Two Cultures – One Contract – Using Leadership to Deliver

The culture of a company, the shared set of values, goals, attitudes and practices that characterise an organisation, are critical to the success of any business particularly in attracting and retaining employees.

In organisations where food, hospitality and catering form an integral part in supporting the business goals – the culture of a traditional commercial catering company engaged to deliver and execute the food vision – must adapt to reflect and fit in with the same values.

Failure to adapt the culture and execute the food vision, not understanding and meeting the needs and wants of the customer/employee base, risks damaging the client’s corporate culture creating a gap in expectations and contributing to employee/customer turnover. 

The culture of a company can take years even decades to build, culture is a long term game and not something that should be eroded by a short term strategy or financially motivated quick fix gains. 

In an ever-changing world of food and hospitality, the expectations of corporate clients and their customer or employee base have never been higher in supporting the company culture. Expectations are fuelled by experiences in the retail world of food and beverage which continues to set the benchmark and evolve, offering improved food quality, creativity, convenience, service and new concepts in design driven spaces.

By contrast, the culture in many traditional commercial catering companies is not aligned with modern day expectations, often looking to outdated food and service models. The company ‘culture’ inherit in many of the traditional commercial catering organisations in Australia has typically been static and not evolving, lagging behind the expectations and culture of their client’s organisation.

Herein lies the issue for the larger traditional commercial catering companies. How can the culture of a slow moving, cost minimising, revenue maximising, food and service laggard be transformed into an adaptive, agile, customer-centric and solutions focused innovator that not only executes the food vision as promised but enhances the client’s culture? 

In a word, leadership.

Over the past two years, Future Food have engaged with many commercial catering companies through our expression of interest campaigns and F&B strategy projects on behalf of our clients. From local councils with community focused cafes to ACMI in Melbourne, Port Melbourne Yacht Club, Malthouse Theatre, Northern Beaches Hospital and multi–national companies like BHP, feeding 10,000+ employees three times a day – leadership has been a defining element for adapting the catering company culture to meet the needs and expectations of the client and their customer/employee base.

While it is no surprise that leadership shapes the culture of a company, it is the alignment of the leadership team from the managing director through the catering organisation down to the office-based or onsite manager that forms the strongest indicator of success for executing the food vision day after day. 

For commercial catering to be successful and sustainable, leadership alignment must start with the Expression of Interest (EOI) or Request for Tender (RFT) documentation with the client articulating their vision of food and hospitality along with the specific requirements of the catering and service required.

The processes mentioned above are intended to source, select and secure the best fit commercial catering company that aligns to their needs and company culture. Identifying and defining the leadership required from the outset sends the strongest possible message to the commercial catering business development team on the importance of having leadership at the forefront of their model to ensure the best cultural fit and deliver on the vision for food and hospitality.

During the selection process, it is not always possible to have names against the leadership structure at the site level, but this can be readily addressed by defining the structure, roles and responsibilities while demonstrating recent success with mobilising new contracts. Leadership principles can be further demonstrated through the recruitment process priorities, internal management development and key leadership retention programs.

Although key leadership personnel will change on both the client and catering teams, articulating strong key strategy drivers (KSDs) for leadership and staff retention during the EOI or RFT will create a framework for success over the longer term. These KSDs can then be translated and measured through key performance indicators (KPIs) in the final contract terms to provide a complete circle of continuous improvement.

The importance and influence of leadership on culture between the two companies cannot be overstated and is often only truly tested in challenging times. Aligning leadership and the culture between the client and the commercial catering company doesn’t stop at winning and mobilising the contract.

Leadership is a live, constantly evolving process that needs to be nurtured and developed throughout the life of the contract – during good times and bad – to build the partnership and ensuring the company culture is enhanced; contributing to employee and customer retention. 

Business Partnerships – A Strategic ‘Food Focussed’ Approach

Most industries and sectors are seeking ways to ensure the customer experience is enhanced and a lot of responsibility is being placed firmly on the shoulders of food and hospitality to achieve this.

Future Food have seen where this can work in favour of businesses and where it can work to their detriment, and the difference often stems back to having a strategic ‘Food Focussed’ approach.

 

Entering new F&B partnerships in business can change your fortunes, can elevate your business to new heights and can secure long term financial success and feasibility for years to come. All businesses are striving for these types of outcomes and as such take a studious approach when seeking new partnerships.

Who you choose to partner with can often be seen as a reflection of you and your business and as such there is a need for ensuring value alignment, a shared vision, capability, mutual respect and most of all TRUST.

