Restaurants Reinvented: Putting Growth Back on the Menu

Making Technology Invisible in Your Restaurant with Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 1 of 3)

• Season 2 • Episode 54

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In this 3-part mini-series, Jen interviews the CEO of Qu, Amir Hudda. We reflect on the past 2 years of sweeping industry changes and how we can collectively innovate to create a more sustainable and profitable future for restaurants. 

Technology is just one piece of that puzzle, but a larger one than ever before. Jen and Amir explore the historically tense relationship between restaurants & technology - and how to make it less “friction-filled” -  in this short and educational segment.

Quotable Highlights: 

  • Margins, not people, have challenged the industry when it comes to adopting the best foundational technology 
  • The recent pace of change (and pandemic) forced many large restaurants chains to bolt new technology onto old legacy architectural foundations, creating more friction with operator and guest experiences
  • The goal is: How do we make technology invisible in the restaurant? 
  • Frictionless experiences are not the best goal - LESS FRICTION is the more attainable goal. 
  • The pendulum swung too far for operators - from one tech provider to many - hoping we can get back to fewer moving parts for the restaurants to have to deal with. The pandemic created too many different tech stacks in the larger enterprise restaurant chains.
  • The pace of tech adoption has been slower in our industry, but when it does happen with enterprise-level brands, it is very well thought out and planned. 
  • Innovation is essential, but we have to innovate collectively as an industry. We cannot have a meaningful impact if the innovation is not a collective effort. Not just one company or person here and there, all of us need to focus on innovation to move the industry forward more sustainably. 
  • Focusing on your #1 asset - People - is how you can have the biggest impact.  

Related Episodes:

Resources: 

The Path Forward for Enterprise Restaurants - a Unified Commerce Platform.

Connect with Amir on LinkedIn

Check out Qu's Annual State of Digital for Enterprise QSR & Fast Casual Brands

[00:00:00] Amir Hudda: There's just not enough capital available to adopt the newest, brightest shining technology tool every time a new one comes around, that's just not feasible in this industry. When technology changes happen, it's extremely well thought out and well planned, it doesn't happen at the pace that we might like as a technology company, but it does happen. 

[00:00:54] Jen Kern: Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Restaurants Reinvented. This is Jen Kern, and today I'm so excited to have the CEO of Qu with us on the show. It's Amir Hudda, and this is the first time that Amir has appeared on our show. And so, I'm really excited to welcome him today. He was, of course, the genesis of this whole podcast.

[00:01:12] And now that we're past the 50-episode mark, I thought it would be perfect to invite Amir on, and here are some of his pearls of wisdom. So, Amir, welcome to Restaurants Reinvent.

[00:01:22] Amir Hudda: Thank you, Jen, I'm, I'm so delighted to be here, I mean, I remember chatting with you about it two years ago when, when this was just an idea and, uh, look how far we've come, look at the amazing quality of guests we've had, and all of the wonderful wisdom they've shared with all of our listeners.

[00:01:39] So, I'm so excited to, to come here, two years later, when we've had this fantastic group of people come through the, the entire series.

[00:01:47] Jen Kern: Yeah, the, it, it's just been such a thrill just putting the whole show together, the reception from the industry and just how open people have been to coming on and sharing, like you said, their, their insights, their experience in the industry, how they're changing and how we're really all coming together to help pave the future of this industry.

[00:02:07] And there's a lot of change going on, I mean, change has been the one constant, for sure, in the past two and a half years and through this pandemic. So, I'd love to hear from you what you've seen, like, some of those big changes as being the most monumental of in the past two and a half years, where do you see the biggest trends that have really stuck, and where are we headed today?

