though,there's a proven process that
(14:47):
helps owners and operators rollout new tech.
I lost my last page.
I'm like oh shit, what am Igoing to do here?
There's a proven process tohelp you manage change in your
business.
That process starts with a fewkey steps Communicating the why
Thank you, simon Sinek Startingsmall, implementing testing in
(15:08):
just one location before youexpand to multiple locations, or
starting in a slower day of theweek, and then slowly growing
as business ramps up, Providingample training and support to
your team so they can lead withconfidence every day with the
new technology, leading byexample.
Show them that you're investedso they will be invested as well
, and monitor and adjust.
No system is perfect and I haveyet to find a tech system that
(15:31):
matches exactly the individualand unique experiences that you
all want to provide, and somonitoring and testing for a
long time and providing feedbackis really, really crucial to
ensuring the success.
And sometimes it doesn't workand you have to pull the plug,
and you've got to be willing tomake that decision as well,
which is tough.
Change isn't just aboutadopting new tools.
(15:52):
It's about guiding your teamthrough the transition so the
technology becomes an asset andnot a roadblock for the guest.
I know we've covered a lottoday and by now I hope that you
can see that technology isn't aburden, but it's an opportunity
to create a stronger, moreefficient and profitable
restaurant.
Technology is not the enemy ofhospitality.
(16:12):
It's an ally to help us protectit.
When used right, it gives youmore time to focus on what
matters most taking care ofyourself, taking care of your
team and taking care of theguest.
So here's my challenge to youThink about the biggest problem
that you're having in yourrestaurant right now and start
looking for a tech solution thatcan solve that problem.
(16:34):
I use about 20 tech systems tomanage my business because I'm a
solopreneur.
20 tech systems to manage mybusiness because I'm a
solopreneur, and when I'mstarting to look for something,
I go to chat, I tell it exactlywhat I want to see price-wise,
guest reviews, customer support,functionality and then I ask it
to narrow it down to five andkind of start from there.
But I challenge you to getcurious and take one tiny step
(16:55):
and see the impact it can havein your business.
The restaurant industry is notgetting any easier.
We all know that and you arenot alone.
If you need anything, I wouldlove to have a cup of coffee.
I'm on a mission to deliver asmany leadership development
resources as I can to you guysand I'm really honored that you
(17:17):
let me share this space with youtoday.
Thank you so much.
Welcome to the Restaurant Leadership Podcast,
the show where restaurantleaders learn tools, tactics and
habits from the world'sgreatest operators.
I'm your host, kristen Marvin,with Solutions by Kristen.
I've spent the last two decadesin the restaurant industry and
now partner with restaurantowners to develop their leaders
(00:29):
and scale their businessesthrough powerful one-on-one
coaching, group coaching andleadership workshops.
This show is complete withepisodes around coaching,
leadership development andinterviews with powerful
industry leaders.
You can now engage with me onthe show and share topics you'd
(00:50):
like to hear about, leadershiplessons you want to learn and
any feedback you have.
Simply click the link at thetop of the show notes and I will
give you a shout out on afuture episode.
Thanks so much for listeningand I look forward to connecting
.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Hi, good morning.
I'm Emily Biederman.
I am with Secret Sauce Food andBeverage.
So the same week that I wasasked to introduce our next
speaker was also the week that Ifinally decided to address my
doubts and try chat GPT for thefirst time.
Needless to say, it was ajourney.
(01:37):
Somehow I ended up.
I downloaded the wrong one.
Who knew that there was morethan one?
Ran into so many really specialerror messages, couldn't figure
out how to upload the stuffthat it needed me to upload it
so that it could do what Ineeded it to do.
Frustration levels were veryhigh and the intended progress
was exceptionally low.
However, I kept trying and witha little bit of help, I finally
(02:02):
got to where I had my firstsuccessful chat.
Now I know that that might notsound like a very big moment to
a lot of you, but for any of youthat know me, you know that my
patience for trying newtechnology is not awesome.
So for me, this was like areally big deal.
(02:24):
It's not awesome, so for methis was like a really big deal.
So I managed to get through andget to this point where I had
an open mind to try this throughsome personal and professional
growth work that I have beendoing over the past few months
and really learning what itmeans to show up and how to have
the tough conversations, how toask the hard questions, take
(02:47):
the risks and really embrace theunknown, even if that's
something like trying AI.
