Technology is Transforming the Food Service Industry

To ensure a successful deployment of technology, foodservice firms' initiatives should always be customer-centric and focus on improving customer experience.

FREMONT, CA: In the digital age, businesses that fail to adopt innovative technologies are at significant risk of falling behind their competitors, and no industry is exempt from this. Digital solutions are changing the way firms are being conducted across all industry, even in those that are conventionally reliant on the human workforce. One such industry that is undergoing a revolutionary transformation at the moment is the foodservice industry. On top of streamlining ordering and stocking processes, technology advancements have made significant strides in recent years, which could boost sales and further improve customer experiences.

Voice recognition has come a long way, and some vendors are integrating virtual assistant based ordering functions to their services. With AI's help, food service firms can now depend on automated processes to manage voice orders from mobile apps, kiosks, and others. A customer could walk up to a premise and place an order without getting the order through. A system can be put at the drive-thru and on the phones to increase efficiency and accelerate order fulfilment, which could be extremely manageable during peak hours.

Scheduling an optimal staffing level and managing an adequately stocked kitchen is a significant challenge to any restaurant operator. AI-based integrated restaurant management platforms take the guesswork out of the equation. It can find labor demands, track and order products based on sales figures, decide supply levels in real-time, accounting for the seasonal delay and interruptions in the supply chain, and many more. When resources are given based on actual demand data instead of hunches, the advantages will be apparent in the bottom line.

More operators are seeking to use their data strategically to shift more goods and services to boost profit. Modern restaurant management platform vendors have access to information that allows them to derive valuable insights regarding customers' dining patterns, seasonal preference, and other geographic-specific trends. These insights could then be leveraged to predict the volume of goods to be stocked up, schedule a new menu item release, plan a store expansion and staffing, set competitive pricing, among other things.