Restaurant Masterminds Podcast

The role of technology in training and development across the hospitality industry has evolved dramatically, especially over the last 5 years.
In this episode of Accelerate, host Rob is joined by Felicia White, President-Elect for the Council Hotel Restaurant and Trainers (CHART), and Monique Donahue, Director of Commercial Learning for Hilton, and prior president of CHART. CHART is an association that provides training and resources for both hotel and restaurant operators. Serving industries providing hospitality and service, many with responsibility of training in their organizations come from operations without a formal background in training or human resources.
Discussing the evolution of training, Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Assisted Translation are areas that have seen the significant growth within the space. The trio discuss how their teams interact and learn using augmented reality and gamification tools in virtual environments to learn their jobs and understand their corporate culture and brand differentiation.
As much as the approach to learning and development has changed, Felicia & Monique mention it’s not about replacing people but making their work more impactful and efficient. “Despite the machine assistance, there is always going to be a localization, a human set of eyes that’s reviewing” says Monique.
Whether it’s the commonality of labor and training across all industries that interest you, or wanting to know how specific training technology is making the hospitality more efficient, check out this episode of Accelerate.

Anyone who’s been to the NRF’s Retail Big Show would know it’s the one of the largest technology events in the retail space. In this episode of Accelerate, host Rob Grimes is joined by Susan Newman, Senior Vice President of Events at the NRF. As collaboration partners representing the NRF and IFBTA, they preview what’s in store for the 2024 show and how technology has connected the retail & foodservice industries.
The pair start by discussing the 118-year history of the show and how it’s changed over the years from hangers and shelving to tech. The National Retail Federation is the largest retail trade association - standing up for people, policy, and ideas that help the retail industry succeed. This year, the show expects 1,000 exhibitors and over 40,000 visitors from across the globe.
Rob and Susan share a pre-show look at this year’s Foodservice Innovation Zone, an area which highlights the cool technology which is changing the customer experience in retail with foodservice. “It’s becoming easier with today’s technology to integrate retail and foodservice” mentions Susan, and adding “the option to sell food is important to a retail businesses overall footprint and ability to be successful.”
If you want a sneak peek about what to look forward to at NRF 2024: Retail’s Big Show and the Foodservice Innovation Zone, where the exciting future of integrating retail and foodservice comes to life - check out this episode of Accelerate.
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When we think about innovation and the future, all roads lead to CES. While food and beverage technology are represented at CES in some form, it’s the technologies from other industries which will predict the trajectory of restaurants operations.
Let’s look at something like SmartHomes for example. We can look at the interconnectivity between our homes and portable devices to look at how restaurant equipment can all be interconnected, and communication streamlined.
In this Episode, Rob Grimes breaks down the various trends witnessed at CES, and how we might see these effect the restaurant experience as we know it.

With so many places to look for technology, sometimes what you’re looking for is available in a different part of the world or peripheral industries. Retail, for example, is an industry with many overlapping services within the foodservice space..
NRF 2023: Retail’s Big Show took place in New York, showcasing retailers who specialize in convenience stores, grocery, and specialty stores. Trends highlighted included data, cameras, robotics, and holograms, and what do you know - these technologies were similarly displayed just a week prior at CES. “The speed of technology finding its way from the consumer industry to retail side is instantaneous today,” says Rob Grimes.
In this episode of Accelerate, IFBTA CEO Rob Grimes talks about his experience at NRF 2023's innovation lab as well as his observation of other crossover industries such lodging, travel, healthcare, vending and their overall impact on the future of the food and beverage industry.

As operators, the opportunities that new technology is bringing to the hospitality industry is abundant. Since technology enables every part of an operation, it allows operators to focus on their role without becoming technologists themselves.
This week, Rob discusses many of the new opportunities that are available to operators. He calls out the growth and demand of fresh food. Customers increasingly desiring access to food that is cooked and delivered efficiently. Vending, an area that allows 24 hours of operations, is old, but new trend that operators can capitalize on as a way to expand their brand.
Rob also shares some of the new technologies that will allow operators to access to some of these opportunities. A critical piece is self-service technologies. Engaging people on mobile technology which they constantly carry around with them and use for purchasing is key for the future. We can also look at robotics as another pivotal technology, as it gives the potential ability to cook food on demand within unattended or limited service operations, delivering ultimate freshness.
Simply put, If you want to hear about many of the new and growing opportunities in the hospitality industry and which technologies will allow you to take advantage of them, check out this episode of Accelerate.