This small moment, as well as somany others, is why I am
especially excited to introducesomeone who really embodies that
same spirit of growth andtransformation Kristen Marvin.
(03:07):
Kristen is a restaurant coach,she's an author, a speaker,
she's the host of the RestaurantLeadership Podcast and, with
over 20 years of experience inboth fine dining and high volume
growth concepts, she really hasbecome a leader and an
authority in our industry.
As the founder of Solutions byKristen, she partners with
(03:31):
independent restaurant owners totackle their toughest
leadership and businesschallenges, helping them focus
on what truly matters Throughher personalized coaching and
leadership workshops.
She doesn't just give advice,she guides her clients through
transformative journeys thatbreak down barriers and unlock
new levels of success, and Ihonestly I can say this with so
(03:55):
much confidence because I amproudly one of her clients.
So please help me in welcomingKristen Marvin here to present
the Smart Restaurant PlaybookUsing Tech Without Losing
Hospitality.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Watching those little small moments, like Emily just
talked about, with using chat tothink differently about your
business, is what this is allabout.
Thank you so much for having me.
This very much feels likecoming home.
I had a conversation with arestaurant owner in Sydney,
australia, last week, named Tim.
Tim owns two restaurants onethat's been open for 12 years
(04:37):
and the other that's been openfor three.
The one that's been open for 12is thriving and doing a really
great job, but he's strugglingwith the one that's been open
for three years.
He's having a really hard timeretaining his heart of house
staff.
He is now in the role ofexecutive chef.
He's been there for a year.
It's not where he wants to be.
He thrives in being in thefront of the house.
He knows how to drive sales.
(04:58):
He knows how to motivate histeam.
He knows how to connect withguests.
His sales are slipping becausehe's stuck in a role that he
doesn't want to be in andunfortunately that is causing
him to be burnt out.
He's got a one-year-old, athree-year-old and a
four-year-old and he's desperatefor an exit strategy, but he's
so prideful in what he's builtthat he wants to go out with a
(05:20):
bang.
And he reached out.
He was desperate and he askedam I alone?
I don't understand what'shappening in the industry.
Why is this so hard right now?
And I assured him he's notalone.
I hear this story many, manytimes of owners and operators
being put in roles that theydon't want to be in, and there
(05:41):
are so many resources availableto all of you today in the form
of coaches and mentors andpodcasts and books, but today
we're going to focus on tech asa resource for you.
When I started my journey as arestaurant manager 20 years ago,
tech was pretty scarce.
We had a computer in the office, we had a POS system and we had
a landline telephone I don'teven know if those still exist
anymore when we wouldoccasionally.
(06:03):
Well, we would often checkguest reservations, and every
once in a while we would field adrunken voicemail from a server
that we had fired the nightbefore, who went out and just
had one more thing that they hadto say to the manager, and they
needed some closure, I guess.
So, anyway, we saved thosemessages and listened to them on
repeat.
Don't worry, philippe, wedidn't do it during service, it
(06:26):
was only during the shouldertimes.
So back in the day, but when itcame to onboarding and training
and inventory, we had to createour own systems.
It didn't mean that we weren'tinnovative.
We used our binders and ourclipboards and our spreadsheets
and our plexiglass and our Chinapens, but those systems only
gave us the amount of visibilityinto our business that we
really possessed in order tobuild those systems.
(06:48):
It was a very different worldthan it is today Didn't mean we
weren't innovative.
We figured things out, weadapted and we built the tools
that we needed for ourbusinesses to be successful.
We adapted and we built thetools that we needed for our
businesses to be successful.
Here's the thing 80% ofrestaurants fail because they
don't have the systems, notbecause they have bad food or
(07:08):
service.
If you're ready to stop beingthe bottleneck in your own
business and start buildingsomething that can actually
scale profitably, I want you toput Multi-Unit Mastery my new
book, directly in your hands forfree.
Go to irfbookcom right now andgrab your copy.
When you do, you're going toget access to some additional
tools that are not availableanywhere else.
(07:29):
This is about building a legacy, not just another location.
Stop putting it off and go getyour book Again.
That's irfbookcom.
Creating those tools took timeand a lot of guesswork.
Is this going to be right?
Is it going to show me what Ineed to truly operate the
business?
