Why a blog? There has been no easy way for those of us "in the business" to express opinions and ideas about running restaurant chains. While "blogging" is a new experience for me, sharing my thoughts on the restaurant industry certainly is not! (As those of you who know me are aware!) I invite you to ask questions and add your own observations. I'll try to respond at least once a week, if not more. Lastly, my thanks to WD Partners for supporting my desire to do this. Dennis en-us http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580.html?nid=4310 Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information. Subject to its Terms of Use November 9, 2009 http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/930050293.html?nid=4310 (This is the 3rd post in a series on the five critical areas where managers go awry.) Avoiding change is human and very understandable, but dangerous - even for a brand. We spend a great deal of time planning how to implement changes, but we rarely plan for resistance. Unit-level resistance t… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1130050113.html?nid=4310 (This is the second post on of the five critical areas where managers go awry.) All too often, corporate management assumes that a successful unit-level manager is a good leader. Unfortunately, that isn’t necessarily true. Many unit-level managers “run good numbers” but do not … http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/60049406.html?nid=4310 I just read an interesting white paper entitled "Five Critical Management Derailers: Symptoms and Remedies," authored by HR consultancy Profiles International. The paper is not industry specific, so I thought that you might benefit from it, too. The paper identifies several common mana… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1750048575.html?nid=4310 The depth sounder on our sailboat stopped working this spring. Although this is an annoyance, it's not a critical issue, so I decided to wait until the end of the season to correct the problem. However, many of our guests on the boat asked worriedly about the nonoperative sounder. I … http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1810047581.html?nid=4310 I was in a midmorning meeting with Ken Reimer, co-founder and co-owner of Baker Brothers, a 15-unit deli concept based in Dallas. About 20 minutes before the unit opened, in the middle of our conversation, Ken excused himself, unlocked the front door and invited in two people who turned out to be fr… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/140047014.html?nid=4310 If and when a federal menu-labeling law is implemented, the big restaurant chains will likely see lots of articles focused on their menu items' caloric content (not to mention the items' saturated-fat, carbohydrate and sodium counts!). The longer-term impact of the labeling law is more difficul… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/700046670.html?nid=4310 Last month I wrote about Random Acts of Kindness. Since then, you've shared a number of "acts of kindness," such as helping a family that lost its house to a fire or coming to the aid of a patron in need. Thanks--it is good to hear about these things. Of course, many chains already active… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/2000046200.html?nid=4310 Remember that Ronald Reagan quote: "The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help"? Well, from my viewpoint, it may be true. I wrote a post last September proposing an active push for a national menu disclosure la… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1870045987.html?nid=4310 While reading "Springwise," one of my favorite newsletters, I came across an item about Hyatt Hotels. They are going to start a program of random acts of kindness for their Gold Passport guests. Hyatt is empowering their employees to provide “thank you” surprises for their loya… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1520045752.html?nid=4310 As promised, here's a follow-up to my original restaurant Web-sites post. When developing or refining Web sites, you should consider several factors, among them navigation, content, aesthetics, use of a customer-loyalty section and available online tools, as well as security and privacy is… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1030045503.html?nid=4310 The industry lost one of its great icons earlier this week with the passing of Norman Brinker. Few have had as much of an impact on our industry as Norman. His insights on both the industry and people are, deservingly, legendary. I had the opportunity to work with him on a consulting pro… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1510044951.html?nid=4310 After spending a few hours surfing restaurant Web sites, I wanted to share my observations. Your Web site is the portal to your brand. Yet so many sites leave so much to be desired. Some are so bad that the experience leaves a negative impression! I saw many that were poorly developed, outdated,… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1170044317.html?nid=4310 Historically, restaurants have been considered a leading indicator in and out of economic cycles. Perhaps I can offer a glimmer of hope. We’ve experienced a noticeable increase in projects from restaurants over the past several months. The earliest interest started with limited-service restau… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1390043939.html?nid=4310 Perhaps you've heard of the father who got a $5,000 cell phone bill for text messages his teenage daughter sent. That’s a LOT of texting. But the reality is, that that’s how Millennials communicate. Millennials (also known as Gen Y) will be an increasingly prominent driver of restaurant… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/530043653.html?nid=4310 The unfortunate YouTube incident involving two now ex-employees of Domino’s Pizza is another example of how impactful Internet events can be to a restaurant brand. In some ways, it's reminiscent of the rat video in the New York QSR restaurants last year. Domino’s Presid… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1840042784.html?nid=4310 There is no doubt that one of our industry’s greatest competitors is the retail chains offering foodservice. Both C-stores and grocery stores have been striving to increase their foodservice share of market. Some chains have been more successful than others, but as a group, they are doing a be… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1000042100.html?nid=4310 The most-asked questions about the economy these days are, "When does it end?" or "Are we at the bottom yet?" When I’m asked to guess at when I think consumers will start returning to restaurants, I say probably about 3 months after we start seeing labor (the number of peo… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/220041822.html?nid=4310 In a prior post, Business as UN-usual, I talked about using events to engage customers at the local level. Here is another post to challenge you to “think outside the box.” There are a few restaurants that do not set menu prices. Instead customers are asked either to make a contri… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1920040792.html?nid=4310 A recent survey published by the NRF’s publication, Stores Magazine, provided some insights as to what consumers think are expendable expenditures, and which they feel are more in the necessity category. Not surprising cell phone service, internet and cable TV rank high en… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1410040141.html?nid=4310 In my last posting, I mentioned the onerous (in my viewpoint) nutritional labeling requirements Philadelphia has passed, which will take effect on January 1st of next year. Click here if you’d like to read it. Menus must post for each item in a font size and typeface similar … http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/210040021.html?nid=4310 "Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for." - Will Rogers Last week I quoted the perennial wisdom of Will Rogers, and it seems like he gets top billing again this week. Why this quote? Massachusetts wants to add a 2% to 3% tax on restaurant meals over and ab… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1340039334.html?nid=4310 I have always admired the timeliness of many of Will Rogers’ quotes. As we leave 2008 behind and face 2009, one of those quotes comes to mind. “Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there.” It looks as though, at best, 2009 will be at best a mi… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1510038151.html?nid=4310 For the last six or eight months I have been speculating that full-service casual dining chains will be testing limited service (fast casual) variations of their brand. Earlier this month Uno Chicago Grill announced that they were opening two fast-casual versions of their band. This week, … http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/1640037964.html?nid=4310 Economists look at recession recovery in three patterns, the sharp decline and sharp recovery (the V), a longer downturn and longer, slower recovery (the U) and a very slow prolonged recovery of over 5 years (the L). It is getting clear that hopes for a V are fading and a U seems to be a… http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/270037427.html?nid=4310 In a recent post, I suggested that one factor that may be contributing to the difficulties of many restaurant concepts is that they were founded, nurtured and (are still) managed by Boomers in a era when Millennials are becoming more and more important in the economy. There are more Millennials tha…