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Sometimes when it comes to system overhauls, it’s what’s on the inside that counts. This year, Dickey’s Barbecue completed a three-year-long project called NextGen that upgraded the company’s behind-the-scenes technology.
While most consumers will never notice the updates, the simplification and update of the barbecue brand’s tech stack now allows franchisees to work much faster and be “leaner and more future-forward,” CEO Laura Dickey said in an October interview.
This project involved getting “under the hood” to improve the connective tissue of different tech stack components so that they work better together instead of acting like separate parts stacked on top of one another.
The results might be invisible to all but the well-trained eye, but franchised stores will now run better and experience less tech-related downtime.
One year ago, Domino’s announced that its first proprietary operating system – appropriately named Dom.OS — would be coming in 2024.
The operating system is a “series of smart tools” that let the operator “orchestrate the flow of operations from the moment an order is placed to the time it arrives in a customer’s hands. Domino’s executives said the new system would allow operators to “keep one eye on the customer, and one eye on the store operations.”
Domino’s did not stop with its Dom.OS feature either. This year, the company also worked on an app and website overhaul, beta testing a new labor forecasting and scheduling tool, and launching a refreshed loyalty program – all part of the company’s previously announced Hungry for More strategy and the company’s attempt to become well-known yet again, for its digital technology innovation.
In April of this year, IHOP completed the rollout of its first point of sales system upgrade in 15 years, following a two-year migration process. The Dine Brands Global company made the switch to a cloud-based system that would allow the operator to “retain its current hardware stack” while also providing flexibility for franchisees.
The upgrade, operated by TRAY, includes performance analytics and integration with other platforms like online ordering. The company has deployed more than 10,000 new POS server tablets to work alongside this new system.
“This is a critical step in the evolution of our iconic brand,” Justin Skelton, CIO and SVP of IT at parent company Dine Brands, said in a statement at the time.
Dine Brands also stated in a previous earnings call that transactions taken on the new tablets have a higher beverage attachment rate, improved table turn times, and higher server tips.
In 2024, Jack in the Box began deploying a hybrid tech stack solution, complete with both proprietary and third-party elements, as part of its “Digital Transformation 2.0” era. The company built its own internal digital platform, but also began partnering with cloud-based POS system Qu, which allows Jack in the Box to begin offering kiosk ordering capabilities.
“It's the right thing for other companies to build POS systems from scratch and own their own capability, but for us, that's not a differentiator and it's not a competitive advantage,” Jack in the Box chief technology officer Doug Cook said.
In September, Jack in the Box released a redesign of its mobile app, now designed to “provide an enhanced experience for our guests, setting the foundation for personalization and targeted loyalty offerings,” CEO Darrin Harris said in a previous earnings call. During the company’s most recent earnings call, Harris said that the new app “improved user experience, speed of ordering, incremental sales and accelerated acquisition of loyalty members,” adding that digital ordering is now more than 14%.
The Siren Craft System is an employee-facing system overhaul is designed to help Starbucks baristas meet growing demand, particularly during peak times at busy cafes.
This hybrid technology-operations systems update to the 2022 proprietary siren system includes streamlined ways of making beverages, and a new in-store employee role that helps where and when they are needed most. On the tech side, it also includes a digital production management tool that communicates to employees when demand and traffic are growing, so baristas can be better prepared to meet that demand.
Wingstop caused an industry-wide debate (and inspired a popular “Build v. Buy panel at FSTEC) when it announced last year that the company would be dropping Olo in favor of producing its own proprietary tech stack.
The MyWingstop platform was officially rolled out systemwide in April, as the culmination of a $50 million, three-year effort to produce its own custom technology with a long-term goal of getting to 100% digital transactions.
The goal with this new in-house technology is to unlock more customer data and create hyper-personalized experiences for each customer. For the most part, the system is “invisible technology,” with operators being able to use the platform to more easily create a “first-class experience” for Wingstop fans.
Proprietary technology was a theme of tech stack rollouts in 2024, and Yum Brands was one of the bigger projects announced and completed this year. By February, the platform company’s proprietary point-of-sale system, called Poseidon, was rolled out to 1,700 Taco Bell locations.
This year, Yum Brands also accelerated the rollout of proprietary technology meant to equip franchisees with tools that differentiate them from competitors, particularly in emerging markets.
This will all continue in 2025, when Yum will enter the next phase of digital development, with an emphasis on artificial intelligence and the development of additional proprietary platforms.
“We are accelerating deployment of our foundational platforms, such as the Poseidon POS system, Yum e-commerce platform, Dragontail, SuperApp and our Global Data Hub. In the next phase, we are focused on maximizing the value creation potential of our platforms through AI and leveraging our extensive data assets,” Yum CFO Chris Turner said in August.
