Global supply chain leaders share insights on their brands domestically and internationally, as well as their challenges and solutions in managing global supply chains within the foodservice industry.

An estimated 600 million people, almost 1 in 10 people globally, fall ill after eating contaminated food. With foodborne illness incidents becoming more highly publicized, costly food recalls on the rise, heightened regulatory oversight and new restaurant culinary trends emerging, how your operation assesses and manages their food safety risk is more critical than ever. One of the most proactive ways to reduce those risks is implementing and improving a food safety culture that spans throughout the organization.  This session will focus on how a culture of food safety can be built across departments and throughout an organization.  Current examples of food safety risks restaurants face will be discussed and specific tools will be shared that can be used to reduce your risk and increase your commitment to food safety.

World Franchise Associates (WFA) in partnership with the Global Restaurant Leadership Conference is hosting the “Insiders’ Guide to Restaurant Development in the GCC” which will include five speakers covering Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and UAE.

NCR explores how digital transformation continues to change how restaurants engage with their consumers across the globe – and how that looks to evolve in the future. What will AI, VR, voice and payments mean for how restaurants need to prepare for tomorrow, today.

Menu trends are emerging at a rapid pace and have never been more mobile across the globe. While it’s imperative that operators keep their offerings in line with current food and drink trends, it can be a challenge keeping up with the many food fads and crazes, as well as determining which trends are more lasting and how to adapt them to a specific market and segment. This session will focus on the key strategies that operators employ when adopting and adapting fast-moving menu trends for their local market.

The deal-making boom is not likely to slow down. Involving national chains, emerging brands or multi-concept operators, the M&A action is likely to come your way. Hear from Wells Fargo’s Investment Banking leader on deal activity and what operators need to know to attract the right financing partner and, perhaps most importantly, manage a successful company after close.  On the agenda:  driving multiples, the importance of strategic investment, why top talent and company culture matter, and completing a successful deal that drives growth and leads to better performance.

The Internet of Things is rapidly transforming the foodservice industry. With connectivity and automation on the rise, top chefs, chain operators, and independents can take their kitchens to a whole new level.  

Novel digital back-of-house technology solutions offer savings, improved efficiency, and ensure that kitchens are up and running to their fullest potential. Operators can monitor equipment and restaurant systems remotely leaving them with more time to focus on customer expectations, food quality, and culinary creativity.

This break out session will highlight how emerging and established operators are implementing digital technologies to connect their kitchen operations like never before. We will look at how real-time information drives performance and how advanced data analytics can add value across the business and support growth objectives. We will also show how in the future robots could work alongside humans in a kitchen and how the concept of co-botics will impact operations.

One of today’s biggest challenges for restaurant operators around the globe is a decline in customer traffic and sales. Marketing to consumers through traditional tactics like TV media have not always provided tangible returns on the sometimes expensive investment, and digital marketing efforts can  quickly add to cost and don’t always get customers through the door. This session will explore innovative marketing efforts that can create and capture new consumer demand for your brand, drive guest loyalty and break through what can be a high-cost and low trade-off marketing cycle. 

Developing a successful brand is a feat in itself. However, achieving recognition as a Global Brand is something that is even rarer and very few can claim.  This panel will explore some of the worlds’ top Global Brands and how they went through the process of spreading their offering to other cultures and markets around the world. We will discuss the challenges of becoming and staying relevant in an ever-evolving environment with changing competition, consumer preferences and purchasing habits that rapidly shift and add layers of both complexity and opportunity that only few do well. Whether you are working to keep your brand and business relevant in its home market, deciding how to evolve the menu or considering crossing borders and adding alternative channels, this session is for you. We will cover best practices, mistakes and multi-industry examples on building and evolving global brands to stay relevant to the customers we have and appeal to those in the next generation or market.

The boom of delivery, increased demand for off-premise food and drink, increased competition from nontraditional competitors and hurried lifestyles have forced many operators to rethink how and where they set up and locate their restaurants. Today’s restaurant chains are tasked with doing more with less—servicing more dayparts, offering delivery and providing seamless ordering solutions—often with smaller kitchens and a tight labor market. This session will examine how leading operators are revamping their operations to address the modern industry landscape.

With the growing presence of Chinese investment and tourist arrivals to the GCC, what opportunities are for Chinese gourmet concept to enter the GCC region? How do you seize the opportunity and be the first mover for introducing Chinese cuisine concepts to meet the new market demand. With the disruption in Chinese FnB offerings & trends, how do we embrace current innovations to cater to the mainstream customers who start adopting the entrant’s offering in volume.