Tag: food

Categories
Uncategorized

Are you testing and learning?

So… you want to come to the first Think Lean and Get Digital Workshop?

You should! – It’ll not only be informative, educational and fun… but you’ll be taking away a lot more than you bargain for! – Yes there is a charge for it… and I can inform you now, your Return On Investment will pay dividends!

Okay – one thing I will talk about is innovation. I’ll explain how important it is to test and learn.

Yes, that’s all great Bal, but have you got any real life examples?

Yes. Yes I do.

Recently, the fast food chain, KFC cause a massive stir on Social Media.

That’s right. Because of the above. Someone took a photo of this banner in Glasgow, and shared it on Social Media. Before you knew it, it went viral and people were sharing it, liking it and talking about it.

80 piece popcorn bucket for £5.99 is a bargain. Well and truly a bargain. So much so… it’s a deal that many would take up in an instant!

Now, what’s this got to do with ‘innovation’ or ‘test and learn’.

Because later on in the day, KFC put this message out…

That’s right. KFC were testing it out in 10 restaurants in Glasgow – and seeing how it went – would do a nationwide release.

2 things here…

  1. They’re testing the market – yes, 10 restaurants… yes, in Glasgow… yes it’s only for a short period of time – but the key thing is to test. Now as this got out to the rest of the country and the world – KFC knew they were onto a winner.
  2. What’s the worse that could happen? – people don’t buy it… some people even made funny comments such as “are they actually going to count the 80 lol”. To be fair, I thought that’s a great comment. How are they going to actually ensure there’s 80 in each on. Obviously it’ll be done at the factory and pre-packaged… no?

So… test and learn. Give it a go – educated go…. see what the customers say, and if there’s hunger for it (no pun intended) they’ll let you know. But the important thing is… you’ll learn from it!

Categories
Uncategorized

Robots delivering food…

Let’s be honest Bal, this isn’t really new is it? I’ve heard it before – and probably seen it on social media.

Yes, you’re right. We’ve seen robots being trialled in restaurants where they’re delivering food.

And following on from my post earlier this week – about having a lean process – and the missing piece is the robots delivering the food…. well, you would need some human intervention to ensure the customers are okay… and if there’s any problems or complaints, there’s a human on hand to deal with the situation.

Well, let’s be honest… depending on type of restaurant – you might want to talk to people! You might want to go out to a restaurant purely because of the people that work there and those that serve you! It all depends on the type of restaurant – if you want it quick, then you may not want the whole human interaction.

But this blog post isn’t about having an end to end process with no human intervention.

This blog post is about a story I came across – where it’s using folk who have limited use of their body, to command and instruct robots!

Dawn, is a cafe in Tokyo, Japan. The robots are developed by Ory, a startup that specializes in robotics for disabled people, the OriHime-D is a 120 cm (4-foot) tall robot that can be operated remotely from a paralyzed person’s home.

Even if the operator only has control of their eyes, they can command OriHime-D to move, look around, speak with people, and handle objects.

A true and inspirational marriage of technology and humanity!

Yes – it’s all about technology.

Yes – it’s all about a lean process.

However… when you inject some humanity, it all becomes emotional – and more importantly… helps to involve those, who would otherwise, would not be involved.

Don’t forget… It’s all about Process, Purpose….. and, People!

Here’s a video showing how it works… (apologies, it’s in Japanese – but just by watching it… you’ll understand!)

Categories
Uncategorized

Merry Christmas…

Just wanted to wish you all a very, Merry Christmas. Hope you able to switch off for a while, take some rest and spend time with loved ones… oh, and consume copious amounts of food.

Categories
Uncategorized

Let yourself in… make a cup of tea

End of last week… Waitrose announced that they will have an option – where delivery drivers come into your home, unpack your shopping… and then leave.

Now, the thought of someone else in my house… does not fill me with confidence.

But let’s look into this in a bit more detail.

Firstly…. Waitrose (may have.. not sure, can’t confirm) read my blog post about Smart Doors. And that Smart Locks you can buy these days.

So, part of this option/trial/experiment… Waitrose will provide you with a Yale Smart Lock (worth £200!)

The lock itself… needs a code to be inputted… and then you can enter.

The code is sent to the delivery driver at the time he needs to enter… it’s a one time code… and can’t be used again.

Now… that is a little better for me.

Also.. the driver will be wearing a camera. So all footbage from the moment the code is entered, to the moment he leaves… is all captured on camera.

The delivery driver will store everything where it needs to do. Fridge items in the fridge. Freezer items in the freezer…..

Now this is only available in South London. And it’s an experiment.

Personally, I think it’s a great idea…. it’s through these experiments and pilots, that ideas can really grow. The great thing here is the time that’s saved for the customer…. Firstly, they don’t even have to be at home!

Looks like we’re moving closer to the automated smart re-filling home.

Want to try it out?

Sure… go to https://www.wya.waitrose.com and apply now!