Restaurants of all sizes have spent the past few years investing in a variety of technologies to help them understand the health of their brands, gain visibility into their spend management and streamline many of their processes. Although automation is imperative to cutting costs, brands are starting to minimize their tech stack and are focusing on “one-stop shop” solutions as they lack the bandwidth to manage so many platforms.

The tech gurus on this panel will reveal their strategies.

Although multi-location marketing requires a consistent brand message between locations, each store has its own unique needs.

This session will give you strategies to keep your branding on target while also addressing specific needs.

Shortages when it comes to hiring cashiers, cooks and drivers aren’t the only labor issues facing the industry; corporate and franchise teams are also leaner than ever, which means those positions could use a little boost from technology as well as operations experts.

This session will teach you how the use of smart technology, combined with real estate brokers, in-house development and construction expertise can help you grow without hiring a new team.

Brands are struggling. Just consider these statistics from a recent study:

• 54% find it difficult to interpret customer data and understand the needs of the moment.
• 53% are challenged with creating personalized advertising experiences.
• 47% said it is hard to deliver the right message at the right time, and 42% are struggling to find the right channel.
• 23% are unsure what promotions will be most effective.
• 19% can't change their strategy quickly enough to respond to unforeseen events.

So what’s a brand to do? Chart a new course, of course, and this panel will show restaurants how to rethink where and how they engage customers.

Although nearly half (47.8%) of all restaurant employees are minorities with workers of color comprising nearly half of the restaurant industry and women making up 54% of all restaurant workers, the leadership team at most brands do not reflect those numbers.

This session discusses how different perspectives and approaches are invaluable to any successful company and how your brand can create intercultural teams and strive to strengthen the diversity within the organization. 

It’s tempting to rebrand or plan redesigns when you see the competition rolling out new logos, equipment and service models, but redesigns work best when done in tandem with operations teams.

This session will feature brands that have tested prototypes or remodeled in an effort to speed up service and enhance the customer experience.

Optimizing your menu across channels is one of the most important tools when it comes to increasing customer satisfaction – which results in higher check spend and more frequent visits.

This session explores how and why menu optimization can yield a high ROI when done correctly and how technology can help you not only manage your menu but teach your employees how to work faster and smarter.

It’s been a tough year for many industries as high inflation plagued the economy, forcing vendors across all industries to largely raise prices and consumers to pull back on spending. While the dining vertical has seen continued success thanks to value-based offerings, convenience and menu innovations, restaurant marketers are not immune to the pressure as budgets face increased scrutiny, and are thus forced to do more with less. As a result, marketers are forced to drive highly efficient campaigns, motivated to maximize Return on Ad Spend and drive sales.

Join this discussion to learn more about what tactics and strategies marketers can use to maximize campaign efficiency while still driving campaign performance.

Cutting costs, reducing errors, improving customer satisfaction and enhancing the customer experience are just a few benefits of incorporating artificial intelligence into operations, but upgrading systems isn’t always affordable.

This session shows you the pros and cons of a variety of higher-tech solutions.

It's always a challenge to contend with the Chipotles and Starbucks of the world, but it's not impossible for small and up-and-coming brands to grab a piece of their market share. In fact, three executives will reveal how they are accomplishing it as well as how they plan to stay competitive.

Whether your brand is looking to get acquired or is in need of funds to help expand and navigate the challenges spurred by labor shortages, supply chain and higher food costs, this session will teach what investors seek in a solid investment.

Hear directly from brands that have secured funding and from investors who will share what types of restaurants they avoid and what gets them to open their checkbooks.