Innovator is Focused on Team Growth
Mary Young Mapes, Senior Director of Hospitality & Customer Support, Tock, was presented with Hospitality Technology’s Top Women in Restaurant Technology Innovator Award at MURTEC 2024.
Mapes was one of 10 individuals honored March 13 in Las Vegas. HT’s 2024 Top Women and Rising Star in Restaurant Technology Awards were sponsored by WWT Digital.
A Passion for Hospitality
Early on, Mapes knew she had a passion for hospitality. She served and hosted in a number of restaurants prior to diving into a career as a customer success professional. After college, “I worked for consumer sites like Apartments.com, Cars.com where I learned a lot about technology,” she explained. “I joined Tock in 2019 (the all-in-one reservation and experiences platform for hospitality businesses) and knew right away that it was a great fit for me personally and professionally. I get to combine my love of restaurants with my passion for supporting those that own, operate or work in them. One of the reasons I am so proud to work at Tock is that we strive to serve as true partners to our customers — industry experience and passion are at the heart of the company.”
Empowering the People
With her well-rounded background in hospitality and customer service, Mapes knows firsthand how challenging owning, operating and working in restaurants can be.
“What I love about technology is that it can help empower our customers to provide the best hospitality, while also arming them with the data they need to be successful. Tock consistently innovates our technology and offerings to help our customers adapt and thrive in a changing and ever-competitive landscape. Our work is never 'done,' and that’s an inspiring element of being in the hospitality technology space," Mapes explains.
Her colleagues say Mapes is “heavily focused on team growth and success;” she built a Technical Product Support Team from five people to 45 in less than three years, and to develop, retain and promote top performers, she created career progression and promotion models within the department.
In 2022, Mapes and her team decreased customer initial response time by 74%. Inbound calls are typically answered within 30 seconds by a hospitality team member. Last year, Mapes streamlined and automated numerous manual processes through Salesforce and implemented a chatbot to lessen the workload of Tock’s support agents so they can more easily handle complicated service requests.
A Data-Driven Future
In today's competitive restaurant industry, the use of data is crucial for operators. “Consumers create data at every interaction —and successful restaurants are gaining powerful insights that they can use to provide top-tier hospitality and connect with diners. For restaurant owners, providing compelling, personalized experiences for guests is a key growth opportunity,” Mapes says. “When restaurants lean into this type of tailored information, it only adds to the hospitality experience for their guests.”
Looking back over her career to date, Mapes says she’s “most proud of the teams that I have built at Tock and the talented employees that have continued to provide exceptional experiences for our customers. I place a high priority on developing my team to enable them for future opportunities, so I'm proud that many of my employees have been promoted to more senior roles within Tock. I also understand that the customer experience is directly related to the employee experience, so I place a high value on maintaining a good team culture, one that consistently receives high employee engagement scores.”
Mentorship is a Two-Way Street
Mentorship is invaluable for both the mentor and the mentee, she says. “I’ve been fortunate to be mentored by wonderful professionals who have provided me guidance and perspective as I’ve navigated my career. I also find great joy in mentoring fellow professionals. It’s a two-way street where both individuals learn a lot from one another no matter the difference in experience and career tenure.”
“It’s also important to note the need for mentorship and representation of women in the hospitality technology space. While historically, the industry has been male dominated, more and more women are entering the ranks and holding senior positions. Seeing oneself represented is a powerful motivator for career success. I admire the talented women that make up my management team, many of whom I've had the pleasure of mentoring into senior roles and get to learn from them every day.
Receiving HT’s Top Women in Restaurant Technology Innovator Award is “an immense privilege and source of pride,” Mapes says. “I consider myself incredibly fortunate to be part of an industry that I am deeply passionate about – hospitality. Winning this award not only validates my contributions, but also fuels my commitment to continue striving for excellence. Moreover, it reinforces my resolve to support and uplift others within the hospitality community and continue contributing to their success.”
About the Top Women & Rising Star Awards
After a call for nominations, Top Women in Restaurant Technology Award winners were chosen by Hospitality Technology magazine editors and members of its Research Advisory Board. The winners were announced and honored during an awards program, sponsored by WWT Digital, on March 13 at the 29th annual MURTEC (Multi-Unit Restaurant Technology Conference), in Las Vegas. HT will begin accepting nominations for the 2025 Top Women in Restaurant Technology Awards and 2025 Rising Stars in Restaurant Technology in mid-October.