These days, AI is all the rage and not without a reason. Integrating AI-driven solutions to a company’s operations can boost productivity, improve customer service, and reduce operational costs.
However, to truly reap the benefits of AI, restaurant operators must proactively prepare themselves. Knowledge management is the crucial element of such preparation. Efficient knowledge management makes the difference between a successful implementation of AI and a lackluster one.
AI, in technical terms, is all about mathematical models that aim to classify and categorize the things in the world. The AI gets its training by feeding on large input and output datasets. Therefore, being able to manage various levels of data as well as understand the basics of how AI works are essential parts implementing AI in your operation.
How to Prepare Your Restaurant for the AI Revolution
1. Assess and document your knowledge
Implementing AI in your restaurant starts with understanding all the knowledge needed to run it smoothly. Let’s take customer service as an example. We can break it down into a step-by-step process: (1) how to greet customers; (2) whether to use formal titles or first names; (3) how to choose a table for guests to make their experience better; (4) how much time to give them to look over the menu; and (5) how to suggest additional items or help choose a wine that pairs well with their meal. Even though each guest’s visit is unique, your waitstaff repeats these steps many times a day. This repetition forms a pattern that AI can learn and optimize.
It’s important that you sit down and think through the major categories of processes which constitute the knowledge of your operation. Examples of these categories could be “inventory,” “opening and closing,” “safety,” and “menu” among others. Then, you should spend time writing down the rules and protocols constituting each category. This not only prepares you for AI integration (you will feed these documents to the AI later), but also helps identify problem areas and inefficiencies where AI can really make a difference.
2. Manage your data
To ensure your restaurant’s AI performance is optimized, it’s crucial that the data representing your restaurant’s operations is accurate, up-to-date, and reflective of real-time processes. This foundation requires best-in-class software for PoS, inventory, shift scheduling, and payroll, all of which generate a significant amount of data. It’s advisable to either integrate all your software along the value chain or utilize a single ecosystem to ensure all your data is interconnected. Consequently, when it comes time to implement an AI layer, the transition will be seamless.
Any manual data that requires input, such as supplier prices, recipes, and protocols, should be maintained and organized meticulously. Categorize and label your data accurately, remove any duplicate entries, correct errors, and update records as necessary. It’s important that your data is easily accessible for quick retrieval and analysis.
Ensure you communicate to your employees the significance of accurate data entry. Accurately recording write-offs, remembering to log family meals into the system, and correctly entering promotions into both the inventory and PoS system can greatly enhance data accuracy, which in turn, significantly impacts the future efficiency of AI applications.
Clean and well-organized data is a fundamental prerequisite for enabling AI to deliver accurate and insightful results.
3. Secure your data
Now this data is your capital, protect it. You absolutely need safeguards to secure your algorithms and data, especially when sensitive customer information and proprietary input are involved. Invest in robust and industry-standard cybersecurity measures to protect your restaurant’s data and customer privacy. This may seem like a daunting task, but there are common and easily implementable measures out there like data encryption, which are fast to implement.
In conclusion, the integration of AI into the restaurant industry is no longer a futuristic concept but a present-day reality. By carefully preparing your restaurant for the AI revolution, you can harness the power of AI to streamline operations, improve customer service, and stay competitive in a rapidly evolving industry. Embrace AI as a valuable tool that complements the warmth and personal touch that define the hospitality experience, and you’ll find that the future of your restaurant is both exciting and AI-ready.
By Daniil Klubov, founder & CEO, spoon.tech
Klubov is the founder and CEO of spoon.tech, an AI-powered hospitality training and knowledge management solution. It helps restaurateurs transform processes into interactive training contents and makes learning fun for employees with gamification. Get in touch with them here.
