Rising Star Embraces Solving Big & Interesting Problems with Restaurant Technology
Gabrielle Andrade, Senior Product Manager, Qwick, received the 2023 Top Women in Restaurant Technology Rising Star Award at MURTEC 2023.
Andrade was among 15 women recognized for their accomplishments. Hospitality Technology's Top Women in Restaurant Technology Awards, sponsored by Paerpay, are now in their seventh year.
Before joining the staffing-as-a-service platform based out of Scottsdale, Ariz., Andrade was working in brand strategy across a variety of industries. “After a few years I found myself wanting to experience an operating company where I could get my hands dirty and work with a team to build solutions to customer problems,” she said. “I had been interested in the startup space for years, and found myself gravitating towards fast-moving earlier stage companies where I would have the opportunity to make a big impact.”
She applied for a position on the marketing team at Qwick, but during the interview process, she met with Trevor Baker, Qwick’s VP of Product Strategy, "who saw product manager potential in me and gave me a chance to join the product team — I haven’t looked back since," Andrade recalled.
Without prior experience in the restaurant technology industry, she immediately went to work building from-scratch improvements to the apps and platform experience. These features include an all-new incentive program, an all-new referral program, a streamlined invoicing system, and a completely new line of business for which Andrade was the project lead.
“Her dedication to the platform’s buildout is changing how people and hospitality businesses work,” wrote her colleagues in her nomination. “Her innovative and results-driven approach to staffing in the hospitality industry are opening new possibilities and her contributions today will directly impact or heavily influence the future of staffing across the industry.”
“Gabby is a leading player for Qwick’s product and engineering department, and across the entire company," her colleagues added.
Solving Big & Interesting Problems
Andrade is passionate about “the ways in which technology can be used to solve big and interesting problems that push our industry forward.” While her background is not in technology, she has proven to be a quick understudy. “The more I learn, the more I see firsthand how technology can be used to creatively and effectively address customer needs and business needs, not only in the hospitality space but across every sector."
In the restaurant technology space, “I’m really excited by all of the ways the restaurant industry is evolving at its core, and the technologies that are supporting that evolution. Hospitality is an industry that has been a bit behind in adapting to tech, but that is changing rapidly as new solutions which help restaurants maintain an excellent experience arise.”
After a call for nominations, Top Women in Restaurant Technology Award winners were chosen by Hospitality Technology magazine and members of its Research Advisory Board. The winners were announced and honored during an awards program on March 8 at the 28th annual MURTEC (Multi-Unit Restaurant Technology Conference), in Las Vegas.
