Flame 2022, Issue 3

Drury Father-Son Franchising Duo

Drury Father-Son Franchising Duo

24

On Sept. 9, NFA members met in Las Vegas for the 2022 NFA Annual Meeting

PAGE 26

NFA Editorial Board

Matt Herridge

Executive Editor

mherridge@charton.biz

304-865-2222

Rachel Jackson

Editor-in-Chief rachelj@nfabk.org

Allison McCallum

Managing Editor allisonm@nfabk.org

Jared Johnsen

Managing Editor jaredj@nfabk.org

Advertising Sales

Jeff Reynolds Director of Business

Partner Relations jeffr@nfabk.org

678-797-5163

NFA Officers

Dan Fitzpatrick

Chair

Jim Froio

Vice Chair

Matt Herridge

Secretary

Steve Keith

Treasurer

Anthony Josephson

Second Vice President

Russ Lo Bello

Second Vice President

Kevin Newell

Second Vice President

Christy Williams

CEO

NFA Board of Directors

CANADIAN FRANCHISEE ASSOCIATION

Mike Kitchingman

FLORIDA/CARIBBEAN

Glenn Levins

GREAT MIDWEST

Matt Carpenter

Henry Delouvrier

Mark Peterson

GREAT WESTERN

Nasser Aliabadi

Gary Geiger

INTERNATIONAL HISPANIC FRANCHISEE ASSOCIATION

Guillermo Perales

LARGE FRANCHISEE GROUP

Tom Garrett

METRO NEW YORK

Amir Syed

MID-ATLANTIC

Gary Andrzejewski

MID-SOUTH

Kevin Newell

Mike Callahan

Kevin Fernandez

Larry Stokes II

MINORITY FRANCHISEE ASSOCIATION

Camille Lee-Johnson

MOUNTAIN

Amir Allison NEW ENGLAND

Brek Kohler OHIO RIVER

C.J. Timoney

Josh Lephart

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Shirley Humerian

2022 Issue 3

29 Serving Up Something Fresh: The New Digital Paradigm for Quick-Service Restaurants contributed by Comcast Business

30 2022 NFA Annual Meeting Provides Association Updates for Members

32 The BURGER KING Foundation Is Growing! contributed by the BURGER KINGSM Foundation

34 Trying To Be Funny? Watch Out! by Douglas H. Duerr, Elarbee Thompson

36 A Spotlight on RSI’s Newest Board Members contributed by Restaurant Services Inc.

38 The Experience of Great Customer Service by Dennis Snow, Snow & Associates Inc.

41 Elevate Your Space contributed by Atmosphere

42 Seeing the Big Picture in Employee-Sponsored Retirement Plans During Economic Downturns contributed by Hall Financial Advisors

44 The Actions of Leadership: Meet Situations as They Arise by Dan Coughlin, The Coughlin Co.

46 True Performance: Five Ways to Avoid Fake Productivity by Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro®

48 Should Your Organization Offer Earned Wages? by Stacy Smith, Mize CPAs Inc.

50 FAQs About Business Insurance contributed by Lockton Cos.

FROM THE CHAIR

NFA Holds Optimism for Future of the Brand

This article of the Flame is being prepared in the shadow of our most recent convention in September at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Despite the challenging times, it is good to see old friends and renew acquaintances in this annual gathering. I hope and trust that your time in Las Vegas was well spent and productive and that you have returned safely home.

I want to give a special shoutout to those franchisees who were recognized with awards during the course of the convention. I trust that your teams are enriched by your achievements and proud of the great work that they do every single day.

I also want to recognize and thank our valuable supplier partners. We thank them not only for their support, availability and participation throughout the convention but what they do for us every single day, including association meetings that are held across the country. As our business is being challenged, so it is for our suppliers. They too are dealing with pressures of inflation, supply chain woes, staffing issues and more. I know I speak for all franchisees to thank our suppliers for their continued partnership and commitment.

Likewise, I hope during the course of the convention you had the opportunity to meet with the leadership and management of Restaurant Services Inc. (RSI). Our brand is blessed to have the able leadership and talent of Joel Neikirk and his team. Whether it be the purchasing of food, packaging or equipment, RSI’s services are invaluable. Beyond purchasing, though, RSI is integral to our success with their high-quality analytics team. RSI is truly a partner we can rely on and be proud of!

Finally, I hope you will join me in taking particular pride in our team from Elevanta. Several of our key leaders were at the convention. If you had the opportunity to visit their booth on the trade show floor, you saw firsthand their competence, professionalism and passion for your

business and the services they provide. Christy Williams and her team are doing exceptional work in very difficult times. I could not be more grateful for all they do.

As we return home from the convention, I hope you have a better sense of the path ahead for the brand. I compliment the BURGER KING® management team for articulating their plan which holds promise for our immediate and long-term future. The renewed cooperative spirit is evident between the management team and franchisees on our various committees, which bodes well for strengthening the brand and improving our overall financial results.

It is clear that there is no one solution nor any immediate initiative that can change our prospects as quickly as any of us would like. The new direction will take time to develop. It must be clear, though, that our path to success will be paved by our consistent capacity to execute all of the basic fundamentals of our business.

As I mentioned in my own remarks on the convention stage, each of us has an obligation to each other to have our restaurants perform at the highest levels possible, so together, this brand can emerge from the present challenge to a reinvigorated brand which both we and our guests deserve.

A couple of sobering and concerning points remain clearly in our path. First, of course, is the challenging economic climate highlighted by an endless trajectory of inflation as a direct result of political decisions made not only in our nation’s capital but in certain state capitals across the country. The danger of continued inflation is not only frightening but pressures and penalizes our businesses. The recent sightings of inflation being at 8% to 9% pale compared to the larger pain that we are feeling in the center of our P&L with rising food/commodity costs, wages and now accelerating increases in utility expense.

Our colleagues in California also will

by DAN FITZPATRICK

soon face another challenge as a result of the recently enacted FAST Act. This legislation can only be considered a threat to the very existence of fast-food restaurants. We must keep a vigilant eye on California’s experience and the potential of this spreading to other states across the country. Secondly, we are in the midst of the mid-term federal elections and elections for governmental control in states. I urge each of you to be as active as possible advocating for candidates who can be counted on to be pro-business and pro-growth in a responsible manner. I think it is our responsibility to lead in our organizations by letting those whom we employ understand that when our business is healthy, we can be a stronger and better employer for them.

Although there are many reasons to be concerned as we look forward, I am hopeful that all of us will find the resolute confidence to believe that better days are indeed ahead. n

W H O S H O U L D A T T E N D ?

F r a n c h i s e e s

A b o v e R e s t a u r a n t L e a d e r s

S y s t e m S u p p l i e r s

FROM THE CEO

Reclaim Your Employees!

This year’s annual BK® Convention focused heavily on the Reclaim the Flame initiative for the BURGER KING® brand. It is an exciting and pivotal time in the history of the brand. As investments into the brand begin, it is important to remember your most important asset and the key to a successful business. Yes, equipment and technology are important as well as clean and remodeled restaurants. However, none of these matter if your restaurants are not fully staffed.

Restauranteurs nationwide continue to grapple with staffing shortages that intensified during the pandemic and haven’t let up since. According to the National Restaurant Association, the industry is still down a shortage of 750,000 jobs or 6.1% of its workforce from pre-pandemic levels. While much focus has been on salary, benefits are increasingly becoming a crucial “stay” factor for employees considering a job change. According to a study by MetLife in 2022, 73% of employees indicate that a stronger employee benefits program would encourage them to stay with their current employer longer. This is where your association, NFA, and Elevanta can help!

We developed the Elevanta health program almost two decades ago. Over the many years of offering the program to restaurant franchisees and employees, we have been able to ascertain many trends and dispel several myths. Let’s start with participation. Most insurance companies have a participation requirement, typically requiring 65% to 70% of your eligible employees enroll, to ensure that a good sampling of your employees enroll in coverage. Plans do not want only those individuals who have regular, ongoing health issues. They want and need a good population to enroll to avoid adverse selection.

Many franchisees believe it is too expensive to offer coverage to all employees or even to a secondary layer of management such as hourly managers and shift leaders. On average, Elevanta sees approximately 30% of “eligible employees” enroll in coverage. Underwriters are looking at

the risk of the population enrolling and develop your premiums on this group. Does it cost more to offer coverage and increase your employer contributions to your secondary layer of management? Not necessarily. In fact, your per employee rates could eventually decrease overall when you cover a larger group of employees, expanding your risk population!

Not all employees are seeking a major medical health plan. Many of your employees are seeking a minimal level program that provides some coverage for basic medical care. In Elevanta’s experience, many employees see the offering of our Minimum Essential Coverage (MEC) plan as a huge employee benefit. With premiums significantly less than a major medical plan, employers find that offering the MEC program with a small employer contribution is the competitive advantage they need to recruit employees and to keep them from going to the competitor across the street. Elevanta has the ONLY MEC program in the nation that utilizes the national BCBS PPO network of providers. This benefit is easy to offer, less expensive than major medical coverage and truly enhances your overall compensation package to employees.

Realistically, most employers are not offering major medical or even MEC programs to entry-level team members. These are the employees most concerned about the hourly wage and whether they can jump to a competitor or even another industry for a dollar or more per hour. What incentives do these employees have to remain working for you? Sure, we all know the advancement opportunities are significant, but these employees are not focused on the future — they are focused on today. Does it cost more than $2.90 per month to retrain and replace your team members? If so, why not provide them with a benefit that costs just $2.90 per month and monitor the impact on turnover at this level?

NFA and Elevanta’s telemedicine program, Teladoc™, is available to all members regardless of whether you participate in our medical insurance program.

by CHRISTY WILLIAMS

Teladoc™ provides enrolled employees along with everyone in their household — yes, their entire household — with no cost access to a medical provider via phone or video conference. Depending on the diagnosis, a prescription may also be provided. This low-cost benefit will not only help with recruitment and retention but can help reduce absenteeism. Many telemedicine programs have additional fees assessed each time you speak with a medical provider. Not NFA/Elevanta’s program! The only fee required is the $2.90 monthly and the cost of any medications that may be prescribed.

There are many other low-cost benefits you can add to help you Reclaim YOUR Employees. Elevanta offers lost-cost vision and dental benefits as well as an extremely attractive and low-cost 401(k) retirement program in partnership with Hall Financial. Our partners at rapid! also offer the latest and highly desirable on-demand wage program. There are many areas of opportunity in any business to improve operations and increase overall profitability. However, no investment will have a significant return if you are not properly staffed. Let’s show the world that BURGER KING is the best QSR and an incredible place to work. Let NFA and Elevanta help you with this important initiative and endeavor. We want to see you all succeed, and we have the tools to help you achieve the most critical part of the plan! n

GPS Hospitality Hosts Another Successful Nationwide Job Fair

GPS Hospitality hosted its annual job fair on Tuesday, Aug. 23, with a goal of securing 2,500 new hires in one day. The nationwide fair took place at nearly 500 GPS restaurants throughout 13 states with immediate openings for 2,000 crew members, including Pizza Hut drivers and 500 managers.

Hiring managers met with potential applicants on-site and conducted interviews from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. No appointment was necessary, and qualified applicants could potentially be hired on the spot.

“Our annual job fair is an opportunity for us to find motivated applicants all across the country,” said GPS Hospitality President, Michael Lippert. “We're looking for leaders and those interested in learning how to develop skills that will benefit them throughout their professional careers. As GPS Hospitality celebrates its 10-year anniversary this year, we are proud to have new talent joining our team as we reach this milestone and look ahead to the next decade.”

GPS Hospitality provides employees with a competitive salary, quality training, flexible hours and ample opportunities for growth.

End of Life Urgent Reminders

Additionally, GPS Hospitality prides itself on its industry-leading bonus plan, which provides rewards and recognition throughout the company. During the first half of 2022, GPS awarded more than $1.3 million merit-based bonus dollars. Since 2018, the company has also instituted annual vacation bonuses for full-time team members and offered “Work Today, Get Paid Tomorrow” via a partnership with Instant Pay. The free program provides employees the opportunity to receive up to 50% of their pay the next day.

“Our goal when we hire new employees is to invest in them above and beyond traditional benefits and compensation,” GPS Vice President of Human Resources, Vickie Volan, said. “We have a well-defined career path that lays out the advancement opportunities within the company.”

"We're also proud to offer our Top Right Leader Partner Plan for our restaurant general managers and district leaders. It's one more way we invest in people who demonstrate our leadership traits and contribute to our long-term success."

The event was a success with 30,000 visits to the company’s job website. Since the annual event’s inception in 2015, the job fair has continued to help recruit potential career employees looking for growth and leadership opportunities and provide them competitive salaries with great benefits.

“The job fair is an amazing opportunity to focus everyone’s attention on hiring for one day,” said GPS Hospitality Director of Communications, Lisa Grier. n

GPS Hospitality recruiter promoting the company at the job fair.

JSC Management Group Gifts Meals to Homeless Shelter

To contribute to Providence Rescue Mission, please visit https://www.providencerescuemission.org/donate.

BURGER KING® franchise JSC Management Group (JSC)

gifted the less fortunate at Providence Rescue Mission (PRM), a homeless shelter in Providence, Rhode Island, something they rarely have: restaurant food.

On July 9, restaurant No. 3406 donated 25 meals, each containing two burgers and a pack of fries, to the homeless shelter. PRM offers refuge for people with nowhere to turn. It provides those in need with comforts such as hot showers, clothing and toiletries and feeds over 7,000 people a month.