[00:02:27] Amir Hudda: Well, it's, uh, it's interesting we talk about changes, but when you sort of reflect back on the early days of the pandemic, there was so much fear and uncertainty in terms of what was gonna be the impact of this on the restaurant industry. I mean, we all remember the early days where all the restaurants were, were closed, and then after the first two or three weeks, the, at least the fast-casual and quick-service restaurants started opening back up again, restaurants that have dried through,

[00:02:59] you know, really benefited from that, and I remember when we looked at our data six months into the pandemic, I still remember seeing the trends of how the shift happened from all of the lost revenue for table service restaurants, casual dining, fine dining, and how that quickly benefited fast-casual and quick-service restaurants, and how digital ordering just went through the roof, ordering through the drive-throughs went through the roof. And fortunately for us, it is the segment of the industry that we were focused 100% on. So, it was just lucky that we ended up being in the right segment, otherwise, who knows, uh, what our future would've been. So, when thinking back from how it all started to fast forward now, two years, and the changes, as you said, have been monumental, not just from a technology perspective, just think about all the changes that have happened in all of the operations, the labor challenges unprecedented, right? Who would've thought that you might have to not run some shifts because you didn't have enough staff, or you might have to close some days of the weekend because you don't have enough staff?

[00:04:12] Amir Hudda: Look at the food costs. The challenges of running a restaurant were already pretty high. The margins of running a successful restaurant were already pretty low. Now you add on the labor challenges, the cost increases, and even if you are willing to pay more, even if you can afford to pay more, you still can't find enough labor.

[00:04:33] And then, you add on all the inflation-driven, supply chain-driven food cost, uh, related price increases, and I'm just glad I'm not running a restaurant because it is not an easy place to be right now.

[00:04:47] Jen Kern: No, it's really, really hard, and, and like you said, I mean, we've, we've seen so much, we've seen these restaurants go through so much, and the ones that are super innovative and creative, and really buckled down and focused on what matters, and for us, of course, we're a tech company, tech does matter, but the guests matter, the people matter, and we've, we've shifted,

[00:05:08] and, you know, we've been doing a labor series here and talking about culture and employee care, and, and all that good stuff on the podcast, and I'd love to know from you, what do you see as the, the biggest issue right now facing restaurants that we can help solve?

[00:05:23] Amir Hudda: Well, I think before we go into the impact, we can make from a technology side, we should also look at what has happened in technology in the last couple of years, uh, or at least adoption of technology. I think, you know, we've known that in the large enterprise restaurant chains, the pace of technology change, or adoption of new technology, has historically been slower than under other industries.

[00:05:56] And oftentimes I hear people saying, well, you know, the restaurant industry is just not forward enough, or not fast enough in adopting new technology, and, and, uh, sometimes, you know, you hear about, well, it's, is it the people in the industry, or, or what is it, why is it that the restaurant industry is always a laggard when it comes to adopting technology?

[00:06:18] And to be honest, I'm relatively new to this industry, right? I spent the last 15 years of my career in retail tech before coming to restaurant tech, and what I've learned is it's not a shortage of talent, it's not a shortage of ideas, all of that exists, but the restaurant industry is challenged by margins.

[00:06:41] There's just not enough capital available to adopt the newest, brightest shining technology tool every time a new one comes around, that's just not feasible in this industry. And so, what you see is when technology changes happen, it's extremely well thought out and well planned, it doesn't happen at the pace that we might like as a technology company, but it does happen.

[00:07:08] And when it happens, it can be very meaningful for players that have planned for it and have the wherewithal to be around for when that change happens. 

[00:07:19] Jen Kern: What is your hope, vision, and goal, if you will, for the industry, and for where you see the industry going next?

[00:07:27] Amir Hudda: I think there are two aspects of it, right? One is the innovation aspect that we talked about. Not just us, collectively, we have to get together and work with the restaurants in the industry, as well as the other technology providers, it has to be a collective effort. We, on our own, cannot just keep innovating and expect that we're gonna have a meaningful impact.

[00:07:52] We can take a lead like we've been doing, but we need to make sure that this is a collaborative effort, particularly with our brands, and, and we, I think we do that pretty well, I would say, but making sure that it's a collective effort is, and, and getting more of our partners into that is, is something that, that, uh, I'm hoping we can continue to, to focus on. 

[00:08:16] Jen Kern: Yeah.

[00:08:16] Amir Hudda: I think the other area is we have to constantly think about what you said, which is how do we make technology invisible in restaurant operations, right? It cannot get in the way, and the part of the reason why it gets in the way is you have to think about this whole evolution of restaurant tech, right?