It allowed us to enhance thehospitality, but only as far as
(07:51):
the skill sets we had to buildthose.
My first experience usingtechnology to enhance
hospitality was rolling outOpenTable as a general manager.
In my mind, opentablecompletely revolutionized the
way that I ran the restaurantOvernight, we were able to fill
seats in our sleep.
We didn't have to worry if wehad cancellations.
(08:11):
We managed a wait list like itwas no big deal.
We had guest notes and weremore prepared before the guests
walked in the door than we'dever been in our entire career.
It turned running therestaurant, and the door
specifically, into a game forthe managers and the servers.
We had an absolute blast, andwe started competing with each
other to see how many coverseach manager could accommodate
(08:35):
on any given shift.
Open Table didn't and I'm notan affiliate of Open Table, by
the way.
I'm just going to say that Ijust loved.
I still love them, but I lovedthem very much back in the day.
Open Table didn't just improvethe guest experience for us,
though.
It made running the restaurantmore enjoyable for our entire
team and helped improve theirconfidence in the roles that
(08:55):
they were doing, which is soimportant when you're talking
about a guest-facing role,especially at the front door.
More than that, though,opentable, from a leadership
perspective, helped us developour strategic thinking skills,
become better problem solversand engage with guests on a
different level.
This single tool streamlinedour operations, strengthened our
hospitality and made therestaurant more profitable, all
(09:18):
without losing the human touch.
But here's the reality what wedid 20 years ago is not enough.
Today, the industry is changingso much.
Labor and food cogs needconstant oversight Guess what
experiences that fit into theirlifestyles and the margins are
slimmer than we've ever seenthem before.
On top of that, today'srestaurant employees have less
(09:42):
experience than we've ever seenbefore, and that's putting
pressure on you, as leaders, tospend more time solving problems
and putting out fires andanswering questions from your
team than it is actually runningyour business.
By the end of this talk, I'mhoping that you'll have a new
perspective on how tech can workfor you, understand how to use
data to enhance the guestexperience, how to choose the
(10:05):
right tools for your businessand how to implement them
without losing the human touchthat makes hospitality so
special.
I'm a coach, so I've got tochallenge your mindset a little
bit when it comes to technology.
Today, instead of seeing techas just another tool that you're
(10:25):
going to have to integrate intoyour business and train your
team on, I would challenge youto think about tech as an
assistant for you, a strategicthinking partner that works for
you 24-7 to give you insights,help you streamline decisions
and make better businessdecisions.
What if, instead of addingcomplexity to your business, the
right technology could actuallyfree you up to spend time and
energy where you want to most inyour business?
Before we dive into specifictools and strategies, we need to
(10:48):
start with mindset.
If you're thinking abouttechnology in terms of it being
intimidating or unnecessary, youmay be thinking about it the
wrong way.
Many operators avoid technologybecause of three reasons.
One, they tell themselves thatthey're not tech savvy, to which
I call bullshit, because wehave more tech in the world
today than we ever have before.
Two, they don't necessarilyunderstand how it's going to
(11:11):
impact or benefit theirrestaurant.
Or three, they feel like addingtech makes them corporate.
The truth is that theselimiting beliefs could be
holding you back from running amore productive and profitable
business.
Think of tech as your mostreliable employee Never calls in
sick, it never gets tired andit's constantly working for you
behind the scenes to providedata to help you make better
(11:33):
decisions every single day.
Once you shift your mindset andstart to see tech as an ally,
the next step is learning how touse data to make smarter
decisions.
Data removes the guesswork andreally gives you clarity on
what's actually happening inyour business.
Restaurants are super emotionalbusinesses.
We make decisions based offwhat we feel is right, but
sometimes those decisions cancost us money.
(11:55):
For example, I had a client whowas writing a schedule for all
four of his locations based offhis gut feeling that the morning
hours of operation were busierin the afternoon.
This became alarming to himwhen he started to see a rise in
turnover and negative guestcomplaints.
It was only when we looked intohis hourly sales and spent
(12:15):
about 20 minutes that he had amoment of insight and realized
that he'd been scheduling peoplein the wrong places and that
his afternoon business wasactually busier than his morning
business.
It's those little bitty momentsthat can completely transform
your business.
