Understanding the data you’re gathering

Advancements in restaurant technology in recent years have shown the potential to provide significant value, transforming how restaurants work and manage resources. But at the same time, the areas where restaurant operators can invest in tech have become so diverse – ranging from mobile POS systems to robotics to generative AI – that it can be difficult to know where to focus tech spending and how to allocate funds, particularly as expenses increase in other parts of restaurant businesses. Bank of America Global Research found that IT budgets have doubled since the pandemic, now accounting for 7-10 percent of revenue. They expect spending to continue at that level going forward. As a result of tech spending to date, many restaurants are awash in data about their businesses. What’s less clear is whether they are in the strongest possible position to benefit from the layers of insights that data can provide. Cristin O’Hara, Restaurant Group head for Bank of America Commercial Banking, said recently that it would be prudent for restaurants to prepare for the next phase of using technology to improve performance by investing in specialists who can analyze the data that various technologies generate, then make recommendations on the best ways restaurants can profit from those insights. “Those that don’t spend the time and money on that now, I think, are going to be behind the curve,” she said.