Content Hub Partner Interview: SynergySuite

Hospitality Technology's editor-in-chief Robert Firpo-Cappiello interviews SynergySuite's CEO Greg Staley, who shares restaurant technology trends & insights

IT Leadership Panel: Integrating, Connecting, and Writing the New Playbook

The MURTEC Executive Summit final session with Robyn Kesler, IT Director, Tupelo Honey Cafe, Karen Bird, CIO, HOA Brands, and Stephanie Nardini, VP of IRT, Jersey Mike's, moderated by Restaurant Technology Network’s Angela Diffly, was a highlight, as an all-female panel took the stage to close out the event. Everyone agreed that whether restaurant brands develop their own POS in-house or choose not to be a technology company and farm it out, technology must make sense for the brand and complement culture. For instance, drone delivery shouldn’t replace Jersey Mike’s friendly-faced staff or Tupelo Honey’s southern hospitality. But redirecting orders to a call center to improve employee engagement and leaning into virtual brands is a successful bet for Hooters.

Innovator Roundtable: A Look at Groundbreaking R&D from Leading Suppliers

MURTEC Executive Summit, hosted by Hospitality Technology and the Restaurant Technology Network, was October 13-15, 2021 in Orlando, with a jam-packed agenda and a red-hot stage welcoming some of the restaurant technology industry’s most talented technology executives.

Hot Now! Krispy Kreme’s Sweet Success

MURTEC Executive Summit, hosted by Hospitality Technology and the Restaurant Technology Network, was October 13-15, 2021 in Orlando, with a jam-packed agenda and a red-hot stage welcoming some of the restaurant technology industry’s most talented technology executives.

Ben Hall, CIO, Krispy Kreme, kicked off the conference, and showed up in style with America’s most-loved treats for all the 84-year-old iconic brand took a successful second stand on Wall Street, going public in July, and opened its flagship store in Times Square, collaborating with New York City during COVID to do so. The amazing storefront offers virtual queuing and reservations, a multitude of TikTok-able / Instagrammable moments, including a giant Krispy Kreme photo-frame box, and a glaze (no, really, glaze) fountain. Hall noted the brand is working to improve its drive-thru with digital signage, and looking at AI and voice. Hyper-focused on “demand planning” technology, Hall is looking to better address challenges such as labor, supply chain and commodities. “Let’s get better at forecasting sales across all our channels, how much each factory needs to make, how many doughnuts each shop needs. Even the weather affects demand for doughnuts,” he noted.

Check out the full recap here https://hospitalitytech.com/real-time... and be sure to check out the MURTEC Executive Summit content hub on hospitalitytech.com!

Research Super Session Panel: HT's 2021 Customer Engagement Technology Study

MURTEC Executive Summit, hosted by Hospitality Technology and the Restaurant Technology Network, was October 13-15, 2021 in Orlando, with a jam-packed agenda and a red-hot stage welcoming some of the restaurant technology industry’s most talented technology executives.

Research Super Session Panel: HT's 2021 Customer Engagement Technology Study (October 15, 10am ET)

Dan Connolly, professor of business management & hospitality at Drake University and co-author of HT’s 2021 Customer Engagement Technology Study, moderated a dynamic panel with Mike Maxwell, CTO, Hathway; Marybeth Pearce, Executive Director, Food & Beverage, CCheck out more MURTEC Executive Summit coverage here https://hospitalitytech.com/real-time...

Another Broken Egg Hatches Tech Initiatives to Fuel Brand

MURTEC Executive Summit, hosted by Hospitality Technology and the Restaurant Technology Network, was October 13-15, 2021 in Orlando, with a jam-packed agenda and a red-hot stage welcoming some of the restaurant technology industry’s most talented technology executives, including Paul Macaluso, President & CEO of Another Broken Egg. He took the stage to kick off Day 2, revealing the brand’s off-prem sales skyrocketed from 2 percent to 15 during the pandemic, and continues this trajectory, with some cafes experiencing 20 percent in off-prem sales. In addition to this new revenue stream, the brand is diving into catering with ezCater, rolling out a new POS from Revel, and guestlist solution from Wisely. New technology is fueling the brand’s rise, with 77 full-service cafes in 14 states (and expanding to new states). Nine new cafes came to life in 2020, and 10 more are opening in 2021.

To combat the rise in minimum wage in Florida, Another Broken Egg looked to crack its labor and operational efficiency code, hiring Labor Guru to analyze time and motion to hyper-identify opportunities to save time, step-up productivity and enhance the consumer experience - a tall order for any restaurant to decipher. But Another Broken Egg is going there, and delighting franchisees with corporate walking the walk. In an anonymous franchisee survey, the question “If you could do it over again, would you?” was answered with an overwhelming “yes” - above 90 percent, impressive for any brand especially during the pandemic when morale had every right to be rock-bottom. Check out the full recap here https://hospitalitytech.com/thats-wra...

How Crypto Will Impact Hospitality

MURTEC Executive Summit, hosted by Hospitality Technology and the Restaurant Technology Network, was October 13-15, 2021 in Orlando, with a jam-packed agenda and a red-hot stage welcoming some of the restaurant technology industry’s most talented technology executives.

HT’s Editor-in-Chief, Robert Firpo-Cappiello, caught up with Bo Friddell, President of Sunrise Salvador Development/Garten Hotel via pre-recorded videoconference to discuss the company’s adoption of cryptocurrency and the benefits to guests, staff, and the community. The video will stream on demand after the conference. Some highlights include:

As restaurants and other hospitality brands weigh the pros and cons of adopting cryptocurrency from customers, "Bitcoin Beach," El Salvador, holds lessons for the hospitality industry. Bitcoin Beach was a cash-only economy where locals often lacked access to bank accounts — and ATMs are an hour away. Here, the adoption of cryptocurrency has allowed locals to shop more efficiently, and has allowed the Garten Hotel to offer the convenience of a tap-and-pay or account-on-file via a custom Bitcoin Beach app that accepts Bitcoin payment.

The custom Bitcoin Beach app also allows guests to tip staff via Bitcoin, and opens up opportunities for leveraging guest preferences and history for future stays. For more insights from MURTEC Executive Summit check out this summary on HT: https://hospitalitytech.com/real-time...