[00:08:36] Like I said, in the early days, it was very simple because ordering was very simple, it was in one location, but as digital ordering came about first, it was just web ordering, then it was mobile, then it was catering orders being done digitally, then it was kiosk, once, uh, McDonald's, and Panera, and others started putting kiosks in the restaurant.

[00:08:56] All of a sudden, there was an expectation that you'll have a guest-facing technology in the store. And as these different technologies came about, one thing that happened, unfortunately, was that newer companies came about very quickly, and built those applications, and were successful selling it, and I say unfortunate not because,

[00:09:18] you know, of, I'm happy that the companies were able to, to understand that need, and move quickly as an entrepreneur, I love that, but the unfortunate part was that it created too many tech stacks in the restaurant, every technology company, whether it was loyalty, whether it was labor management, inventory management, accounting, all the different types of ordering it

[00:09:42] just, I think the pendulum swung too far, you had the old days where you had one company that gave you all your technology that you needed, and there were challenges with that model, which is why the new model evolved, but I think the new model went too far, and I'm hoping that there'd be some semblance of, you know, fewer moving parts,

[00:10:03] if you, if you will, in the restaurant tech stack, which is why it's very important for us to define what's our swim lane because it's very easy to get defocused on, you know, what are we gonna build, build next? So, our definition of following the order journey helps us stay focused, right, everything to do with taking, making, and serving orders,

[00:10:25] that's how we define our reason for existence. So, my hope is that we can continue to make that process more seamless, more effective, cost-effective, and from a, a usage efficiency perspective, but that we'll work with fewer partners to reduce some of the friction that, that exists because you have so many different technologies sitting in the restaurant today.

[00:10:54] Jen Kern: Yeah. Oh, you had to say that friction word, Amir. Oh gosh. You know, that's like nails on a chalkboard for me because ever since I came into this industry, three and a half years ago, is the word I heard the most, frictionless, frictionless, frictionless, and it's like, as a guest, it's just not, we're not there yet. We're not there yet.

[00:11:10] Amir Hudda: To be honest, I don't think you, you have to get to frictionless. It's, it's maybe what people talk about, it's you have to reduce friction.

[00:11:19] Jen Kern: Yeah, I, I'd love to ask you now that we're sitting here with 50 episodes in, and I don't expect you to have listened to every single one, but maybe you have, you know, and I wanna thank you, first of all, 'cause you, I remember coming to you with this idea, and you just being like, "Go for it, let's try it."

[00:11:32] And, you know, it's been just a ton of fun, but this question is sort of like asking about your favorite child, which I, I can't, I can't answer, but maybe you can, what has been one of your favorite episodes that stood out for you that you feel like you learned a lot from that was just super informative.

[00:11:48] Amir Hudda: You know, it, it's, you're right, there were so many great episodes, and, and it's been two years, uh, you know, sitting here, I'm not even sure I can remember all of the great episodes because there have been so many, uh, really interesting ones, but I think the one that stands out in my mind is one of the more recent ones,

[00:12:05] uh, the, the founder and CEO of, uh, South Block, uh, Amir Mostafavi, you know, when he said, and he talked about, "Our product is our people, and everything revolves around the people." It, it made so much sense because look, you can talk about providing great guest experiences and, and great food, and all of that, but at the end of the day, all of that is impacted by your people and their passion and your culture around cultivating that, and why they come to you, and why they stay, and why they go the extra mile to give that extra experience to your, to your guests.

[00:12:49] Amir Hudda: It, it really stuck in my mind, particularly because of the challenges we are seeing today in the labor market.

[00:12:55] I think he was so spot on, right? If, if you can focus on your number one asset, and recognize that people are your number one asset, I think you can have a huge impact.

[00:13:07] Jen Kern: Yeah, well, and that's why we're focusing on, on most recently this culture, and how do, what does that mean to, to take really good care of your people? There's a lot of ways to unpack that in the restaurant industry, and a lot of new ideas actually out there that are, that are really interesting. So, I also love that episode.

[00:13:25] I just actually saw Amir like, three days ago when I was at South Block's. I'm like, "Hey, you're still one of the top episodes." And he's just a, he's just a fantastic person, a fantastic human, so he is been really, really fun to, to get to know. 