PRM Director of Operations, Luis Cardona, knows most of the shelter’s residents do not have the means to eat out. Wanting to

do something special, he reached out to BK® for assistance.

“We just want to bless these people,” Cardona said.

The meals were accepted with great gratitude, and residents at PRM were emotional in response to the generosity.

“These are people who have been rejected from society and their families,” Cardona said. “They were surprised and grateful that someone would do this for them.”

Located down the street from one another, this is not the first time JSC Management has contributed to the shelter’s cause. Upon the restaurant’s grand opening in 2021, it donated $1,000 to PRM. In addition, the franchise donated 60 meals to the PRM’s children’s soccer league.

“This is a regular partnership we have had,” Cardona said. “They have been wonderful to work with, and we know we can always count on them.” n

TraitSet

Recruiting Tools

Providence Rescue Mission Director of Operations, Luis Cardona, holding BK crowns that he gave to the homeless children of the mission.

Guest’s Low Blood Sugar Causes Team Members to Spring Into Action

What started as a slow day at a JSC Management Group-owned BURGER KING® resulted in shift leader Von McGee and restaurant leader Anjelica McMillan saving the life of a customer with a fallen blood sugar.

McMillan was working on paperwork at BK® No. 1798 in Rochester, New York, when she witnessed a woman, a type 1 diabetic, stumble into the restaurant.

“She could not stand still, and her face was white,” McMillan said. “I just knew something wasn’t right.”

The customer then staggered to the counter, ordering a large soda. Frightened, McMillan rushed out of her office to signal McGee to get her the drink immediately. McMillan handed the woman the beverage as she sat the woman down, letting her recover before she paid.

“I was a little reluctant because Angelica told me to get her the drink without her paying,” McGee said. “I knew she needed help.”

Luckily, both employees knew the protocol when handling situations with diabetics. McMillan’s grandmother has type 1 diabetes, and McGee lost his father to the disease.

“If I can help, I will,” McMillan said. “At the end of the day, that customer is someone’s grandmother; someone’s mother. They belong to someone’s family.”

Saving the customer left both crew members happy and relieved. The woman called JSC Management Group to recognize McMillan and McGee for their good deed. They were also recognized on the company’s Paylocity account, a payroll management software.

This situation has helped McMillan realize that it’s the little things that can make a significant impact on another person.

“A little kindness doesn’t hurt anybody,” McGee said. n

Geiger Scores Baseball Fields for People With Special Needs

Inspiration can come from the most unorthodox places. For Geiger Management franchisees, Gary and Jennifer Geiger, it was an episode of “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.”

Gary was lounging in his home on a weekday when a nonprofit organization called Miracle League was featured on the TV show he was watching. Miracle League is an organization that allows children with disabilities to enjoy baseball in a safe, supervised setting. Because of the true love for the sport he developed while playing it throughout his childhood and college, Geiger knew he was called to make a difference.

“Those kids didn’t do anything wrong,” Geiger said. “They were only dealt a bad card.”

What makes Miracle League baseball fields different is the rubberized turf that covers them. They are installed to prevent injuries and make the fields functional for wheelchairs and crutches.

“This is an experience you have to see to get it,” Geiger said. “It is truly unbelievable.”

Passionate about giving back to the community, the Geigers saw Miracle League as a way to do it. They hosted many fundraisers to raise the money to build the facilities, some including the 2008 U.S. softball team, Pete Rose, astronaut Buzz Aldrin and more. With

the addition of personal funds, the pair debuted the first field to the public in Visalia, California, in 2003. They eventually opened a facility for adults in 2008 to offer more people a chance to compete. Combining the Geigers’ two passions, they opened the first Miracle League-themed BURGER KING® in 2017, minutes from the field they built.

Geiger said he will continue to be involved with this organization. The husband-and-wife duo found their calling with the nonprofit and want to share the great life they have built for themselves.

“I only need three things in my life: my family, my BURGER KINGs and Miracle League,” Geiger said. n

Store No. 1798 restaurant leader and shift leader Anjelica McMillan and Von McGee after their heroic act.

One of the Miracle League’s guardian angels helps a competitor run the bases.

BK Franchise Donates Meals to First Responders

In July, 45 meals from BK® No. 2391 were donated to the Canon City Fire Department and Police Department in Canon City, Colorado.

The contributions were delivered by OCEDON’s Area Manager, Lahyded Hernandez, and President of Operations, Mary Schrader. A check for $500 was given to the police department with the funds going toward the department’s youth initiatives, including the Shop with a Cop program.

"We love to help our first responders in our communities and especially programs for youths!” said franchisees Ken and Elena Donahue. “Our first responders are working hard every day to save lives and are so appreciative and excited to eat some hot and delicious BURGER KING® food!” n

Franchisee Elena Donahue presents a $500 check to the Canon City Police Department.

"We love to help our first responders in our communities and especially programs for youths!”

– Ken & Elena Donahue, BURGER KING franchisees

Cheers to Ten Years! QDI’s “Best Team

QDI celebrates 10 years in Florida at the NFL Stadium near Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Ever” Celebrates 10 Years in Florida

The home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers resonated with a different kind of energy on Aug. 16, when some 150 Quality Dining Inc. (QDI) senior restaurant managers, district managers and region managers took the NFL stadium near Florida’s Gulf Coast by storm.

Coaches Dan and CJ Fitzpatrick stuck to the play book: review sales trends, discuss a plan to combat the current business climate and catch an inspirational glimpse into the company’s promising future with the day’s theme: Best Team Ever.

There was more to this meeting than others previously hosted for QDI leadership because it marked a special milestone: Quality Dining’s 10-year anniversary in Florida. Dan and CJ arrived in the Tampa market in 2012 with a 55-restaurant acquisition. In just 10 years, with a robust leadership team by their side, the team doubled the size of the Florida fleet.

“Our team exemplifies hard work and dedication. Our mantra — Love the Guest and Help Each Other — only works when each of us live it every single day,” remarked CJ. “This celebration is an extension and a result of the efforts of everyone on our team, which we have dubbed ‘The Best Team Ever.’”

At the meeting, QDI also recognized dozens of team members who have been with the company since the date of the acquisition in 2012.

“When it comes to our team, the thing I’m most proud of is that they make working at BURGER KING® fun again,” said Dan, who also chairs the National Franchisee Association and the BURGER KING Foundation. “This is why a positive, engaging culture is so important. They feel it, our guests feel it, and it truly makes the restaurant a great place to be.”

Cheers to the next decade in the Sunshine State! n

“Our mantra — Love the Guest and Help Each Other — only works when each of us live it every single day.”

– CJ Fitzpatrick

BURGER KING Employee Achieves Weight Loss Goal After Losing 130 Lbs.

BURGER KING® franchisee, Mark Malenchik, said the most rewarding part of being a franchisee is seeing his BURGER KING family members achieve their goals. Whether it is buying a home, starting a family, getting a new car or, in Patrick Owen’s case, losing weight.

When Owen was interviewing for a position, he believed working in the kitchen would get him moving toward his goal of losing weight. Malenchik was concerned Owen would have issues being on his feet as a closer but gave him a chance, and in the 17 months since being hired, Owen lost 130 lbs., going from 360 lbs. to 230 lbs.

From the start, Owen quickly proved to be an exemplary hourly team member, always on time, always willing to help the team with extra shifts and hours and quickly started shedding his weight. Eventually, Owen turned in his 4XL team member

uniform for an XL team leader uniform. What is Owen’s new goal since losing weight? Gaining 20 lbs. back in muscle. Owen said he wants to be a “beast!” Malenchik said he is expecting big things for Owen’s future and is certain he will reach his next goal.

“I am so very proud that I got to know Patrick and see how determined he was to reach his goal. I was blessed to be in the restaurant closing the night he reached his goal,” said Malenchik. “Watching Patrick for months and being a part of his journey almost brought tears to my eyes when he reached his goal.” n

Congratulations to the Following Employees

Congratulations to Ampler Burgers’ Amelia Hess at BURGER KING® No. 28312 in Mesquite, Texas, for her promotion to general manager!

Congratulations to S & M Restaurant’s Rosie Cervantes at BURGER KING® No. 3731 in Grover Beach, California, for 20 years in the BK® system!

Congratulations to S & M Restaurant’s Marisol Arevalo at BURGER KING® No. 3731 in Grover Beach, California, for 15 years of employment with BK®!

Patrick Owen after his transformational weight loss.

ORC Convenes in Columbus

The Ohio River Coalition (ORC) brought its members to the Columbus Airport Marriott in Columbus, Ohio, on July 25-26, for its annual meeting.

Attendees were updated on issues that affect franchisees through informative sessions. Vendor partners and sponsors were able to display their products and services and network with BURGER KING® franchisees during a trade show.

Vendor partners and sponsors included: Alliance HCM, Atmosphere, Avery Dennison, Budderfly, The Coca-Cola Co., DMI, Ecolab, Efficient Forms, Elevanta Health, Gycor, Kappus Co., Keurig Dr Pepper, Lancer, RTI, Tapcheck and TSP.

The meeting began with a franchisee and vendor reception and dinner. It was a time for attendees to network and meet with vendors during the trade show.

The second day was started by ORC President Andrew Schory with a National Franchisee Association (NFA) board update. The day included presentations from BURGER KING Corp. representatives, Kyle Pagel and John Zurovchak, NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick, Information Technology Council Committee Chair, Russ Lo Bello, Restaurant Services Inc. CEO, Joel Neikirk, Government Relations Council representative, Keith

Egyed and Restaurant Brands International Field Technology Business Partner, Gigi Gordon. Watch ORC communications for information about the next meeting. n

Vendors set up tabletop displays at the Ohio Regional Coalition trade show.

Support the Vendors

That Support Your Association

GRC Meets With Congress Members on Key Issues

TheNational Franchisee Association’s (NFA) Government Relations Committee (GRC) met with industry partners, congressional staff and members of Congress in Washington, D.C., to discuss current legislative issues. Held in July, the three-day meeting focused on labor and tax issues.

Labor: Committee members lobbied in support of labor issues to address the current labor shortage. NFA GRC members asked Congress to support the Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act and the Senior Citizens’ Freedom to Work Act, bills which would eliminate barriers to employment and increase the workforce.

Specifically, the Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act creates a non-immigrant visa program for high-demand/short-supply industries in metropolitan areas facing a critical labor shortage. This bill creates a two-track system in which employers and potential employees are required to receive a permit and targets workers in occupations that do not require a college degree.

Additionally, the Senior Citizens’ Freedom to Work Act would eliminate the retirement earnings test, a penalty for retirees who wish to return to the workforce, which would encourage them to return to the workforce.

The Committee also asked for the support of a proposal to broaden the age limits to qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). Currently, EITC is only available to those without

qualifying children between the ages of 25 and 65. The NFA supports this legislation that will lift many Americans out of poverty by waiving the top age requirements and lowering the qualifying age to 18 – incentivizing these populations to return to work.

Tax: The committee opposed several tax proposals which were successfully removed from the Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed into law this August. The first proposal expanded a Net Income Investment Tax (NIIT) provision to include active income. When the NIIT was enacted, it initially excluded the income of active owners of S corporations and partnerships, but recent proposals to include active income as part of NIIT will raise tax rates on family businesses by 3.8 percentage points, negatively affecting 1 million small- and family-owned businesses across the country.

The GRC also opposed limits to carryback losses, which originated to allow the business to reduce their overall tax liability in years where the businesses lost income. However, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act imposed a $500,000 cap on the active business losses a pass-through owner could use to offset other forms of income, such as wages and investment income.

Recent proposals make these limits permanent and more restrictive, affecting some businesses in ways that they may never recover from their losses, no matter how many years they carry them over.

Combined, these two proposals, which are currently negotiated as part of a budget reconciliation bill, would increase revenues by more than $400 billion over 10 years, shouldered entirely on the backs of small, individually and family-owned businesses.

Among the members of Congress that met with the GRC were Rep. Andy Biggs, Rep. Andrew Garbarino, Rep. Chip Roy, Rep. Lloyd Smucker, Rep. Mike Kelly, Rep. Jimmy Panetta and Rep. Michelle Steel. They attended over a dozen meetings and also met with Acting Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division Administrator, Jessica Loomin, who has since been nominated by President Biden to serve in that position permanently. n

Pictured from left to right: Ed Braddy, Bruce Pavlikowski, Richard Santowski, Dominic Flis, Shirley Humerian and Maruti Seth met at the Capitol.

EMPLOYEE RETENTION AND THE Turning Point

1 As a rule, employee retention rates of 90% or higher are considered good, and a company should aim for a turnover rate of 10% or less.

2 Forty-one percent of workers consider job security as the No. 1 reason to stay with a company.

3 Eighty percent of employees felt more engaged when their work was consistent with the core values and mission of their organization.

4 A good onboarding program leads to 69% of employees staying at least three years.

5 Businesses that are highly engaged could reduce their employee turnover by 59%.

6 Attrition statistics show nearly 3 million Americans quit their jobs every month.

7 It costs an employer an average of 33% of an employee’s yearly salary for their exit.

8 Thirty-one percent of employees have quit their job within the first six months of starting.

9 Close to 35% of workers would consider offers from other companies if they didn’t receive a raise over the next year.

10 Sixteen percent of Gen Z and Millennial employees have quit jobs because they felt the technology provided by their employer was inadequate.

Sources: Seeds Scientific, Apollo Technical and Springworks

Spotlight on the 117th Congress: Rep. Michelle Steel (R-CA-48)

QWhat skills or perspectives from your background do you apply as a public official?

