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A Framework for Restaurant Information Technology

Some three decades after computers first automated restaurants' backoffice systems and two decades after point-of-sale systems made their appearance, information technology (IT) has finally become sufficiently sophisticated that it can be an integrated tool for management decision making and control of restaurant operations. Not coincidentally, restaurant chains themselves have finally grown large enough to support the heavy investment that IT can require. Rather than upgrade systems piecemeal, however, restaurant operators and managers would do well to gauge IT investments against a framework that takes into account all aspects of the restaurant's operation, including revenue-management and guestsatisfaction functions. Such a framework is presented in this article, with consideration given to the following aspects of restaurant management: production systems (including demand forecasting), scheduling (both in the kitchen and dining room), process control (including managing meal duration and kitchen production), and enterprise-resource planning (extended back-office functions).