[00:13:39] Amir Hudda: Yeah. And what is your favorite place to eat at? Do you have a favorite restaurant?

[00:13:43] Oh, my God, there are so many, uh, particularly

[00:13:46] Jen Kern: I know, you're a great foodie.

[00:13:46] Amir Hudda: in DC, right, I mean.

[00:13:47] Jen Kern: You have really good taste, Amir. I know that.

[00:13:49] Amir Hudda: Yeah, yeah, I, I, uh, I love Rose's Luxury, it's, uh, one of my favorites, uh, I love, uh, Tail Up Goat is another favorite of mine, I mean, look, there's so many, right? Maydan is another phenomenal restaurant. There's just no shortage. There's so many great seafood restaurants,

[00:14:06] you know, it's, uh, this is a great place to be when it comes to, to food.

[00:14:11] Jen Kern: Yeah, lots of fine dining.

[00:14:13] Amir Hudda: Yeah. Speaking of the labor, you know, challenge that we have today, one of the things we've talked about internally, as culture as well, what are some of the ways, what are some of the similarities you see with the people aspects in our company and a tech company, and the people aspects in restaurants?

[00:14:29] I think there are a lot of similarities, right? 

[00:14:31] Jen Kern: Yeah.

[00:14:31] Amir Hudda: Look, uh, restaurants are feeling this challenge, this lack of labor, or not enough qualified labor for the first time.

[00:14:42] Jen Kern: Yeah.

[00:14:43] Amir Hudda: Tech industry's been grappling with that for a long time.

[00:14:46] Jen Kern: Yeah.

[00:14:47] Amir Hudda: The ability to find and retain great tech people has been a challenge for decades now, right?

[00:14:57] It's, and so, as a technology entrepreneur for the last 25 years, it's something that I've had to grapple with for a very long time, and that hasn't changed. I can't remember any time where, you know, there wasn't a dearth of technology people. One of the, the examples that, that, that I talk about when, when people ask me, "Why did you, you know, not go after the, the casual dining, fine dining market, or why do you not build, you know, other applications outside of your order journey?"

[00:15:31] And my response always is Qu does not have, and I don't know if you know any company that has more tech people than they, they know what to do with, there's always a shortage of, of really good technology talent. So, you have to really make sure that you pick the battles you wanna fight because you're not gonna have more soldiers than you need.

[00:15:55] You're always gonna be short-staffed, right? So, that's one lesson learned over the years is

[00:16:00] Amir Hudda: focus, you know, maniacal focus on what do you want to go after? 'Cause if you wanna be the best at something you can't try to be all things to all people.

[00:16:11] Amir Hudda: Having said that you still have to focus on culture, and how do you take care of people?

[00:16:16] And, and as you know, we've tried to, to do our bit in creating a, a family-type atmosphere, right? We talk about family as one of our pillars, and, and not just our employees, but our customers, our technology partners, all of us coming together because, you know, one thing about families is, it's, the underlying pillar for a family is trust, right?

[00:16:40] Yeah, you'll always have your quarrels and ups and downs, but if you can build that trust, you know you're gonna be a close family all the time, but, but the funny thing about trust is you can't build it overnight, it takes time, you have to work on it every day, and so, for us, when we talk about family is one of our business pillars and family

[00:17:02] as in our extended family, we also recognize that this is something that we have to work on all the time to make sure that we can create and maintain that trust. So, couple of things we've done just, you know, in the spring of, uh, of this year, we went through two, two and a half months of intense work, we were launching multiple brands, simultaneously, large brands, medium-sized brands, all together, something we had not done before. And our teams were working round the clock for several weeks, seven days a week. And so, as we successfully completed those projects, we took a step back and said, "We have to do something to sort of, you know, ease the pressure a little bit."

[00:17:47] So, we came up with taking a Friday off, you know, working with your teams and coordinating, and getting an extra Friday off, just to be able to, to relax a little bit. We, we did something called, you know, our Friday afternoons, we decided that we are gonna try and stop working by 2:00 PM, recognizing that that's not always gonna be possible.