ASmall business has been a part of my family since I came to this country. My mother owned her own business, and my husband operates his own law firm. In both cases, I’ve seen firsthand how hard it is to succeed as a small-business owner when the government imposes burdensome regulations and taxes. When I saw my mother forced to pay taxes that she did not owe, I decided to run for public office to help small businesses. That’s why, from the California Board of Equalization to the Orange County Board of Supervisors, and now in Congress, I’ve been a lifelong tax-fighter and have always worked to lower taxes and relieve unnecessary barriers to business’ success.

QWhat do you see as the current biggest threat to small-business owners?

ASince the pandemic, 40% of businesses in California have not been able to return. A big part of that is out-of-control taxation and regulation. These broken policies, on top of the crippling effects of inflation and our broken supply chains, mean that our small-business owners are facing an uphill battle on all fronts. Small business makes up almost half of our economy. If we can’t get inflation under control so businesses can afford to keep their doors open, fix our supply chains so they can get the supplies they need and empower the men and women who set out to run a business so that they can grow and thrive, the consequences will be far reaching.

QWhat challenges have you helped small businesses in your district overcome?

AThroughout my career in public service, I’ve been proud to advocate for the men and women who have the determination to operate their own business. I’ve consistently supported legislation to empower small business, which is why I’m proud to have received the National Federation of Independent Businesses’ “Guardian of Small Business” Award for my 100% pro-small business voting record. I’ve also introduced legislation of my own, such as the SNOOP Act, which will ensure that all Americans – particularly small-business owners – can go about their business without a distant bureaucrat in Washington, D.C., looking over their shoulder every time they participate in the mobile or digital economy. My office also works with constituents, including

small-business owners, to navigate federal agencies. The federal bureaucracy is massive, slow and confusing, so it’s no surprise that it doesn’t always work well for the American people. That said, by advocating directly for constituents in their interactions with federal bureaucracies, my team and I have been proud to return more than $14 million to residents of my district. Most of that came from the Small Business Association. Making government work better for taxpayers is one of the most important parts of my job, and I’m always glad to do whatever I can.

QIn what ways are you seeking feedback from small businesses in your state/district and using that information in Washington, D.C.?

AI regularly visit businesses in Orange County to hear directly from them about how policies in Washington, D.C., are impacting their operations. From restaurants and retailers to healthcare providers and service professionals, our community is home to a vibrant and entrepreneurial group of business owners who are dedicated to providing jobs, offering the best goods and services around and giving back to their neighbors. Unfortunately, they’re struggling under the weight of inflation, labor shortages and a broken supply chain. I rely on and implement their feedback when I’m working on policies in Congress.

QHow has your role on the Education and Labor and Transportation and Infrastructure committees influenced your opinions on the impact of legislation on small business?

AMy role on these Committees gives me an in-depth look at the challenges facing small businesses. I get to hear from everyone, from economic experts to hardworking business owners, and then I get to work with my colleagues to propose legislative solutions to their problems. One bill I introduced as a product of this process is the Worker Flexibility and Choice Act, which will establish a new work arrangement that combines the flexibility of independent work with certain workplace protections and opportunity for additional benefits. As workers and businesses across the country continue to experience labor shortages and the highest inflation in 40 years, finding ways to promote employment flexibility should be a top priority for Congress. That’s what this bill does, and that’s something I’m committed to doing on behalf of business owners across the country. n

Franchisee to Franchisee Forum

There is no silver bullet to reducing operating costs, but we have taken measures to do so. We have installed energy management panels in all our stores to not only monitor our restaurant’s energy usage but to reduce costs. We have reduced maintenance costs by utilizing an app that allows our stores to take pictures of machinery that needs repairs and sending them to our repair technicians. This allows them to prioritize essential repairs and demonstrate easy fixes. Registering our stores to have free cardboard pickup not only reduces the amount of waste they produce but returns revenue back to our BURGER KING®s. Among many other practices, we try to save money every way we can but not at the expense of the customer experience.

- Kevin Newell

We have found that technology works very well in helping us manage our costs, whether it be food, labor, electric, etc. These days, if you are not using some sort of app or software to control or manage your expenses, you are probably very late to the game. An example would be using smart thermostats to help control your electric bill. Sounds simple enough, but on average, we started seeing savings of roughly $300 per store monthly once installed and utilized with its corresponding app which allowed us to put time and temperature control settings into place. Another example is we started using Xenial’s RTIConnect software tool to help manage our restaurant labor. By using all its functions and features to maximum capabilities, we have seen close to $100 per day per store on average saved on labor in the past six months alone.

– Amir

How do you decrease operating costs without cutting corners?

The ability to cut costs without resultant degradation in guest service and satisfaction is a constantly moving target. The “low-hanging fruit” of cost efficiencies often revolves around labor management for a quick-service restaurant franchisee. The use of labor is often strictly within their control (unlike food costs) and can make or break a restaurant’s profitability.

Within our portfolio of restaurants, we have used our software design team (Valley Tech) to create a very “dialed-in” labor management tool (that works in tandem with our production management solution) to accurately predict labor needs for the subsequent half-hour throughout the day. Unlike many similar tools, we designed this specifically around BURGER KING® restaurant needs, and it looks forward, not backward. By predicting sales via an artificial intelligence model using projections and real-time (minute-to-minute) trends, we offer every manager a front- and back-of-house interactive portal into their upcoming labor needs. Typically, a manager will look at their use of labor after the fact and then try to adjust. This tendency results in improper staffing and a poor guest experience. This often results in a boom/bust cycle of overstaffing (wasted labor) and understaffing (poor guest experience). The overall effect on the restaurant is lower sales and a higher percent of labor.

By staffing appropriately for the restaurant needs, each guest is more likely to have a pleasant experience. We believe strongly in the use of technology to cut costs and create profitability. Our software has allowed us to focus on many ways to accomplish this, but the first stop should be labor management.

- Matt Herridge

Regional Events

Dec. 14

Southern California

Burger King Franchisee Association Regional Meeting

Hilton Pasadena

Pasadena, California

Dec. 14

Southwest Franchisee Association Meeting

Arizona Restaurant Association

Phoenix, Arizona

Dec. 15

Mountain Franchisee Association Meeting

The Capital Grille, Larimer Square

Denver, Colorado

Dec. 21

Northeast Franchisee Association Meeting

Mastoran Coporate Office

Waltham, Massachusetts

National Events

Dec. 5-6

Elevanta Board Meeting

Ritz-Carlton

Atlanta, Georgia

Dec. 7-8

National Franchisee Association Board Meeting

Ritz-Carlton

Atlanta, Georgia

Dec. 7

National Franchisee Association Business Partner Forum

Ritz-Carlton

Atlanta, Georgia

LOOK LISTEN READ

Look, Listen, Read is a quarterly compilation of some of the most highly rated and reviewed apps, podcasts, books, websites and other resources. NFA does not support or endorse the use of these tools, which merely serve as a guide to exploring a new level of knowledge and productivity for your business. 1

Todoist is a task management app that automatically elevates your most important tasks. This way, you close all the most important doors sooner than later and take less time figuring out what to do and when. Todoist is also a great tool for visualizing your team’s productivity levels.

3“The Wealthy Franchisee” pulls concepts from cognitive behavioral therapy, brain science, interviews and Scott Greenberg’s firsthand experience as a franchisee to help readers replicate the mental habits, tactics and financial results of high-performing franchisees. As a franchising consultant, Greenberg has helped franchise owners and franchisees improve their performance.

2

With Noisli, you can create and listen to your own personal sound environment to help you focus on your tasks, reduce stress and relax or simply wind down after a stressful day.

4Franchising specialist Erik Van Horn reveals the secrets he uses as a franchisee, consultant, investor and entrepreneur. Follow “Franchise Secrets Podcast” to learn tactical and practical tools that will help you buy, grow and sell franchises like an expert.

5

In the “Beyond the To-Do List” podcast, productivity experts share how to implement strategies that managers can use for themselves and share with their teams.

6

Paylocity’s all-in-one cloud-based payroll and human resources platform stands out by offering scalable services, hundreds of app integrations and solid customer service availability. Its payroll features aid business owners in paying employees, filing and paying taxes, reimbursing expenses and more. 7

It’s time to ditch the industrial age playbook of leadership. In “Leadership Is Language,” you’ll learn how choosing your words can dramatically improve decision-making and execution on your team.

8

QSR Magazine’s “Fast Forward,” a podcast from the editors of the leading publication for food-service owners and operators, discusses the future of the fast-food restaurant industry. Made for restaurant executives, entrepreneurs and leaders, each episode features an interview with fast-casual founders and visionaries who discuss the ongoing successes and challenges of building a restaurant company from scratch.

9

“The Energy Bus,” an international bestseller by Jon Gordon, takes readers on an enlightening and inspiring ride that reveals 10 secrets for approaching life and work with the kind of positive, forward thinking that leads to true accomplishment at work and at home. n

How To Reduce Risk, Increase Safety and Save Money in Your Kitchen

Noone wants their employees to get injured on the job. And considering the current climate of labor shortages and rising premiums, no one can afford for it to happen, either.

Slips. Falls. Burns.

These types of serious injuries are among the top three long-term workers’ compensation claims in the U.S. And once injured, it takes an average of 30 days for employees to return to work. These costly injuries can often be traced directly to cooking oil.

Personal injuries aren’t the only danger of working with hot, slippery oil. There’s also property liability. In fact, nearly 6,000 restaurant fires are recorded annually in the U.S., with a loss of more than $165 million in fire-related property damage.

These harsh realities of restaurant life can add up to escalating premiums and daily operational inefficiencies.

But it’s not like restaurants can stop using cooking oil, so what’s a franchisee to do?

While risk can never be eliminated, with the right solutions it can be drastically reduced. Taking steps to improve employee safety and lower your fire risk can result in significant insurance premium savings, and it can provide the kind of safe work environment and peace of mind that’s priceless.

Restaurant Technologies offers two solutions, Total Oil Management and AutoMist®, both of which reduce risk in these key areas by simplifying the most dangerous jobs in commercial kitchens.

Create a Safer Kitchen

No surprise here: Kitchen workers, cooks, food handlers and wait staff are

all among the top 50 occupations at risk for burn injuries on the job. After all, disposing of hot oil is an incredibly risky job. According to the Burn Foundation, there are around 12,000 reported burns every year, the highest number of any employment sector.

Add to this the fact that employees typically must lug 35-pound jugs of oil, manually top off filtered oil and clean up hot oil spills, and you’ve got a dangerous recipe for slips and falls.

Total Oil Management automates the entire difficult process of handling cooking oil. Restaurant Technologies installs two oil tanks in the back of the restaurant, one for fresh oil and the other for waste oil. Employees don’t need to lug heavy jugs of oil to top off after filtration. When cooking oil is no longer fresh enough to create the quality fried foods operators and guests expect, the oil is safely changed out and transferred to the waste tank. Now, team members never have to lift large jugs of oil or handle hot oil that could cause burns.

Restaurant Technologies customers have seen significant savings in workers’ compensation premiums.

Be Proactive About Fire Risk

It’s just a fact of restaurant life: Grease builds up in your hoods and flues. If left unchecked, it poses the risk of a serious fire hazard, providing ample fuel for a single errant spark to ignite. Of the nearly 6,000 restaurant fires recorded by the U.S. Fire Administration each year, 61% of them originate with cooking equipment. Notably, 22% of preventable kitchen fires

result from a failure to clean.

Keeping your hoods and flues clean is the single most important step you can take to prevent such a disaster. But traditional third-party hood cleanings are a burden. Shutting down overnight and cleaning up the mess in the morning is as disruptive as it is unpleasant.

When your kitchen is closed, you’re not making money, and when every dollar counts, that’s just not an option.

AutoMist® automated hood and flue cleaning system eliminates the need for third-party hood cleanings by automatically spraying a mixture of non-hazardous detergent and water throughout the day, removing grease that’s present and preventing future buildup – keeping hoods and flues clean and safe all day, every day.

Not only does this prevent revenue loss and reduce mess and downtime, it can also save on insurance premiums, sometimes as much as 10%.

Aaron Sutcliffe, vice president of Bradford-Sutcliffe Insurance and a specialist in programs for franchisees, said, “The big thing [insurance companies] see from these automated systems is decreased risk of fire in the kitchen.”

Taking steps to increase employee safety, prevent grease buildup and lower fire risk isn’t just about saving money – it’s about protecting your investment, helping your employees and preserving your peace of mind.

Restaurant Technologies is a Sapphire partner member of the National Franchisee Association. The company may be reached at 954-612-8086 or www.rti-inc.com.

Meet the NFA Information Technology Council Committee

In each issue of the Flame 2022, the National Franchisee Association (NFA) highlights individuals who have been selected to sit on one of the NFA’s committees. This issue highlights the Information Technology (IT) Council Committee. Read on to learn more about the committee.

Meet the IT Committee Chair: Russ Lo Bello

Title: Committee Chair Company: Phoenix Organization

Number of units: 21

Year entered system: 1983

How did you become involved with the BURGER KING® brand?

It was my first job when I was 15. BURGER KING was the closest restaurant from my house. I used to go in with my cousin to clean the floors for my uncle until I eventually got a BK® job of my own.

What attracted you to the brand?

BURGER KING is a resilient brand. The WHOPPER® is the best sandwich on the block. I love meeting other franchisees, vendors and staff. Many are friends I would even go on to consider family.

