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Restaurant leaders from Fridays, &pizza and Sweetgreen on workforce trendsRestaurant leaders from Fridays, &pizza and Sweetgreen on workforce trends

5 takeaways from the Black Box Global Best Practices conference

Ron Ruggless, Senior Editor

January 31, 2020

5 Min Read
Black Box Global Best Practices 2020 Kelli Valade Avery Block James Fripp
At the opening of the 25th Global Best Practices Conference, from left: Kelli Valade, president and CEO of producer Black Box Intelligence; conference co-chair Avery Block, restaurant experience manager at Taco Bell; and co-chair James Fripp, chief diversity and inclusion officer at Yum Brands Inc.Ron Ruggless

Restaurant leaders from a variety of legacy and newer brands shared their outlook for the year ahead and tools they were using to deal with change in the workforce during the annual Global Best Practices conference this week in Irving, Texas.

The conference, produced by Black Box Intelligence, celebrated its 25th year with a special pre-event session that featured a wide variety of restaurant executives addressing the uncertain path ahead.

“Uncertainty is the enemy of comp sales and traffic,” said Wally Doolin, founder and chairman of Black Box Intelligence, in opening the session. “If there is anything we are dealing with this year, it’s uncertainty.”

Brand leaders and other experts said they were generally optimistic about immediate futur...

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About the Author

Ron Ruggless

Senior Editor, Nation’s Restaurant News / Restaurant Hospitality

Ron Ruggless serves as a senior editor for Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News (NRN.com) and Restaurant Hospitality (Restaurant-Hospitality.com) online and print platforms. He joined NRN in 1992 after working 10 years in various roles at the Dallas Times Herald newspaper, including restaurant critic, assistant business editor, food editor and lifestyle editor. He also edited several printings of the Zagat Dining Guide for Dallas-Fort Worth, and his articles and photographs have appeared in Food & Wine, Food Network and Self magazines. 

Ron Ruggless’ areas of expertise include foodservice mergers, acquisitions, operations, supply chain, research and development and marketing. 

Ron Ruggless is a frequent moderator and panelist at industry events ranging from the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators (MUFSO) conference to RestaurantSpaces, the Council of Hospitality and Restaurant Trainers, the National Restaurant Association’s Marketing Executives Group, local restaurant associations and the Horeca Professional Expo in Madrid, Spain.

Ron Ruggless’ experience:

Regional and Senior Editor, Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality (1992 to present)

Features Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1989-1991)

Restaurant Critic and Food Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1987-1988)

Editing Roles – Dallas Times Herald (1982-1987)

Editing Roles – Charlotte (N.C.) Observer (1980-1982)

Editing Roles – Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald (1978-1980)

Email: [email protected]

Social media:

Twitter@RonRuggless

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ronruggless

Instagram: @RonRuggless

TikTok: @RonRuggless

 

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