AGENDA

Commercial kitchens are transitioning toward hybrid and all-electric operations, but adoption rates and challenges vary across quick-service, full-service, and institutional foodservice. This session will explore process and operations-based solutions that can reduce energy demand while improving ergonomics, labor efficiency, and food quality.  You will also hear from an operater who will share how the transition to electric has impacted his kitchen efficiency, work flow, and product ouput.

Join fellow consultants and industry peers for engaging, interactive roundtable discussions focused on the topics that matter most to your business. Choose two 30-minute roundtables from a selection of timely topics, including software solutions, marketing, employee retention, financial management, and managing a remote staff.

Share your experiences, exchange practical ideas, and learn from the successes and challenges of others in the industry. These informal, peer-to-peer conversations are designed to spark new ideas, encourage collaboration, and provide takeaways you can put to work in your firm.

How can operational data drive smarter foodservice design decisions? Discover how demand, menus, production, equipment, labor, and guest flow intersect to shape both new and existing operations. Learn how to use historical data, performance metrics, and scenario testing to identify challenges, evaluate solutions, and inform decisions about layout, equipment, staffing, and service strategies. This session will introduce practical tools—including analytics, AI, process modeling, digital twins, and simulation—that consultants and manufacturers can begin incorporating into their work today.

Our firms and companies are filled with talented people; however, sometimes individual talent and good intentions don’t automatically create a strong team. This interactive panel explores the four elements of high-performing teams: trust, shared purpose, healthy communication and conflict, and accountability through real-world case studies and lessons learned. Attendees will examine common team challenges, assess their own team dynamics, and leave with practical strategies for building stronger, more effective teams.

Construction Administration (CA) is one of the most important phases of a foodservice consultant’s work because it is the intersection of design intent, drawings, specifications, and contract requirements being translated into an actual building. A strong design can still result in a poor project if construction is inadequately administered. A perfect design does not guarantee that construction will be successful. The contractor controls the means, methods, sequencing, and day-to-day execution. However, CA services can substantially reduce risk, catch problems early, protect the owner’s interests, and improve the quality of the finished building.

This session will outline a processes developed to ensure that specifications and drawing details are being followed from bidding documents through final punch list. Learn how this team from Rippe Associates has created more successful project outcomes and reduced hours spent resolving issues during construction by implementing a manageable CA plan.