What motivated you to become involved with the NFA at this level?

I have been involved with the NFA since its inception. NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick asked me to be the chair of this committee, and I happily agreed knowing that I got what it takes. I want to improve the brand which will ultimately improve our businesses.

What do you see as your role on the IT Council Committee?

I want to speak on behalf of BK franchisees, because franchisees should have a seat at the table and a voice. I want our concerns as BK business owners to be heard.

What would you most like to see accomplished during your time on the committee?

Advancement in our technology,

including our app, kitchen equipment, POS systems, etc. I would like to see customers use new channels in getting their BK experience, whether they are getting food delivered or ordering through the app.

Other IT Committee Members Include:

Henry Delouvrier

Title: Franchisee Company: Broadway Restaurant Group

Shane Jacobs

Title: Franchisee Company: Barnett Management

Members not listed: Darren Hestad

FamilyMatters FamilyMatters

The Drury Father-Son Franchising Duo

Jordan Drury, Dan Drury and Jamie McDoll stand in front of the Midamerica Hotels headquarters in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

In 1973, Dan Drury, 68, president of Drury Restaurants, became a BURGER KING® franchisee. Nearly 50 years ago now, he began a business that grew into 36 restaurants, starting with BK® No. 1094 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

The Drury franchising legacy can be traced back to the formation of the Midamerica Hotel Corp. by Dan’s father, Jim Drury, in 1976. Venturing into the hotel business in 1962, the company owns assets in hotels and fast-food restaurants, such as Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Holiday Inn, Hampton Inn, Auburn Place Hotel, Fairfield Inn and of course, BURGER KING. The business has locations in four states: Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky and Missouri. Dan took the place of Jim as president with his passing in 2008.

by JARED JOHNSEN

Today, Dan’s son, Jordan Drury, 47, manages the quick-service restaurant side of the business alongside Dan as the director of restaurant operations. Jordan gained interest in the business by working in the organization’s many hotels. His earliest memory of BK is riding his bike to visit restaurants with his grandfather.

often as possible. The family consists of Dan and Jordan and his siblings, Justin, 41, and Jamie, 43. They enjoy going out to eat, going to the lake, barbecuing and swimming.

The Drurys hope to take care of their existing entities by polishing their assets, stabilizing profit and developing leaders. They plan to develop high-performing team members and give them the tools they need to succeed.

The Drurys are grateful for what the BK brand has done for their family and plan to maintain it within their company for generations to come.

“It is exciting knowing Jordan will carry on my legacy,” Dan said. “I am a second-generation owner, and that is how I learned. I hope to see him lead the third generation into the fourth.” n

Dan remembers fondly the first time he took his children to a BURGER KING playground.

“I started getting involved in the restaurants when I was 6-8 years old,” Jordan said. “I was a pretty tall kid, and I remember hand-feeding burgers in the old Nieco 960.”

One aspect of BURGER KING that stands out to Dan is the corporation’s focus on two brands: BK and the WHOPPER®.

“The WHOPPER is an icon in itself,” Dan said.

The most profound change Dan has witnessed is the shortage of staff in the restaurants due to COVID-19 and today’s rate of inflation.

“I think fast food is a calling,” Jordan said. “I don’t think the emerging workforce has the passion for this sort of work.”

Despite today’s staffing issues, Dan taught Jordan to treat their company’s employees well. They pride themselves in the staff they have and make great effort to retain them. One notable employee Dan hired about 25 years ago was Joel Neikirk, now the CEO of Restaurant Services Inc. (RSI).

“It’s simple,” Dan said. “Treat others the way you would like to be treated.”

The Drurys value time with one another and try to meet as

Dan Drury with his many grandchildren.

Dan Drury stands beside former employee, Leonard Spicer.

Dan and his brother and sister, John Drury and Diane Drury-Janet.

“I am a second-generation owner and that is how I learned. I hope to see [Jordan] lead the third generation into the fourth.”

– Dan Drury

It All Started With a

WHOPPERIt All Started With a WHOPPER

BURGER KING® introduced the WHOPPER® in 1957 and took the U.S. by storm. Fans were impressed by the large, flame-grilled sandwich had exactly their way. At the time, BK® customers could only purchase burgers, French fries, soft drinks, milkshakes and a few other menu items.

While the WHOPPER is a sandwich that stood the test of time, BURGER KING has had many menu items come and go throughout the years. BK has had items ranging from bacon sundaes to Mac-N-Cheetos — even a WHOPPER served as pizza. While innovation is at the forefront, with competitors revealing new products daily, many BURGER KING franchisees believe that the brand should stick to the essentials.

“These new promotional items take away from the brand’s basics,” said Paul Scordia, owner of Scordia Restaurant Group.

“We need to keep it simple with our flame-broiled burgers and to remember our slogan: ‘Have it your way.’”

Scordia believes that staying true to the WHOPPER while putting a twist on it is beneficial to the brand. BK has released this sandwich in many varieties — some topped with bacon and cheese, with hot sauce baked into the bun and with no meat at all. Scordia said that these promotional WHOPPERs are attractive incentives that should be implemented for a six-week time frame.

“We need to serve quality product, fast and friendly in a clean environment,” Scordia said.

K & J K owner, Kevin Haas, said removing less popular menu items would significantly improve restaurant operations for crew members. He expressed his concern for complex menu items, stating that removing them will make product easier to prepare to proper standard within a reasonable time frame.

“When the customer receives a product and it is hot and fresh all the time, they will come back more often,” Scordia said.

by JARED JOHNSEN

With present-day issues of inflation and staff shortages, retaining crew members is essential to preserving BK’s gold standard. According to a survey from Jobvite, a recruiting platform, 30% of employees quit their jobs within the first 90 days of their start date. A smaller menu and operations foster an environment for incoming employees as it accustoms them efficiently to BK’s standards.

“If you simplify the menu and the process, it gives the employee a better environment to work in,” Scordia said. “Turnover would decrease, and you would have happier employees.”

With many restaurants industry wide understaffed, K & K Foods owner, Sanna Shere, believes that allocating her staff toward the core menu items will relieve her staffing issues with the help of a simplified menu.

“California is an extremely difficult labor market right now,” said Shere. “Anything that could reduce the number of staff I need would be very beneficial.”

Holding limited-time offers to be available for the customer has proven itself wasteful for Scordia. Fried items, Shere mentioned,

Continued on page 28

BETTER TV FOR BURGER KING

Elevate business with free streaming from Atmosphere. Higher customer engagement without the cost of cable.

The Ch’King, served two ways, was discontinued in August.

Menu Simplification

Continued from page 27

rapidly decrease in quality as they sit under a heat lamp.

“We need to think about it this way,” Scordia said. “If you sell six of something per day, you probably have to hold it, which in turn, gets wasted anyways. Are these profitable?”

Efficiency in BURGER KING restaurants does not only involve crew members. Providing a positive experience to the guest also increases speed of service. Scordia has heard complaints from customers expressing their frustration with copious menu items on a small menu board, making it difficult to read. With many options, customers may take longer to place their order, thus, slowing service.

“Providing a quality product starts with great service to the customer,” Haas said.

BK franchisees’ concerns have not come unfruitful. At the annual BURGER KING Convention in early September in Las Vegas, Nevada, BK President of North America, Tom Curtis, announced the “Reclaim the Flame” initiative, a $400 million brand improvement investment to upgrade restaurant technology and remodel and revamp outdated stores. Most importantly, BK plans to put $150 million of that fund into advertising, where the star is going to be the brand’s foundation: the WHOPPER.

“What we really want to do in the short term is reintroduce America’s love affair with the WHOPPER,” Curtis said to CNN Business.

Previously, BK has taken action to relieve restaurant operations and reduce waste. In August, BURGER KING discontinued the Ch’King sandwich. This was in response to franchisee complaints,

stating it was very complicated to prepare. In lieu of the troublesome sandwich, BK released the Royal Crispy chicken sandwich, which has a positive sentiment.

“If we make 25 Ch’King sandwiches a day compared to 25 Royal Crispy sandwiches, it’s a lot quicker and easier to make the Royal Crispy,” Scordia said. “The Ch’King was often rushed, and the last thing we want is to hand sloppy product to the customer.”

Shere suggested additional product could cater to an unreached clientele, with a more humble menu, of course. She feels that there is a lack of healthier menu items.

“Right now, it would complicate operations, but I feel that the addition of a grilled chicken sandwich could attract the right customer,” Shere said.

With movement in place for brand enhancement, BURGER KING is moving in the right direction for growth by remaining true to its core.

“We can’t pretend we’re something that we are not,” Scordia said. “All-in-all, we sell flame-grilled burgers had your way. That is what we’re good at and what we are known for. We are ‘BURGER’ KING!” n

Jared Johnsen is the NFA Communications Specialist. You may reach Johnsen at 678-439-2291.

BURGER KING’s menu shortly after the debut of the WHOPPER.

The bacon sundae that was released for a limited time.

Serving Up Something Fresh: The New Digital Paradigm for Quick-Service Restaurants

Thequick-service restaurant (QSR) world was forever changed by the coronavirus pandemic. Although the majority of brands have found their footing in an environment dictated by entirely new norms of customer experience expectations, it will take time for them to fully adapt and find the best path forward.

As consumer preferences have solidified, it’s become clear that network technology standardization is a prerequisite for success. For companies with multiple restaurants, it can be a challenge to nimbly and consistently roll out new experiences and operational efficiencies without a shared, secure network foundation.

Across the QSR industry, there are a number of factors pushing brands toward network technology standardization. Let’s dive into the main drivers for change:

Mobile and Digital Are King

More customers have adopted digital channels for ordering and tracking their food. While 2020 accelerated the deployment and adoption of mobile apps and online ordering, these channels are now becoming the preferred way consumers are engaging with their favorite restaurant brands, often avoiding or limiting manual interactions in the restaurant.

The Rise of the Drive-Thru

Drive-thru usage has soared in the last two years, a trend that doesn’t appear to be going anywhere. Franchisees have adjusted by adding additional drive-thru lanes and equipping employees with digital and mobile tools for line busting to move guests through drive-thru lines faster, serving more customers per day and minimizing abandonment rates.

Wins Through Gamification and Personalization

Gamification features and loyalty programs can help increase guest wallet share and promotions to drive immediate ordering through time-bound specials are allowing brands to more personally engage customers. Customer data, meanwhile, is being used to feed personalization, from specialized offers served through mobile apps to dynamic menu boards that change based on order history.

Automate, Automate, Automate

There is an ongoing push to automate as many tasks as possible inside a restaurant to increase efficiency and mitigate labor challenges. Automated monitoring of inventory levels, safety protocols and food temperatures are also helping streamline operations. This extends into customer service as well. Some chains have begun experimentation with artificial intelligence (AI) and artificial intelligence assistants in the drive-thru – picture your phone’s virtual assistant taking your order so employees can focus on food prep and other activities.

The Importance of Standardization

Network technology standarization is critical to having the foundation needed to innovate and support new technologies and initiatives. A standardized network foundation across locations allows operators to push out new technologies and updates uniformly faster and with less disruption.

As more orders are driven through mobile and online technologies, a fast and reliable network is key to help ensure transactions are received and processed seamlessly and that new ordering and engagement applications and technology can be deployed consistently.

Standardization also can help with security: Operators can manage and control security policies and patches across the entire restaurant chain through software-defined networking and cloud-based security. Network standardization enables restaurants and their operators to focus on running their business and serving guests, rather than spending time managing the technology.

Lastly, a unified network foundation is the underpinning for robust reporting and analytics. Data not only feeds personalization, it can also inform strategic and operational decision making. Leveraging WiFi analytics to gather foot traffic and car patterns, for example, enables staffing and marketing decisions that drive more traffic to stores and drive-thrus. Automated inventory management and reporting, meanwhile, may shed light on untapped efficiencies and economies of scale.

How to Enable Ongoing Success

Network standardization is important but so is selecting a provider with the expertise and service to provide support in a quickly evolving ecosystem. Picking a technology partner who can scale quickly, serve the entire restaurant footprint and provide advanced solutions that are fully managed so restaurant operators focus on serving customers is critical.

The restaurant industry has been marked by a single constant over the last few years: change. And it’s safe to say that change will continue to be the norm for some time to come. To ensure success, restaurants need to be agile. That means having a brandwide technology foundation that supports scale and speed, as well as a strategic partner capable of innovating alongside the industry. Learn more about how Comcast Business can help: https//enterprisesolutions.comcast.com/rbi.

Comcast Business is a Sapphire partner member of the National Franchisee Association. The company may be reached at 215-439-2524 or enterprisesolutions.comcast.com/rbi.

ANNUAL MEETING Provides Association Updates for Members

BURGER KING® owners and operators from across the world met in Las Vegas for the annual BURGER KING Corp. Convention Sept. 7-9, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center.

During the convention, members of the National Franchisee Association (NFA) gathered for the NFA Annual Meeting on the morning of Sept. 9. NFA Leadership shared presentations about the brand and the association’s work. Members heard reports from the Government Relations Committee, Marketing Council, Image Committee and Restaurant Committee.

NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick welcomed members and noted that the association is in good shape and is headed for more growth. Following Mr. Fitzpatrick, Government Relations Committee Chair, Dominic Flis, provided an update which was followed by a marketing update from Jim Froio, an image update from Todd Schuster and an operations council report from Shane Jacobs. Treasurer Steve Keith reviewed NFA finances, and Glenn Levins delivered the chair’s address on behalf of the Elevanta Board of Directors. To close the annual meeting, NFA Vice Chair Jim Froio and Secretary Matt Herridge honored NFA members who celebrated milestone anniversaries in the BK® system in 2022.

