Photography by Scott Windus

Food Management's 2011 IDEAS Conference was held at the sprawling, luxurious Gaylord Texas Resort outside Dallas at the end of September, and for the first time it was held in tandem with two high-profile commercial operator events staged by FM's new sister publication, Nation's Restaurant News.

NRN's annual MUFSO (Multi-Unit Food Service Operators) and Menu Trends & Directions Conferences were held at the same venue, giving FM IDEAS attendees an opportunity to reap some added insight from presentations targeted to the commercial restaurant sector with a single registration securing entry to all events at the three conferences.

Indeed, several Menu Trends events were formally included in the IDEAS agenda to supplement its onsite-focused sessions, which featured a number of prominent industry figures discussing topics such as concept development, measuring customer satisfaction and healthful dining trends.

In addition, a group of 2011 FM Best Concept Award winners discussed their innovations in a special panel event before being honored at FM's annual Best Concept Award Dinner. FM IDEAS wrapped up with a tour of the new Cowboys Stadium foodservice facilities in nearby Irving.

Enchanting Customers

The conference kicked off for IDEAS attendees with a keynote address from Guy Kawasaki, a best-selling author and former “evangelist” for Apple Computers. He provided an energetic, engaging and thought-provoking presentation titled The Top 10 Ways to Enchant Customers. In addition to top Kawasaki management tips, what made it memorable was the many anecdotes and examples Kawasaki sprinkled throughout his talk.

Many of these included germs of ideas and strategies that onsite foodservice operations might take to heart. For example, to “Achieve Likeability,” he advised dressing “for a tie,” that is, staff dress should be equal to that of the customer because it says, “We're peers.” Underdressing implies “I don't respect you” while overdressing implies “I am better than you.”

The keynote was followed by successive presentations from Boston College Dining Director Helen Wechsler, Yale University Retail/Graduate Dining Director Tom Tucker, Principal Kent Bain of Wood Bain Associates and University of Colorado-Boulder Dining Director Amy Beckstrom (for more on their presentations, see sidebar on p. 32).