Show of hands how many of youin the room know if your sales
are up or down compared to lastyear, okay, keep your hands up.
(12:35):
If you know if that's becauseof guest count or average guest
spend, hands up.
If you know if that's becauseof guest count or average guest
spend, great, love it.
Using tech to answer questionslike these helps again remove
the guesswork and gives youpermission to strategize how you
want to grow your business inthat right area so that you can
improve your profitability.
I would challenge you to thinkabout what your life looks like
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with a healthier bottom line,less stress, more freedom, an
expansion plan, maybe an exitstrategy.
Once you start getting curiousabout how data can help you get
clarity around your business,the question then becomes what
technology should you actuallyinvest in?
There's so many optionsavailable and choosing the right
technology can be really,really overwhelming.
(13:20):
There's a tech solution foreverything, but it doesn't mean
that you need everything.
The key here is to be really,really intentional.
You do that by measuring yourtech measuring the tech that
you're looking at against yourcore values, your mission and
your vision.
Does it fit with how you wantto deliver the experience and
does it match where you'retrying to go in your business?
(13:40):
Ask yourself three questionswhen you're thinking about
implementing new technology.
Does it help us enhance ourguest experience?
Will it help enhance theemployee experience, and will it
make our restaurant moreprofitable?
If the answer to these threequestions is yes, it's worth
exploring.
Another important step in thedecision-making process is
involving the right key peoplein the process your leaders and
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your managers the people thatare going to be using this
technology from the get-go.
Including them early in theprocess helps increase their
buy-in, identify potentialpitfalls that you may not see as
the owner, and ensure thattechnology fits within your
current systems, instead ofworking against them.
When your leadership team isinvolved, they become champions
of the technology, which makesthe implementation process so
(14:25):
much smoother for your team.
After you choose the righttechnology, how you implement it
into your restaurant can makeor break its impact in the
business.
A poorly implemented tool cancause a lot of chaos, friction
and mistrust with your team,which all leads to a negative
guest experience.
The good news is, though,there's a proven process that
(14:47):
helps owners and operators rollout new tech.
I lost my last page.
I'm like oh shit, what am Igoing to do here?
There's a proven process tohelp you manage change in your
business.
That process starts with a fewkey steps Communicating the why
Thank you, simon Sinek Startingsmall, implementing testing in
(15:08):
just one location before youexpand to multiple locations, or
starting in a slower day of theweek, and then slowly growing
as business ramps up, Providingample training and support to
your team so they can lead withconfidence every day with the
new technology, leading byexample.
Show them that you're investedso they will be invested as well
, and monitor and adjust.
No system is perfect and I haveyet to find a tech system that
(15:31):
matches exactly the individualand unique experiences that you
all want to provide, and somonitoring and testing for a
long time and providing feedbackis really, really crucial to
ensuring the success.
And sometimes it doesn't workand you have to pull the plug,
and you've got to be willing tomake that decision as well,
which is tough.
Change isn't just aboutadopting new tools.
(15:52):
It's about guiding your teamthrough the transition so the
technology becomes an asset andnot a roadblock for the guest.
I know we've covered a lottoday and by now I hope that you
can see that technology isn't aburden, but it's an opportunity
to create a stronger, moreefficient and profitable
restaurant.
Technology is not the enemy ofhospitality.
(16:12):
It's an ally to help us protectit.
When used right, it gives youmore time to focus on what
matters most taking care ofyourself, taking care of your
team and taking care of theguest.
So here's my challenge to youThink about the biggest problem
that you're having in yourrestaurant right now and start
looking for a tech solution thatcan solve that problem.
(16:34):
I use about 20 tech systems tomanage my business because I'm a
solopreneur.
20 tech systems to manage mybusiness because I'm a
solopreneur, and when I'mstarting to look for something,
I go to chat, I tell it exactlywhat I want to see price-wise,
guest reviews, customer support,functionality and then I ask it
to narrow it down to five andkind of start from there.
But I challenge you to getcurious and take one tiny step
(16:55):
and see the impact it can havein your business.
The restaurant industry is notgetting any easier.
We all know that and you arenot alone.
If you need anything, I wouldlove to have a cup of coffee.
I'm on a mission to deliver asmany leadership development
resources as I can to you guysand I'm really honored that you
(17:17):
let me share this space with youtoday.
Thank you so much.
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