Jim Froio chats with a fellow NFA member before the start of the Annual Meeting.

NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick gives the welcoming address for the NFA Annual Meeting.

Dominic Flis gives an update on behalf of the Government Relations Committee.

Jim Froio updates members on marketing news. An image update was provided by Todd Schuster during the NFA Annual Meeting.

Operations Council Chair Shane Jacobs provided the Operations Council Report.

Steve Keith, NFA Treasurer, updated members on the financials of the association during his treasurer’s report.

Glenn Levins shared updates on the growth of Elevanta.

Matt Herridge announces the 2022 NFA Service Awards.

Jordan Drury accepts the NFA Service Award for 50 Years on behalf of his father, Dan Drury.

Glenn Levins poses for the camera with his NFA Service Award for 25 years in the system.

Baseball hall of famer, Andre Dawson, stops for a photo with NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick during the trade show.

Andre Dawson signs an autograph for BK franchisee Richard Santowski.

Many BK franchisees donated to the NFA PAC and got a chance to meet Baseball Hall of Famer, Andre Dawson.

NFA and Elevanta CEO Christy Williams snaps a photo with Baseball Hall of Famer, Andre Dawson.

The BURGER KING Foundation Is Growing!

The Burger King Foundation has many exciting updates to share. The Foundation recently welcomed a new executive director, Katie Repici, who is joining from United Way and has been in the role since February. Ana Gonzalez, who has been with the brand for over 25 years, remains responsible for accounting and finance and hired Mercedes Garcia as finance analyst to support her as well as supporting the team’s administrative operations. Brooke Kaplan has been with BURGER KING® for over six years and is now overseeing all our in-restaurant fundraising efforts. These efforts include the spring and fall campaigns, Round-Up and Donation Box Program. Frances Hassun Franco, who joined the team in 2021, leads our sponsorship opportunities and events, including Miami Weekend, Jim McLamore Golf Invitational, BURGER KING Convention events and many others. Maria Toscano has been with the Foundation for four years and continues to lead our employee emergency relief program and our global work across EMEA, LAC and APAC. In addition, she is now managing BK® Scholars. As we work on expanding our visibility and impact in our communities, the Foundation recently hired Britni Garcia, coming with many years of non-profit background to work on community engagement, alumni giving and employee payroll giving. Lastly, after almost five years, the foundation is excited for and congratulates Ali Werner who transitioned to BURGER KING’s marketing team.

With all these changes, we hope to be more efficient and be able to raise awareness, funds and provide great customer service to our franchisees. We are here to support you in anything you might need to make fundraising fun and successful in your restaurants. We look forward to continuing this critical work with each of you.

For additional information about our work please visit our website www.burgerkingfoundation.org

With deep gratitude, Burger King Foundation Team

Trying To Be Funny? Watch out!

What is the harm in a little joke? Doesn’t a little teasing help lighten the mood and improve the workplace? While jokes and a little teasing can be a good thing when done properly, unfortunately, it can have serious consequences.

Very early in my career as an employment attorney, I investigated a complaint of alleged harassment by an assistant manager at a restaurant. Both male and female staff agreed that he did his job well overall, jumping in to help when needed, helping with customer issues, etc.

There was also universal agreement he was a constant jokester. Male employees claimed that they could not really remember his jokes, only that they were funny. Female employees? While there was no evidence he ever solicited any of them for sex, the female employees could provide numerous, specific examples of sexual jokes and comments and expressed their displeasure at being the targets of the jokes and teasing. Can you guess the outcome of the investigation?

In 2018, the Harvard Business Review, in an article written

by Stefanie K. Johnson and Juan Madera, reported that more sexual harassment claims are filed in the restaurant industry than in any other. Other studies and news reports confirm that pervasive sexual harassment is not limited to one type of restaurant but crosses all types from fast food and quick service through white tablecloth. Both males and females report experiencing sexual harassment by supervisors, co-workers and customers.

by DOUGLAS H. DUERR

While the #MeToo movement over the last few years has put a spotlight on sexual harassment in the workplace with lurid examples of powerful individuals (almost exclusively men) using their positions to obtain sexual “favors” from women, the most common forms of sexual harassment are verbal. Certainly, instances of sexual harassment in the form of inappropriate touching (including hugs) and demands for sex occur in restaurants. But in

Ms. Johnson’s and Mr. Madera’s study, the most frequent conduct was “told suggestive, sexual stories,” “made offensive remarks,” “made crude sexual remarks,” “made sexist comments” and “attempted to discuss sex.” This study result is consistent with other studies showing that sexual harassment was often in the form of jokes, teasing, comments and other verbal conduct.

Why does the restaurant industry have the highest number of incidents of sexual harassment? Several factors may be at play here, but that does not mean that sexual harassment needs to occur in your restaurant(s). Overall, more managers tend to be males with females more typically in subordinate roles. Furthermore, particularly with the recent increase in the employment of teenagers due to the labor shortage coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees are younger and early career in the labor market. That is, managers and their subordinates are less likely to recognize when conduct that might be acceptable in other contexts crosses into workplace harassment that can result in significant financial liability. This lack of knowledge and experience is amplified by the unfortunate reality that a major source of harassment is customers. Ms. Johnson’s and Mr. Madera’s study concluded that managers were less likely to disapprove of sexually harassing conduct by customers than similar conduct by co-workers.

What does this mean for you? Because the industry generally suffers from workplace harassment, you will need to be extra vigilant if you want to keep it out of your restaurants. You cannot assume that your newly hired manager with years of “industry experience” is likewise experienced with recognizing and preventing sexual harassment.

are. Consider whether to provide them with harassment training tailored to younger persons.

If you follow these suggestions, you are likely to get pushback similar to: “This means we can’t tell jokes anymore!” It would be a sad day if the only jokes were sexual (or racial or agist, etc.). There are plenty of other topics to joke about. If your employees (particularly your supervisors) do not know how to make a workplace a pleasant place without telling jokes of a sexual nature, then you know you need to reevaluate the environment.

Unfortunately, the restaurant industry has a history of subjecting its employees to an environment of harassment, particularly sexual harassment. While that not only means potential legal liability in enforcement actions and lawsuits, it also results in “soft costs” arising from employees who are not as productive as they could be due to their work environment.

Make sure you have policies and procedures in place to prevent such harassment with clear directions on how to bring forward complaints and provide training on what is, and is not, permitted and model that conduct. While this may not eliminate all potential harassment, it will go a long way toward doing so and making your restaurant(s) stand out as a great place to work. n

DOUGLAS H. DUERR is a partner at Elarbee Thompson, a national labor and employment law firm with an industry practice area focused on franchisees. Learn more at www.elarbeethompson.com.

Indeed, like the assistant manager I investigated decades (yes, decades) ago, s/he may likewise think that telling jokes with sexual overtones or content is an appropriate way to lighten the mood or bring positive energy into the environment. Thus, as a first step, you need to make sure you have an updated, written policy on harassment that covers all forms of harassment and provides examples of the conduct that is prohibited. Then, you need to have meaningful and effective training of managers and supervisors regarding how to recognize and prevent harassment and what their responsibilities are. They (and you) need to model the conduct that is expected.

In addition to training managers and supervisors, you need to train employees about what conduct is and is not permitted. Remember, co-workers are a potential source of harassment and need to know what conduct is not permitted. For your teen workers, such training is particularly important as they are even less likely to know what is permitted and what the boundaries

Because the industry generally suffers from workplace harassment, you will need to be extra vigilant if you want to keep it out of your restaurants.

A Spotlight on RSI’s Newest Board Members:

Kevin Fernandez

Ampler Group

RSI Board Term

2022–2024

Represents RSI’s Midwest Region

Richard Santowski

Kolkhorst Food LLC

RSI Board Term

2022-2024

Represents RSI’s South Central Region

Each year, newly elected RSI board members are asked to share what continues to inspire them about their role in one of the world’s leading and most loved restaurant brands, as well as how they will help infuse fresh, on-the-ground perspectives into the future of the business. The RSI team sat down with Kevin Fernandez and Richard Santowski to discuss their personal experiences since being elected and their plans to remain laser focused on the brand’s relentless pursuit of being better.

Kevin Fernandez has held several roles in a 23-year tenure at both Burger King Corp. (BKC) and the Ampler Group franchise, where he serves as president of the rapidly growing, multi-brand organization that operates nearly 180 BK® restaurants in Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and West Virginia.

A BK system veteran, Richard Santowski began his career with the BK system in 1996, when he opened his first restaurant in Fort Worth, Texas. He now owns and operates 13 BK restaurants throughout the state. Read on to learn what they had to say.

RSI: How important is it for you to be an RSI board member, and what was the driving force behind joining the board?

KF: For me, it felt like it was the right time and appropriate next step in my career. When my colleagues and I started Ampler about five years ago, I was very focused on growing the company, and now I am recognizing the importance in growing other areas of the business and what better way to do that than by leveraging my experience to help RSI and other franchisees. And quite candidly, I was excited to gain further insight into how our supply chain works.

RS: Joining the board has been an important goal of mine because I wanted a deeper knowledge into our supply chain function. It has been eye opening to observe how supply shortages and cost changes emanate, as well as to get a peek “behind the curtain.” The supply chain is very intricate, and because of my board role, I now have the knowledge to help my peers further understand what is going on. Also, as of late, with our profitability diminishing, I thought this is a great time to join the board, so I can help drive solutions by collaborating with my peers to identify new avenues to explore while contributing my unique expertise.

RSI: What pre-conceived notion about the supply chain did you have? Now, as a board member, how has that changed or been reinforced?

KF: Before becoming a board member, I never realized the intricacies within our supply chain function. It’s been amazing to witness the role RSI plays in flawlessly orchestrating all the moving pieces and, ultimately, the result of how everything comes together. When you see product or equipment, you don’t realize the sourcing, packaging and delivery that went on behind the scenes to produce the product in front of you, not to mention the additional challenges from the past few years that have this already complex system more taxed and challenged. There are many key decisions happening behind the scenes, and I am excited to play a role in these decisions.

RS: As a member, it is simple to just pay the minimal dues to RSI and then become engrossed in the day-to-day activities of your restaurant, while everything related to the supply chain appears to conduct itself seamlessly. Now, as a board member, I quickly learned this is just a mere illusion, and RSI is running an efficient, tight-knit, hands-on operation behind the scenes. Our supply chain is immensely complex, and every decision can have a grave or great impact on our profitability. For example, the way they navigate minimizing the impact of surplus product from a limited-time offer on member profitability has been nothing short of amazing to witness.

RSI: What would you say are RSI’s greatest strength and opportunity?

KF: The biggest strength RSI has is its people. RSI’s leadership team is comprised of people with many years of experience and who have made countless contributions to the system. Not to mention, Joel [Neikirk] is an incredibly passionate and knowledgeable president and CEO who keeps the members’ profitability at the forefront of his mind.

RS: As a member of the board, I feel that I have a front row seat to the many miracles that are being conducted, and one of the strongest strengths of RSI is their passion to minimize risk and hang on to as much of the members’ profitability as possible. Our vendors are experiencing the same financial burdens that many of us franchisees are, and we have a responsibility to be sensitive to their needs and

current situation as well. It’s also important to make sure that our valuable vendors stay afloat during this time and maintain a sustainable business just like us.

RSI: What mark do you hope to make as a member of the RSI Board of Directors?

RSI’s board election process takes place during the months of January and February each year.

RSI NewsBriefs are issued well in advance to help members stay connected and learn how they can participate in the election process.

KF: With a strong background in finance and a long history with the brand, my hope is to leverage these as unique and fresh perspectives on the board, when and where applicable. When my term is complete, I hope to look back and know that I provided value to certain areas that produced positive outcomes for all members.

RS: To be the greatest board member ever! I want to provide valuable insight and leadership that will help the system as a whole. My objective is to think past my restaurants and to think outside of just my company, to look at situations with unbiased perspective and to help make decisions for the good of the broader system and to, ultimately, make the brand stronger. What works for the majority of the system may not be good for my company.

RSI: What advice would you share with another RSI member who is thinking about running for the board?

KF: I recommend that you strongly consider joining the board. If you have the time, commitment and ability, joining the board is a great way to learn more about the challenges the brand is facing and a great way to take on a leadership position among your peers.

RS: It is such a privilege to be a member of the board, and I highly recommend joining the board to understand how to better operate your business, gain further insight into how our procurement works and to provide value to fellow franchisees and to the business. For a seamless transition into the board, make sure to be fully engaged and on top of everything as it is happening.

RSI: What have you learned so far?

KF: As a franchisee and RSI board member, I know that RSI is working tirelessly to get the best price on everything from equipment and food to packaging and so much more. It’s incredible to see some of the things RSI accomplishes, and it’s been amazing to gain a deeper understanding of how everything works behind the scenes. To see how the operation works so seamlessly is amazing, especially when most franchisees don’t have any idea how close the system comes to having really big challenges and how hard RSI works to meet them.

RS: The question may be better phrased as “What have I not learned so far?” RSI is very intentional to keep the profitability of its members at the forefront of all decisions, and one thing I have most certainly learned is that we [franchisees] would be in a world of hurt if we did not have RSI working behind the scenes to plan, source and ensure supply at best cost. n

The Experience of Great Customer Service

The term “customer service” evokes different images in people’s minds. One image could be that of friendly, smiling, helpful employees who go out of their way to serve you. Or it could be the opposite — indifferent, unfriendly employees who can’t wait for you to leave or hang up the phone.

