This article was originally posted on QSR.
The brand says a pair of new solutions help it further operational efficiencies—and appeal to franchise candidates.
Based in Houston, Salata is a 100-unit quick-service franchise brand that offers guests fully customizable, built-to-order salads and wraps. As the brand grows into new markets via franchising—about 10 percent of its locations are corporately owned—it has been modernizing its operations with tech-forward solutions.
“We have been seeking to eliminate clipboards from our kitchens,” says Sammy Seymour, director of field operations at Salata. “A lot of technology has entered our industry—whether it’s online ordering, delivery platforms, third-party integrations. Operationally, we weren’t up to speed and using the best tech out there.”
In order to equip his field operations team and his storefront managers with the best possible technology, Seymour started demoing different solutions. He was on the verge of signing a contract with a software company when he was introduced to MeazureUp at the eleventh hour. MeazureUp offers two solutions: DailyChex, task management software for the storefront level, and AuditApp, for chains looking to uphold brand standards.
Seymour says he immediately fell in love with both solutions, as well as the fact that he could bundle them, thereby creating an affordable and multi-layered approach to ensuring consistency from storefront-to-storefront. He was drawn to the ease-of-use of each platform and the fact that they were compatible with both Android and Apple smartphones and tablets—perfect for the younger generation of team members who are more comfortable with a screen than a pen.
Salata managers are now using DailyChex, helping to ensure each restaurant is being opened and closed the same way. Temperature logs are kept in DailyChex as well, as are different training protocols.
“I love the way MeazureUp allows us to work simultaneously as a team to complete a checklist together, too,” Seymour says. “You can say, ‘Hey, I got this end of the restaurant, you take that end’ and run through and get it knocked out that much quicker.”
Seymour and his team are now using AuditApp when they visit locations to execute site audits. They can take photos and create action items that require the attention of a restaurant manager or franchisee. The app automatically fires off emails to the executive team as well as the franchisee and restaurant manager, forging a forensic record of each area where something was done well, or not-so-well. Overall, AuditApp helps give a 30,000-foot-view of how the brand is functioning and where restaurants—or the overall brand—could use more attention to detail.
“One of the things I enjoy most about AuditApp is that if you’ve visited a restaurant twice and the restaurant fails on the same item both times, it will flag that,” Seymour says. “But it does that on a broader level, too: it helps you see what are some of the bigger items that are being missed across each restaurant. For example, last month we conducted 15 audits. Nine of the restaurants had equipment that needed to be cleaned—so we knew to highlight that as an area of focus moving forward.”
Both DailyChex and AuditApp allow for a large degree of customization for each brand. Checklists are easily created and updated to best reflect a brand’s constantly evolving standards.
Seymour also highlights how MeazureUp’s solutions were made specifically for foodservice operators, as opposed to other solutions he considered that were made for other industries and converted into something foodservice operators could use in a pinch. Along with that, he praises the general attentiveness he’s received since adding MeazureUp’s solutions.
“You really can’t beat the service aspect that MeazureUp offers,” Seymour says. “I’m in the sales business, so I know what good service looks like and the team at MeazureUp really blew me away. When I was setting things up, I was getting responses within the hour. I think service like that makes you feel really confident that you’ll get the attention you need, when you need it.”
As Salata closes in on 100 locations, it’s actively seeking franchisees. Seymour reports a final hidden benefit of incorporating MeazureUp’s two solutions into Salata’s daily operations is that it adds additional brand appeal for new franchisees. Potential franchisees love seeing tech-forward solutions and knowing it will make their job overseeing a restaurant—or several—that much easier.
“It furthers our continuous goal of supporting franchisees and in-restaurant efficiencies,” Seymour says. “Franchise candidates know they won’t be joining a brand that is still sharpening pencils and printing out forms. It’s just a much more productive way of adapting to the flow of modern business.”
For more on AuditApp and DailyChex, visit the MeazureUp website.
