Regina Jerome: The Mastermind Behind Uno's Tech Transformation

Regina Jerome, Senior Vice President of Information Technology at UNO Restaurants, received the Top Women in Restaurant Technology Lifetime Achievement Award at MURTEC in Las Vegas on March 9.

Mission: Data-Driven System

Jerome, a 25+ year veteran in multi-unit hospitality IT, joined Uno’s in 2019 with the goal of helping the company update its legacy IT systems. Her mission: to rip out an outdated IT stack and replace it with more modern, data-driven systems including finance, back-of-house operations, contactless payment for curbside and pay-at-the-table transactions, loyalty, order & delivery, data insights and a new mobile app, to name a few.

Jerome, who is based in Norwood, Mass., said she is most proud of this accomplishment.

“In the past 18 months we have redesigned the tech stack (with six major rollouts/upgrades including the full Paytronix guest engagement platform, including Order & Delivery, Loyalty, and Data Insights; Crunchtime's restaurant management and more, ) here at Uno’s – with a limited IT team, working remotely for the majority of the time, while supporting restaurants and plant operations during a pandemic,” she said.

Trend Report: Contactless Solutions for Restaurants

Jerome accomplished at Uno’s in 18 months would have taken five years somewhere else, her colleagues say. Her deep understanding of restaurant systems, her ability to integrate those systems, and her focus on collecting and analyzing system data so that Uno’s can make better decisions have made a big impact on the brand. Online checks are 10% larger than those placed on-site. As of December, nearly 40% of Uno’s sales come from off-premises orders, compared with 16% pre-pandemic.

Jerome was able to lead change across not only internal departments but with franchisees as well. For her efforts, Jerome received Uno Restaurant’s 2021 Founder’s Award.

When Jerome started her career, it wasn’t in restaurant technology. “My career started out in corporate finance, and I woke up one day and decided this was not for me,” Jerome explains. “I was lucky enough to get on an opening team for a Chart House restaurant and after that, restaurants were a part of my DNA!  The shift to the technology side of restaurants happened organically – and I grew with/as technology became a critical piece of the industry.”

Jerome says she’s most passionate about technology that enhances the guest’s and front-line employee’s experience. Looking ahead at the future of restaurant technology, she sees increased use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) -inspired technologies – guest engagement, supply chain improvements and predictive analysis.

Jerome was one of 10 women recognized in HT’s sixth annual Top Women in Restaurant Technology Awards, sponsored by Tillster, the global leader in powering online ordering and delivery solutions for restaurant brands.  The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented in recognition of no less than 15 years of service and accomplishments in the foodservice technology industry. 

“I am so honored and humbled to have been nominated for this award.  Actually being awarded it is surreal,” said Jerome.  “My almost 30-year journey in hospitality technology has been incredible – from the days when POS was the only tech in the game to the present where technology touches every aspect of the industry.”

HT will profile each of the winners in the coming weeks and in the summer issue of Hospitality Technology.