Most people can recall many examples of poor customer service. Whether it’s the help desk employee that puts you on hold for 20 minutes or the store cashier who engages in a personal conversation with a co-worker instead of ringing up your purchase, poor customer service can make people feel frustrated and vow never to do business with that company again. You can probably think of several examples of poor or mediocre service you’ve received in just the last few days.

In this article, I focus on some key elements of excellent customer service and more importantly, how to provide excellent customer service. I should first make very clear that customer service isn’t about a department that deals with customer issues or complaints. What I’m talking about is the entire experience a customer has when dealing with your organization.

Defining Great Customer Service

Because it’s relatively rare, great service feels like a gift. You feel welcomed and that the organization cares about you as a customer.

You feel valued rather than merely tolerated. The company’s processes are designed for the customer’s convenience, not the organization’s convenience, and the processes feel seamless. If there’s a problem, the company takes ownership and goes out of its way to correct the issue.

Why Is Excellent Customer Service Important?

by DENNIS SNOW

Receiving great customer service makes us want to continue to do business with an organization over the long haul. And that alone is the secret to business success — retaining customers by providing great customer service.

With so much competition out there, customer loyalty is the single most important attribute your business can have. You achieve loyalty by doing the “little things” that make customers want to deal with you again and again and recommend you to their friends.

The real difference is how a business makes their customers feel. If customers feel valued, most will remain loyal. If they feel undervalued, sooner or later they will defect to a competitor.

Many studies from organizations such as TARP, American Express and others have shown that one of the top reasons

customers leave is poor customer service. Other studies have noted how customers define poor service: “An attitude of indifference on the part of employees.” So, while poor customer service certainly causes customers to leave, indifferent service can be almost as detrimental.

With customers citing poor customer service as a reason for leaving, what can your company do to achieve customer loyalty?

Assuming your products and prices are competitive, you need to focus on providing excellent customer service to gain loyalty. To do that, here are four simple principles to help you make sure your customers remain loyal to your organization.

How to Deliver Great Customer Service and Create Loyal Customers

1. Look At Everything Through The “Lens of The Customer”

Because customers have their choice of where to obtain goods or services, the business must convince the customer that it truly cares. Engaged, caring employees or customer service professionals raise the customer’s confidence that the business is looking out for the customer’s interests. When that employee suggests a new product or service, the customer trusts that his or her best interest is at heart. On the flip side, if the customer senses a lack of caring, he/she will question the motives behind any recommendations.

A good example of seeing through the lens of the customer relates to the use of industry jargon. Every business has its jargon, acronyms, etc. It allows employees to communicate with each other in a kind of shorthand. But it’s important to remember that customers typically don’t understand that jargon and find it confusing and intimidating when it’s used in communication.

Successful businesses speak the language of the customer, not the language of their own industry. In other words, they look through the lens of the customer when choosing their words.

Take, for example, the banking industry. Would a young couple buying their first house be looking through the same lens as a customer who buys and sells real estate for a living?

Of course not. That young couple purchasing their first house is excited and nervous — that’s the lens through which they are experiencing this purchase. Therefore, they need a loan officer who is excited for them, who explains the terms in everyday language and who provides information that will make their buying experience easier. A bank that shows that level of care is likely to earn that young couple’s ongoing business.

One of the reasons we tend to look through our own lens rather than the customer’s is that the longer we do what we do, we start to think that customers know what we know. But they don’t always know what we know.

Those processes and procedures that you and your team might deal with every day, your customers don’t. That’s why so many times when there’s a customer problem, and we analyze it later, we’ll say it was a communication issue. And the issue is that we assumed that the customer knew how this process or procedure works, and the customer did NOT know how it works, and our relationship with that customer suffered because of that assumption.

When designing customer processes or delivering service through those processes, it’s important to keep this question in mind: “Am I seeing this experience through the customer’s lens?”

2. Pay Attention to the Details Because “Everything Speaks”

Imagine visiting a fine dining restaurant for a special occasion. You’ve been looking forward to the meal, and you’ve heard good things about the restaurant.

Then imagine noticing something crusty dried on your silverware and old lipstick marks on your water glass. Wouldn’t you begin worrying about the cleanliness and quality of everything else in the restaurant? Everything speaks!

Now imagine a customer entering your place of business. She notices trash in the parking lot. When she enters the reception area, she sees delivery boxes stacked by the receptionist’s desk. She sees employees standing around eating and having personal conversations. All of this detracts from your business’s image. Consciously or unconsciously, the customer’s antennae go up and makes them question, “Do I really want to spend my money here?”

When it comes to delivering great customer service, the “everything speaks” philosophy means that all employees understand that even the little things count. Pay attention to everything, including whether the physical environment is neat and clean, whether all necessary supplies are available, whether the employees are dressed appropriately, etc.

Anything that sticks out as “wrong” becomes an intrusion on the customer experience. These intrusions add up and result in customer concern. On the other hand, when customers sense an atmosphere of professionalism, care and order, they feel a sense of confidence.

How many times have you seen employees in a business walk right by trash on the floor or a display that has been bumped out of alignment? Employees who understand that everything speaks will take a moment to pick up some wadded paper and straighten the display because they know that such behaviors have a direct impact on the customer experience.

Attitudinal Everything Speaks

This principle doesn’t just apply to the physical environment. There’s also what I call “attitudinal everything speaks.”

We’ve all dealt with a customer service rep who we could tell didn’t really want to help us. We could tell by the tone of voice that he or she would much rather be doing something else.

On the other hand, we’ve dealt with service providers who appear through their demeanor that they are delighted to see us or hear from us and are anxious to serve us. That’s what I mean by “attitudinal everything speaks.”

Take a moment to think about your company’s physical and attitudinal service environment. Since everything speaks, what are the details saying about your organization?

3. Create Customer “Wows”

Small

gestures can create customer wows.

Consider the housekeepers working in the hotels at Walt Disney World. Housekeepers have a tough job. Cleaning up after people on vacation is a challenge. Even in such a challenging job, Disney’s housekeepers will do little things that make guests say, “Wow.”

For example, while spending a day in the Magic Kingdom, children will often leave their stuffed Disney characters in their hotel rooms. Housekeepers have been known to position the characters with playing cards in their hands or tuck the characters into the children’s bed to create a moment of magic.

Employees can do many things to create wows. Remembering a Continued on page 40

Customer Service

Continued from page 39

customer’s name is a huge wow, creating a feeling of family. Letting a customer know that another product may better meet their needs is another wow. Sending a goody basket with a handwritten note to that young couple who just took out their first mortgage is a wow.

Some wows are small and some are large, but make no mistake about it — wows add up.

One of the most powerful ways to make creating wows a part of your organization’s culture is to share best practices with fellow employees. Hold a company meeting so employees can share things that they have done that dazzled customers. Just talking about these behaviors increases the likelihood that others will adopt some of the practices or create new ones of their own.

Imagine everyone on your team performing with this mindset: “Will my behaviors make this customer say or think, ‘wow’?”

4. Know What Frustrates Customers – And Do Something About It

“Why does this have to be so difficult?!?”

How many times have you had that thought as you navigated through some company’s confusing, maddening process? My guess is you could rattle off several experiences without batting an eye. I know I can. Sometimes it’s all you can do to keep from screaming.

Recently I was helping my mom close an account with a large online bank. She hadn’t used this account in years, and the balance was just $94. Well, it might as well have been $94,000 with all the hoops we had to jump through just to close the account. It reached a point where I just wanted to tell the customer service rep, “Just keep the $94.” (Maybe that was their strategy all along.)

I realize that this frustrating experience was not the customer service rep’s fault. She was simply following the process the bank has in place for closing an account. And maybe there are good reasons for the hoops we had to jump through.

But it doesn’t matter. To the customer, it’s a clunky process that will likely keep me or my mom from ever working with that bank again.

Frustrating processes are everywhere:

• The appliance repair company that tells you a technician will be at your house sometime between 8:30 a.m. and noon. From the customer’s perspective, whose convenience are they concerned with?

• The doctor’s office waiting room where you sit waiting well beyond your appointment time, with no one providing updates of when you’ll be seen. (Keep in mind they knew you were coming — you had an appointment!) Whose time do they really value?

• The company phone tree with a mind-boggling number of options, making it nearly impossible to get to a live human to help. How much value do they really place on taking care of their customers?

Keep in mind that most of the organizations guilty of causing these frustrations know that they exist. They just don’t do anything about them.

And while it’s maddening for the customer, it’s likely even more maddening for the company’s front-line employees. They’re the ones who deal with these frustrated customers every day. And human nature being what it is, employees learn quickly to put an emotional barrier between themselves and the frustrated customer because they know they can’t win. They just want to end the interaction as quickly as possible.

A wonderful way to delight your customers AND your employees is to do something about those frustrations. When you do that, you become a beacon of light in a frustrating customer service world. Consider the following examples:

Good Customer Service Examples

• The doctor’s office that has an electronic board on the wall that shows where you are in the queue of people waiting to be seen, thus managing your expectations.

• FastPass at Walt Disney World (pre-COVID-19) allowed guests to make reservations for popular attractions, dramatically reducing wait times. I also think it was a stroke of genius that for the newer attractions, the queue is designed to be a part of the attraction’s story.

• The electric utility that texts customers with regular updates during a power outage.

Each of these organizations has identified a customer frustration and done something about it. Customers appreciate the organization’s efforts, and employees do too. It’s a great way to build customer and employee loyalty.

What are some of the things that frustrate your customers, and what can you do about them?

The Payoff – What Is Customer Service to You?

Building a culture of customer service excellence takes commitment from everyone on the team. It’s not something that happens overnight or can be put on automatic pilot. It takes constant focus and nurturing.

The hard work does pay off, however. Consider the following statistics:

• Sixty-nine percent of customers say they’ll spend more with a company that has good customer service. (American Express)

• Customers are 64% more likely to try a company’s new offering if they think the company has very good customer service. (Qualtrics)

• Increasing customer retention rates by 5% increases profits anywhere from 25% to 95%. (Bain and Company)

Take Action Now

Excellent customer service is not about policy manuals. Excellent service is about excellent behaviors.

When employees focus on excellent service, the results can be magical. Customers are happy, employees are happy and shareholders are happy. Everyone wins.

The key is to make service excellence a habit. Encourage every employee to internalize the principles described in this article, so they become habits. When employees focus on these principles, your company will achieve the most powerful result of all — intense customer loyalty. n

DENNIS SNOW is the president of Snow & Associates Inc. Dennis worked with The Walt Disney Co. for 20 years and now consults with organizations around the world, helping them achieve their customer service goals. He is the author of “Unleashing Excellence: The Complete Guide to Ultimate Customer Service” and “Lessons From the Mouse: A Guide for Applying Disney World’s Secrets of Success to Your Organization, Your Career, and Your Life.” You can reach Snow at 407-294-1855 or visit his website at www.snowassociates.com.

Elevate Your Space

Elevate Your Space

Transforming the Dining Experience

Happy customers are the ultimate indicator of a successful restaurant. And while nothing can replace the bliss of diving into a delicious WHOPPER®, customers need something to entertain them while they’re waiting for their order or enjoying their meal. It’s true! Surveys show two trends that stand out for how today’s guests decide where to take their business: convenience and digital experiences. Here’s what that means for the nextgeneration of dining experiences.

Transforming the Dining Experience

Happy customers are the ultimate indicator of a successful restaurant. And while nothing can replace the bliss of diving into a delicious WHOPPER®, customers need something to entertain them while they’re waiting for their order or enjoying their meal It’s true! Surveys show two trends that stand out for how today’s guests decide where to take their business: convenience and digital experiences. Here’s what that means for the nextgeneration of dining experiences.

Successful Restaurants Go Digital.

channels, specifically designed to build a deeper connection with customers. BURGER KING owners can now play curated content that’s customized to each franchise’s unique needs.

channels, specifically designed to build a deeper connection with customers. BURGER KING owners can now play curated content that’s customized to each franchise’s unique needs.

We have created a new class of T V programming that redefines the standard for out-of-home video and is built to keep your customers engaged while they wait for their order and enjoy their meal. Choose from 60 plus family-friendly channels, constantly updated with fresh content to keep customers coming back for more.

We have created a new class of T V programming that redefines the standard for out-of-home video and is built to keep your customers engaged while they wait for their order and enjoy their meal. Choose from 60 plus family-friendly channels, constantly updated with fresh content to keep customers coming back for more.

Today, the standard for serving guests increasingly includes digital experiences. Whether for safety measures or simply an easier transaction, customers now expect that businesses offer the convenience they’re used to online — at all times.

Successful Restaurants Go Digital.

Today, the standard for serving guests increasingly includes digital experiences. Whether for safety measures or simply an easier transaction, customers now expect that businesses offer the convenience they’re used to online — at all times.

This past year has brought significant strides in digitizing the food industry’s customer journey, from ordering to payment and delivery options. Now, half of all consumers say they plan to dine out more frequently in the next six months, driving up demand. The venues that stand out to them will be those that create a memorable environment, supported by digital interactions.

This past year has brought significant strides in digitizing the food industry’s customer journey, from ordering to payment and delivery options. Now, half of all consumers say they plan to dine out more frequently in the next six months, driving up demand. The venues that stand out to them will be those that create a memorable environment, supported by digital interactions.

It’s All About Convenience.