Without these considerations a business partnership is destined for failure and presents a sure-fire way of tarnishing your business and industry reputation in the process.

 

·      Identifying Needs

·      Assess Capability

·      Alignment of Values                                                  

·      Assessment of Business Ethics

·      Shared Vision 

·      Equal Input & Shared Gains

·      Setting Goals & Road Map

·      Respecting the Partnership               

                                                                                   

What are the aspirations, what is realistic, what is required to deliver on the vision and who are the industry leaders that can facilitate this? These are all key questions that must be asked in advance, to help plan the strategy.

 

Enter the subject matter experts, who can provide the insight, proficiency and networks to help you realise your goals and objectives.

 

Future Food are the leading subject matter experts when it comes to all things food and hospitality in Australia and specialise in connecting the dots between business needs and a new food, hospitality or catering partnership that can facilitate this.

 

Whether a business is seeking a partnership to help them achieve their strategic business plan and objectives, secure a long term (reliable) tenant or to build their credibility through new elevated food and hospitality standards, there is a need for a detailed and professional approach.

 

The ability to examine the market for the right tenant/partner and match them to your investment or business is no easy feat but is a crucial step in realising a successful process.

Placing an advertisement in the public domain, asking for referrals from acquaintances or managing the process in-house may not be comprehensive enough, to uncover the true potential of the opportunity.

A partnership with an industry leading operator, retailer or caterer can successfully augment the status of your project and help realise results that exceed expectations.

Often our clients have initial expectations of what they can anticipate in terms of base rental, however being partnered with the best operators or caterers in the market can deliver so much more, including turnover rent, percentage royalties, increased contract/lease tenure, improved agreement terms and significant cash injections such as capital expenditure, sinking funds, rebates and venue hire charges.

 

We regularly achieve indisputable outcomes both financially and for strategically when we partner our clients with leading experts to manage their food and hospitality offerings. Previously content with mediocre financial and contractual arrangements, or unaware of the true pulling power a reputable brand or operator can bring to their business, the results our clients are achieving often speak for themselves.

 

Future Food are highly successful in this due to our in-depth knowledge of the industry, the years of networking, contacts and the day-to-day insight into the ever-evolving hospitality landscape. For those without this inherent knowledge, speaking the language of the hospitality sector can be a test and understanding what combines to deliver successful and modern best practice hospitality is challenging.

 

Future Food’s approach is all about achieving positive food and hospitality outcomes and solutions for our clients. This starts with determining our client’s precise needs, identifying the talent that can help realise this, conducting all required due diligence and ensuring that a true partnership can be achieved, that will drive successful and financially rewarding outcomes for all parties.

 

“A true partnership is a win-win rather than a winner-take-all proposition”

Frank Sonnenberg – Author and Small Business Expert

 

We know what it takes to harness the potential food and hospitality can bring and to leverage it to stand out from the competition, so get in contact to discuss our services and let us share our expertise to help your business.

 

 

Remaining Relevant in the Age of Digital Disruption

The last eighteen months have seen a tremendous rise in the acceptance of food delivery into our daily lives. Whether it’s prepared food or fresh food, the trend is obvious and apparent to all. In February this year, Hello Fresh NZ (a meal box delivery specialist) announced a 143% revenue increase year on year, with their workforce tripling in size during the same period, a quantifiable outcome of the changes and impacts of the pandemic-response effect on our purchasing habits.

 From a prepared-food perspective, the rise of delivery aggregators is gaining momentum at a terrific rate of knots. In evaluating the competitive landscape for any modern food and beverage precinct, it is no longer enough consider the immediate surrounding competition, but rather we also need to consider the competition provided by “Netflix & Order-in,” working in tandem to make a quiet night in on the couch a serious competitor for restaurant spending.

 In the early days of delivery apps (UberEats only launched in Australia in 2016 in the wake of  Foodora’s exit from the marketplace), the emphasis was on developing alternate revenue streams for established restaurants, cafes and takeaways, but a new phenomenon is taking over – Ghost kitchens.

 Ghost kitchens, dark kitchens or cloud kitchens, have no front of house area at all; no seats, no tables and no waiters. Rather these proxy brands are created with delivery app customers as the sole target market developed through proprietary brands specifically designed for the delivery platforms. These ghost kitchens create food specifically for delivery, in kitchens that are specifically created for the format and strategically located to maximise supply coverage. These brands are not limited by the numbers of seats or the capacities and capabilities of the waiters, but rather by the marketing reach of the brand and the algorithms and commission levels inherent within the platforms.