Or better yet, check out the custom Burger King TV channel, available exclusively to franchisees. This channel gives customers access to BURGER KING-branded content that they can’t get anywhere else — a custom blend of our most engaging channels seamlessly integrated with the BURGER KING brand. It’s the perfect way to build recognition while playing programming that leaves customers feeling happy and satisfied.

Or better yet, check out the custom Burger King TV channel, available exclusively to franchisees. This channel gives customers access to BURGER KING-branded content that they can’t get anywhere else — a custom blend of our most engaging channels seamlessly integrated with the BURGER KING brand. It’s the perfect way to build recognition while playing programming that leaves customers feeling happy and satisfied.

Businesses can also use Atmosphere to run their own marketing promotions, limited-time offers and in-house ads with our Digital Signage feature. Create compelling visuals for your business by selecting from over 100 customizable templates or simply uploading your own assets. The platform is free, easy to use and easy to update as offers change.

Businesses can also use Atmosphere to run their own marketing promotions, limited-time offers and in-house ads with our Digital Signage feature. Create compelling visuals for your business by selecting from over 100 customizable templates or simply uploading your own assets. The platform is free, easy to use and easy to update as offers change.

Your Bottom Line.

It’s All About Convenience.

Sixty-two percent of consumers say that the top reason they decide on a restaurant is convenience. Though the ability to order and pay anywhere has elevated off-premises options like delivery and takeout, it has also transformed what guests expect from a restaurant’s physical space.

Sixty-two percent of consumers say that the top reason they decide on a restaurant is convenience. Though the ability to order and pay anywhere has elevated off-premises options like delivery and takeout, it has also transformed what guests expect from a restaurant’s physical space.

Surveys show that today’s guests expect their in-person dining experiences to include easy ordering, direct communication on a venue’s health and safety practices and personalized offers.

Surveys show that today’s guests expect their in-person dining experiences to include easy ordering, direct communication on a venue’s health and safety practices and personalized offers.

Venues now have an opportunity to build deeper relationships with their customers by bringing the convenience and personalization of an online experience to their physical spaces.

Venues now have an opportunity to build deeper relationships with their customers by bringing the convenience and personalization of an online experience to their physical spaces.

The Secret Sauce for BU URGER KING® Digital Experiences? Atmosphere.

The Secret Sauce for BURGER KING® Digital Experiences? Atmosphere.

Introducing Atmosphere, the world’s No. 1 streaming TV service for businesses Atmosphere offers ultra-engaging, audio-optional TV

Introducing Atmosphere, the world’s No. 1 streaming TV service for businesses Atmosphere offers ultra-engaging, audio-optional TV

Unlike cable, Atmosphere makes a real difference on sales. Consider these growth data points t hat o ccur across Atmosphere’s thousands of restaurants and venues:

Your Bottom Line.

Unlike cable, Atmosphere makes a real difference on sales. Consider these growth data points t hat o ccur across Atmosphere’s thousands of restaurants and venues:

• 14% increase in new business

• 19% increase in repeat guests

• 14% increase in new business

It’s an undeniable impact. And it’s free for all BURGER KING locations!

• 19% increase in repeat guests

It’s an undeniable impact. And it’s free for all BURGER KING locations!

As so many businesses are in the midst of re-evaluating how they deliver a memorable experience to their customers, it’s crucial that digital content be incorporated as a way to transform the dining experience.

As so many businesses are in the midst of re-evaluating how they deliver a memorable experience to their customers, it’s crucial that digital content be incorporated as a way to transform the dining experience.

Want to learn more? Visit www.atmosphere.tv

Want to learn more? Visit www.atmosphere.tv

Atmosphere is a Sapphire partner member of the National Franchisee Association. The company may be reached at 512-572-9741 and https://www.atmosphere.tv/.

Seeing the Big Picture in Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans During Economic

Downturns

There is never a shortage of challenges facing franchise owners. But during times of soaring inflation, a weakening dollar and worker shortages, these challenges are compounded exponentially. Only a few years ago, “Now Hiring, Starting at $15 an Hour” signs on restaurants, and grocery and retail stores would have been unthinkable. Today they’re unavoidable. Employers a nd employees bot h are feeling the pinch of volatile economic times. Employers offer more perks and higher wages to lure and retain employees. Employees a re faced with exorbitant rents, as well as rising transportation and food costs.

An employer-sponsored retirement plan has long been a key benefit that potential employees look for when job searching. However, planning for the future can seem less important when the present is so daunting. Employees often forgo their 401K contributions in favor of larger paychecks. Unfortunately, this is counterintuitive to solid retirement planning. Investing in downtimes is a very important component of a long-term financial plan. Hall Financial Advisors has developed an innovative new approach to retirement planning. To employees, it offers a robust plan that costs less and gives them more investment power. To employers, it provides an easier way to offer a very appealing benefit at a lower cost of entry while alleviating fiduciary liability.

Brennan McKean Retirement Plan Associate Hall Financial Advisors

Brennan is a financial professional whose passion for retirement planning was born from his love of his family and community. He believes that smart retirement planning is personally empowering and is essential for quality of life, peace of mind, and a secure future.

Hall Financial Advisors is redefining how employer-sponsored retirement plans are managed resulting in an absolute gamechanger for franchise owners and their employees. Franchise ownership comes with a litany of human resource obligations that often have little to do with direct management of the franchise itself and can be very costly in terms of money and time. Among those obligations that can potentially sidetrack franchise owners and managers, the biggest is employer-sponsored retirement plans. For many of these plans, the U.S. Department of Labor requires that human resources directors, boards of directors and other entities actively manage them. Business owners and plan administrators are also, in many cases, personally liable under federal law for mismanagement or negligence of these plans a fact of which some franchise owners are not even aware.

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), established in 1974, applies to nearly all private employers. ERISA mandates very stringent standards for retirement plans, welfare benefits like life and health insurance, and disability insurance. The Employee Benefits Security Administration, under the U.S Department of Labor, controls ERISA. Although private employers are not required to offer benefits, those who do are required to follow the mandates established under ERISA. Administrators of employee retirement plans are responsible for detailed, transparent reporting to the Department of Labor and must also regularly provide plan information to participating employees.

What Is a Fiduciary and Why Does It Matter?

Fiduciaries are required to act in the best interest of their clients. Financial advisors who are not registered as fiduciaries can make decisions that benefit themselves more than their clients, such as choosing investments that offer higher commissions. Every financial advisor at Hall Financial is a fiduciary, meaning they must always act in their clients’ best interests, are personally liable if they don’t and are independent from obligations that could create conflicts of interest. The role of a fiduciary is not passive. Fiduciaries are legally required to actively manage retirement plans and must act prudently to diversify investments within the plans to minimize the risk of large losses of beneficiaries and participants. There are three different types of 401(k) fiduciaries, each with their own unique responsibilities and levels of personal liability.

• 3(16) Fiduciary

Distribution of financial forms, vesting schedules and notices of eligibility and ensuring the plan stays in compliance with ERISA are the main responsibilities of a 3(16). Liability remains with plan sponsors.

• 3(21) Fiduciary

Consultants and investment advisors are usually included with a 3(21). Advising plan sponsors on plan investments and helping make informed decisions for a plan’s investments. Liability remains with plan sponsors.

• 3(38) Fiduciary

These fiduciaries take full responsibility and discretion over a plan’s investments, including making investment decisions and selections. Importantly, a 3(38) assumes nearly all liability for plan investments.

Why 401(k) Plans Are More Expensive Than You Might Think

A 401(k) plan can be a very expensive and complex savings vehicle for employees. Costs of the plans that are “baked in” include record-keeping fees, third-party administration fees, expense ratios for fund management and advisor fees that, together, can add up to 4%. The result is often a cost of several hundred dollars or more annually that employees might not even know they’re paying.

Replacing Aggravation

With Aggregation

Developed in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic when regularly scheduled face-to-face time with clients was greatly reduced, the financial advisors used the time to do a deep-dive and navigate the complexities of ERISA. What they arrived at after months of untangling the meanings of obscure laws was a new model for negotiating costs and implementing employer-sponsored 401(k) plans. The model has been so enthusiastically embraced by franchisees and other business owners that Hall Financial now has a dedicated, full-time employer-sponsored 401(k) plan specialist.

The Power to Pay Less

The aggregate model Hall Financial has developed is a form of a Multiple Employer Aggregation Program (MEAP). MEAPs leverage pooled investment funds for greater leveraging power to significantly reduce fund administration costs. Similar to how “big box” stores leverage volume for greater buying power, the aggregate model that Hall Financial implemented results in greater negotiating power on behalf of its clients. Start-up 401(k) plans that would typically pay fees of up to 4% now have the negotiating power of Fortune 500 companies. A reduction in plan fees from 3% or 4% to as low as 0.2% is common. When you consider that each 1% savings translates into approximately 13 additional years of retirement income, that savings is astounding.

The Transfer of Fiduciary Liability

Navigating the complexities of employer-sponsored retirement plans has become increasingly more difficult and time-consuming as laws and guidelines change frequently. Unfortunately, ignorance is not a defense of the law nor does it diminish the personal liability franchise owners bear in managing these plans. Importantly, there is no statute of limitations on fiduciary liability. Under the management of Hall Financial Advisors, personal liability is transferred from the sponsor or administrator to Hall Financial. For many franchise owners, who must face a myriad of liability issues with employees and clients, this benefit alone is well-worth the price of entry. Drastically reducing the likelihood of financial ruin through personal liability and the stress it alleviates can’t be measured only in dollars.

The Value of a Team Approach of Experienced Financial Advisors

No retirement plan should be passively managed with a “set-it and forget-it” mentality. The collective experience that Hall Financial Advisors have guides them in anticipating changes in the economic landscape and being proactive in setting goals and making decisions. Every client benefits from an overall team approach of financial advisors who seek to build life-long investment relationships with their clients.

Conclusion

An apples-to-apples comparison of the aggregate model to a traditional 401(k) management is less profitable for Hall Financial Advisors, but the firm believes it is the future of employer-sponsored retirement planning. The advantages are fee reduction percentages that have a powerful affect on retirement income for employees, the transfer of fiduciary liability from the employer and a team of investment partners that will see you through.

The Actions of Leadership: Meet Situations as They Arise

There are some really exciting moments as a business leader.

You’re standing on the platform giving the keynote speech at a big all-company conference. The audience is sitting on the edge of their seats. You announce a major new strategic direction for the organization, and the crowd goes crazy.

Or …

You’re sitting at the boardroom table at company headquarters. You announce to the team that the organization has just broken the all-time sales record.

Those moments make up about .05% of your life as a business leader. Most of the time you are dealing with situations as they pop up.

One Moment at a Time

Most situations that pop up during the day cannot be anticipated:

• A long-term supplier unexpectedly goes out of business.

• A great client demands dramatically lower prices.

• A star employee demands a huge pay increase.

• A prospective new client wants to meet with you as soon as possible while you’re traveling to a big family event.

• An employee does something that creates an irate client. We could go on and on.

You can’t prepare for a moment that you don’t know is about to happen. However, you must meet the situation head on. If you wait until you’ve had time to practice for it, the moment will be gone.

What do you do?

Think of principles and protocols.

Principles

Principles are your code of conduct. It’s incredibly important that you clearly define your code of conduct before challenging situations pop up. Otherwise, you could spin your wheels for a long time before deciding what to do. In most situations you don’t have an unlimited amount of time to decide and move into action.

by DAN COUGHLIN

A great example of principles is what happened in the NBA about three years ago. Daryl Morey, then the general manager of the Houston Rockets, texted: “Fight for freedom. Stand for Hong Kong.” The Chinese Basketball Association was furious and removed the Houston Rockets games from Chinese television.

And then something remarkable happened …

Adam Silver, the commissioner of the NBA, supported Daryl Morey’s right to freedom of speech. He didn’t punish Morey. A new situation arose, and Silver depended on his code of conduct to develop a response. He said, “The NBA will not put itself in a position of regulating what players, employees and team owners say or will not say on these issues. We simply could not operate that way.”

Chinese State Television then made a statement strongly disagreeing with the league’s stance on Morey’s comments:

“We’ve noted that Adam Silver, the commissioner of the NBA who has been attending events in Japan, has responded to the inappropriate comment on Hong Kong made by the general manager of the Houston Rockets, Daryl Morey. We voice our strong dissatisfaction and opposition to Adam Silver offering as

an excuse the right to freedom of expression. We believe that no comments challenging national sovereignty and social stability fall within the scope of freedom of expressions. In light of this, China Media Group sports channel has decided to immediately suspend the current plans to relay broadcast the NBA pre-season (China games) and will immediately undertake a full check of all cooperative exchanges involving the NBA.”

Even in the face of a potential massive loss of revenue, Adam Silver stuck to his code of conduct. He said, “I understand that there are consequences from that exercise of freedom of speech, and we will have to live with those consequences.” Silver went so far as to say the league isn’t apologizing for Morey’s freedom of expression but instead “regrets that so many people are upset.”

Write down the code of conduct that you will follow in any situation. And then stick to your code of conduct no matter what situation arises.

Protocols

A protocol is a set of step-by-step guidelines that you can use in a variety of situations.

I encourage you to develop your protocol for different situations like a media crisis, an operations crisis, an employee crisis, etc.

I used to work a great deal with companies in the restaurant industry. One day there was a mad cow disease report in the newspaper. The executives I worked with scrambled to deal with the situation.