 And the industry is morphing quickly, former CEO of Uber - Travis Kalanick has recently started a company called Cloud Kitchens. He subleases delivery only kitchens on monthly memberships providing restaurant operators with access to infrastructure with no upfront costs, lead-in times or start up compliance etc. Whilst this concept is US based currently, it is a matter of time before operators globally, adopt this approach.

 18 months ago, in the relative calm of the pre-covid environment, Future Food was approached by a major delivery platform to understand what their target consumers wanted, in order to drive greater acceptance of their business model and uptake of delivery platforms as a whole. In just a few short months, the landscape has changed dramatically, delivery has ballooned hand in hand with population lockdowns and the promise of contact less delivery; the bad press of labour conditions and unfair treatment of “contractors” merely an inconvenient truth for a rapidly growing and evolving customer base.

 And the growth is not just in the home delivery sector, but trends indicate that it is likely to be adopted across a number of new sectors in the near future. Airports, Universities and hotels are just some of the sectors that are deliberating how the technology may work specifically to their environment.

 In the US, education catering company Chartwells (Compass Group North America) is trialling the approach in the University sector with the adoption of a dark kitchen approach that will bolster its on-campus dining halls. Whilst it is likely a strategy to counter the loss of revenue to third-party delivery firms, the approach also uses up underutilised kitchen space in Universities. It also provides a way to increase demand outside of traditional dining hall hours which traditionally have not been met by the universities or their caterers.

 A number of airports around the world are also considering options for food delivery at the gate from dark kitchens within the airport itself. The aim is to provide a plethora of menu choices without the limitation of common area seating layouts or peak period queuing. This is not even a new concept, Dubai airport trialled this way back in 2017, in partnership with Deliveroo and allowed passengers to get food delivered to them at their boarding gates. Amsterdam and Toronto airports have both tested the scheme, and with the growth in acceptance of delivery platforms (some market research companies indicating that this may be as high as 250%) it is likely to lead to many more transport hubs looking towards these types of solutions.

 Acceptance of food delivery and home delivery as a normalised method of food purchasing will continue to grow, we like it for a number of reasons:

1. It's easy! – This is the age of convenience and I want it now. (Consider the current marketing campaign of KFC – “Shut up and take my money” or the astronomic rise of finance company Afterpay). This is an era where Millennials & Digital Natives are taking over from Baby Boomers and successful businesses adopt an adapt-or-die mentality in the age of disruption! Convenience is a highly valued commodity in a fast-paced world.

2. We know the cost. No getting talked into an extra glass of wine by smooth talking bartenders, no pre-dinner drinks, no extra sides or condiments and no taxi fare/Uber charges to get there and back. Your favourite condiments are already in the fridge and we know the price of the experience will be exactly the same as when we press “accept” on the delivery platform app.

3. Choice. Whether it's the choice of delivery platform; choice of restaurant; choice of cuisine; choice of price point or even enjoying different meals with the same people in your house from different restaurants at the same time; choice is at the forefront of the popularity of delivery platforms.

 But as is so often cited, home delivery can never match the experience of a great meal OUT! And this must be the mantra of modern food projects; they must be anchored by memorable experiences - delicious food from well considered menus; thoughtfully complemented drinks lists and personable, friendly, deliberate service within design driven environments.

 If physical food and beverage businesses are to remain relevant in an age of virtual restaurants it must be through the creation of memorable, positive, real food & service experiences.

Experience the Experience

Experience the Experience

Australia’s food and beverage operators have been striving to return their businesses to some degree of normality in order to drive sales, stabilise costs and prepare themselves for the imminent financial obstacle of Job keeper payments ceasing in three weeks’ time. It is clear from the ABS that the future is bright for food and beverage operations, however, operators need to be creative, flexible and innovative in order to comply with the remaining Covdid-19 restrictions around social distancing and the control in patron numbers in any one enclosed space.

Melbourne vs Sydney - What makes a ‘Sydney’ restaurant?

Melbourne vs Sydney - What makes a ‘Sydney’ restaurant?

In the course of our work, we have noticed that there are some venues that just say ‘Sydney’. We also know that over the years, Sydney restaurateurs haven’t lit up the world in Melbourne (and vice versa, we might add). All of which got us thinking about why this is so: What is it about the market that creates a ‘Sydney’ venue?

Here we highlight a few of the differences between the Melbourne and Sydney food scene.