The next day one leader asked, “What is our mad cow protocol going to be from now on?” The team worked for several days to put

in place a set of step-by-step guidelines that they could pull out in a moment’s notice. Then they communicated the new protocol to all the relevant individuals.

A few years later another report popped up in the newspaper. The team followed the protocol immediately and resolved all concerns very quickly.

What protocols can you put in place and communicate on how to deal with various situations?

Conclusion

You can’t possibly know every situation that is going to be thrown at you over the course of a year’s time. What you can do is to clarify your principles and your protocols. That will allow you to be ready for much of the unknown. If you still face a situation in which you don’t know what to do, it will help you to further clarify and strengthen your principles and protocols for future situations. n

Since 1998, DAN COUGHLIN has worked with serious-minded leaders and executives to consistently deliver excellence. He provides executive coaching, leadership and executive development group coaching programs and seminars to improve leadership and management performance. His topics are personal effectiveness, interpersonal effectiveness, leadership, teamwork and management. Visit his free Business Performance Idea Center at www.thecoughlincompany.com.

True Performance Five Ways to Avoid Fake Productivity

Better productivity means less human sweat, not more,” said Henry Ford, 20th-century automobile manufacturer. We all know the classic definition of increased productivity: producing more goods or services per given amount of time; as the online Oxford Dictionary puts it, the effectiveness of productive effort, especially in industry, as measured in terms of the rate of output per unit of input. That’s foundational knowledge, right? The problem is, while these definitions may have applied when our economy was based almost entirely on agriculture and manufacturing, they don’t necessarily apply to our modern servicebased economy or knowledge jobs.

Here’s what I mean. Consider the editor who cuts 10,000 unnecessary words out of a novel. Using the old definitions (rate of output per unit of input), his productivity is negative, suggesting ineptitude. So, the definition obviously doesn’t apply in that case. But in truth, his reductive work has increased the novel’s clarity, making it easier to read and more likely to find a publisher. Some things simply require more time and input to refine; here’s where effectiveness outshines efficiency, though productivity typically requires both. On the other hand, just because someone finishes 15 tasks in one day doesn’t mean they

were productive. They might have been procrastinating on an important task or performing low-value work only.

Differentiating fake productivity from true productivity isn’t hard, but it does involve a sincere review of your daily activities. Most of the tips I’ll outline here are just as foundational as our standard definitions of productivity. But sometimes we need to return to these core principles to ensure our goals remain properly aligned with reality and corporate need.

by LAURA STACK

1Don’t confuse output (or quantity) with productivity. So, what if you write 1,000 lines of code a day, but the code is inefficient or requires lots of revision? If you write 500 lines of code that does the same thing and isn’t buggy, it will ultimately prove more beneficial, even if it takes you longer. As I’ve pointed out, sometimes doing one or two high-value tasks is more profitable and productive than doing 15 low-value tasks.

debit

Realize that low-value tasks aren’t always non-productive. You’ll always have lower-value housekeeping tasks to take care of. Meeting daily requirements, maintaining a database, editing and even clearing your email inbox are all essential tasks, because they save you time later. However, they may seem like net performance losses in the short term and probably won’t directly profit your organization. However, they will likely pay for themselves in the long run. Necessary, boring, hidden work can still be meaningful if it doesn’t keep you from other high-value work.

bypass the gators and get busy with draining the swamp, no matter your obstacles. Here’s the thing: Even if they attack you, once the swamp is drained, most (or all) of the gators will go away. This is usually the case with whatever allegorical swamp and symbolic gators you’re working with. Go around people if they are in your way and figure out how to get it done.

Making Life Better

3

Fear perfectionism. The devil may be in the details, but when you’re trying to produce, you can only go so far in correcting yourself before you kill your productivity. Fix things on the fly. Personally, I tend to write overly long sentences per my train of thought and then go back and edit. This keeps me from being painfully slow by trying to type a sentence correctly the first time. That’s what editing is for. If you try to get everything exactly right before you start, you may never start.

You can spend years fighting alligators, putting out brush fires, stalling, revising and letting the petty bury you if you don’t look at the list above and take these tips to heart. Don’t fake productivity! Most people know exactly what they should be doing. n

4

Don’t just play it by ear. Proactive always trumps reactive. Guesstimating or only bothering to learn something when needed is a sure way to hobble yourself. Practice lifelong learning instead. While on-the-job learning remains crucial, start with self-training. Read about and learn your field the best you can before you step into a role, from the technology you use to how to hit deadlines and on through to human psychology. You’ll hit more home runs that way.

5

Keep sight of your goals. As an old saying goes, “When you’re up to your neck in alligators, it’s hard to remember that your original goal was to drain the swamp.” Your best bet? Find a way to

© 2022 Laura Stack. LAURA STACK, MBA, CSP, CPAE, is an award-winning keynote speaker, bestselling author and noted authority on employee and team productivity. She is the president of The Productivity Pro Inc., a company dedicated to helping leaders increase workplace performance in high-stress environments. Stack has authored eight books, including “FASTER TOGETHER: Accelerating Your Team’s Productivity” (Berrett-Koehler 2018). She is a past president of the National Speakers Association and a member of its exclusive Speaker Hall of Fame (with fewer than 175 members worldwide). Stack’s clients include Cisco Systems, Walmart and Bank of America, and she has been featured on the CBS “Early Show” and CNN and in The New York Times. To have Laura Stack speak at an upcoming meeting or event, call 303-471-7401.

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Should Your Organization Offer Earned Wage Access? Should Your Organization Offer Earned Wage Access?

It’s no secret that many of our employees struggle with making their funds stretch to payday. Earned wage access (EWA) is an employee benefit that has emerged in recent years as a way for employees to meet their financial needs in the middle of a pay period. Without EWA, employees in need of ready cash might turn to payday loan services or overdraw their checking accounts – both of which incur high fees.

How Does EWA Work?

EWA programs are offered by a variety of vendors with different fee structures, but the basic concept is the same:

Employee Request: The EWA vendor provides a method for an employee to request a certain amount or percentage of their accrued wages, usually within specified limits (i.e., up to 50% of earned pay). Depending on the vendor and the employer’s program, limits are also set on how frequently an employee can request EWA within the same pay period.

• Earned wage access is not an employee loan but an advance against current earnings. Generally, the EWA vendor is provided with access to the organization’s timekeeping system

to calculate pay and time worked as of the date of the EWA request.

• Payroll taxes may be withheld from EWA payments to ensure funds are available to pay tax deposits.

Payment: The EWA provider takes on the liability of paying the employee. Funds can be deposited to the employee’s bank account, a prepaid debit card or the employee’s existing pay card solution. Some EWA vendors set up a separate bank account in the employee’s name. Direct deposits to an employee’s bank account usually occur within 24 hours, but transfers to external debit or payroll cards may take longer depending on the pay card vendor and may carry additional fees.

by STACY SMITH

True Up: When payday rolls around, the employee is paid a reduced amount offset by the EWA deposit, and the EWA vendor is reimbursed for any pay advances made during the pay period. Depending on the program, any applicable fees might depend

on how quickly the employee needs the money, with same-day deposits incurring fees but maybe not for 48-hour access. Programs vary on whether those fees are assessed to the employee or employer.

Considerations in Offering EWA

Earned wage access is still a new employee benefit, and it’s an evolving marketplace. It’s important to do your due diligence in researching EWA vendors and programs to determine whether it’s right for your organization. Here are some pros, cons and considerations:

• Is this a benefit your employees need? Do you have a lot of requests for pay advances or employee loans?

• Offering EWA could provide you with a competitive advantage over other local employers, providing higher employee recruitment and retention.

• EWA provides a safety valve for employees experiencing financial pressure.

• Because it’s based on actual earned pay, fees for employees are substantially lower than payday loan services.

• Visit with your payroll service to determine whether it already has a relationship with an EWA vendor.

• Analyze the EWA vendor’s fee structure. Know who’s responsible for paying fees for different types of transactions and whether those fees are reasonable.

• You’ll be providing the EWA vendor with your employees’ confidential payroll information, so you want to be sure the firm is reputable and trustworthy.

• Be aware of your state’s rules on providing early pay to employees. Since this is a new trend, your state may not

specifically address earned wage access programs but may have existing rules on providing pay outside of normal pay periods.

• Mistakes happen, so be clear on who’s responsible for making corrections – your organization or the EWA vendor.

• There is some concern among financial consumer advocates whether offering EWA helps or hurts employees. It certainly provides a cash influx to employees when needed, but will some employees fall back on an EWA program as the norm rather than the exception? And if so, is that financially healthy? And if fees are assessed to the employee for each EWA transaction, at what point do those fees rival the payday loan and overdrafts the EWA program is intended to eliminate?

You may be thinking that you could offer an earned wage access program in-house without using an outside vendor, and it is possible. But doing so would increase the administrative burden on your payroll staff and impact your cash-flow situation. You’d also need to develop the program from scratch and keep up with applicable laws and regulations.

Whether your organization should offer an EWA program is not a clear-cut answer and will require some thoughtful study. But especially in the restaurant industry, it’s a definite trend to consider.

If you’re ready to start exploring an EWA program for your business, contact member services at the NFA to learn more about their partner, rapid!. n

STACY SMITH, CPA, is a shareholder of Mize CPAs Inc. – a full-service accounting firm that has provided the Elevanta accounting and payroll solution since 2003.

FAQs About Business Insurance

Choosing insurance is one of the most important decisions you will make for your business. But coverage options can be confusing and complex. Here are answers to some of the most common FAQs about business insurance for BURGER KING® franchise owners.

What Is Business Insurance?

Business insurance helps protect your company’s assets from losses that may occur due to normal business operations. Types of business insurance can vary, with coverage options that can protect against property damage, bodily injury, legal liability or employee-related risks.

What Is a Claim?

In insurance, a claim is request by a policyholder or an allegation brought against your business by a customer or other third party. Without proper coverage, you risk greater exposure to losses and third-party claims that are costly and stressful to defend against.

What’s the Difference Between Claims-Made and Occurrence Policies?

Claims-made policies cover you from claims made while your policy is active. Occurrence policies protect you from covered incidents after your policy has lapsed or expired, for an additional cost. A tail coverage endorsement can also be added to a claims-made

policy to provide added protection by extending the reporting period for claims.

What Is an Endorsement?

An insurance endorsement or rider is any kind of change to the original terms of your policy. Endorsements may add specific coverage or increase limits, or they may exclude or restrict certain types of coverage. Tail coverage is an example, extending the effective dates of coverage for an expired policy.

What’s the Difference Between General Liability and Property Insurance?

General liability protects your business against third-party claims by customers and others alleging damages for incidents such as bodily injury, personal injury or property damage. Property insurance protects against risks to your business’s property, such as fire, theft or weather damage.

FAQs About Insurance Providers

What’s the Difference Between a Program Administrator and Broker?

A typical insurance broker works with clients to analyze and recommend suitable insurance options from one or more carriers. The program administrator (PA) plays a bigger role and is authorized by a carrier to quote, bind and issue polices on behalf of the carrier. The PA may also handle claims. By working with a PA, you

benefit from the PA’s experience and industry relationships within a specific area of insurance that may make buying more convenient.

What Happens if You Work With Multiple Brokers?

With brokers competing as order-takers, accuracy and completeness of submissions plummet. This can put your business at risk of being underinsured and exposed to dangerous risk levels or overinsured with coverages you can’t use. A broker’s role should be advisory, using expertise and established relationships with underwriters to help you find tailored, cost-effective coverage.

What Is a Carrier?

An insurance carrier is the insurance company that ultimately provides the policy and handles the execution and support of the policy. If you purchase insurance from a broker, you may have several points of contact for your policy. With a program administrator, you may have a single point of contact for all your policy needs.

Why Is Choosing a Dependable Carrier Important?

It’s important you choose a carrier that is financially sound and well-respected to ensure your restaurant has adequate defense against claims and protection in the event a settlement or judgment needs to be funded. Insurance with the wrong carrier could leave you underinsured or overexposed to risk.

What’s the Best Way to Choose a Dependable Carrier?

A dependable carrier will maintain an ongoing high rating from A.M. Best Co., the industry’s global credit rating agency. A

carrier’s length of history in the business and expertise in your area is also key for your decision.

Business Insurance for Your BURGER KING Franchise

Business insurance can be complex, especially for franchise owners, and it’s important to get all your questions answered before purchasing or renewing coverage.

To learn more about your business insurance options, contact co-brokers Lockton Affinity and Elevanta. Together, they will work with you to ensure you receive coverage tailored to you and the needs of your business. Visit Elevanta.LocktonAffinity.com to learn more. n

The Elevanta Insurance Program is administered by Lockton Affinity, LLC d/b/a Lockton Affinity Insurance Brokers LLC in California #0795478. Coverage is subject to actual policy terms and conditions. Policy benefits are the sole responsibility of the issuing insurance company. Coverage may be provided by an excess/surplus lines insurer which is not licensed by or subject to the supervision of the insurance department of your state of residence. Policy coverage forms and rates may not be subject to regulation by the insurance department of your state of residence. Excess/Surplus lines insurers do not generally participate in state guaranty funds and therefore insureds are not protected by such funds in the event of the insurer’s insolvency. Elevanta will receive a royalty fee for the licensing of its name and trademarks as part of the insurance program offered to the extent permitted by applicable law.

2022 Editorial Calendar

FLAME, Issue 4 will be published in December 2022. We want to highlight any news or events associated with our members. If you have ideas for potential stories, please contact allisonm@nfabk.org or 678-797-5165 by Dec. 9. Our editorial staff can assist in writing the story for you.