Why a restaurant CIO was ready for the unexpected

Skip Kimpel, CIO of Florida barbecue restaurant chain 4 Rivers Smokehouse, is passionate about the power of technology to improve business performance. A self-described restaurant technology evangelist, Kimpel’s passion has driven him to create new products and inspire others with his podcast, The Tech Chef, which helps restaurants find ways to make themselves more competitive and efficient through technology.

It’s this passion that drove Kimpel to perform a rigorous three-month evaluation of 4 Rivers’ IT infrastructure when he first joined the company. Part of his “standard operating procedure,” he wanted to ensure the chain had exactly the right technology — and partners — to operate efficiently, support future expansion and handle any unexpected priorities that might come their way.

As he would soon find out, that evaluation was invaluable.

Ready for the unexpected

The unexpected arrival of the pandemic in March 2020 devastated the hospitality industry like no other, with 40 percent of United States restaurants closed just two months in. But Kimpel was fiercely determined not to let COVID-19 take 4 Rivers down. “We had to do whatever it took to make sure we had sales coming in, keep our employees employed, and keep people fed,” he says.

While there was a lot of initial uncertainty around how to help the business survive, let alone thrive during this time, one thing Kimpel was sure of was his digital infrastructure. His evaluation had found that Spectrum Enterprise was providing highly reliable and scalable services including Dedicated Fiber Internet (DFI), cloud-based Unified Communications (UC) and Hosted Call Center to many 4 Rivers locations. What’s more, he found his Spectrum Enterprise account team provided the responsive, collaborative support his small IT staff required. “From day one, they understood my needs and my expectations of how things needed to be done,” he says. ”The support has been fantastic.”

Because Kimpel had the foresight to perform this evaluation, he knew he had the right solutions and bandwidth to support whatever new services he would need to help 4 Rivers during the pandemic. So when Florida instituted an executive order halting in-house dining and the chain pivoted exclusively to takeout and delivery orders, Kimpel and his network were ready. Connectivity continued to be highly reliable, even as the number of incoming online and phone orders grew exponentially.

To keep call center agents safe, Kimpel and the Spectrum Enterprise account team worked to configure the Hosted Call Center solution so the agents could field customer calls from their homes. “Our voice services provide us with the flexibility to forward incoming customer calls in any direction that we need to,” says Kimpel.

Thriving in uncertain times demands creativity

Kimpel next turned his attention to finding creative new ways to use his digital infrastructure to help drive more sales while ensuring employee and customer safety. He recognized that customers wanted more low-contact ways to order, and worked with his team to quickly launch drive throughs. Employees took orders and processed payments right from customer cars using tablets connected to Wifi supported by Spectrum Enterprise FIA service. “Even though we're not a drive-through business, that's what people wanted to feel safe,” says Kimpel.

Kimpel also implemented contactless payment at one location, and after the ban on in-house dining was lifted, he implemented QR code menus at all the restaurants. These innovations were also supported by the FIA service. “The more contactless you can be, the better,” he says.

Every step of the way, the Spectrum Enterprise account team was there to provide support. “Our goal is no matter the situation, to be part of the solution — not part of the problem,” says Melissa Santiago, Spectrum Enterprise account manager. “It’s really all about caring about the customer, understanding their needs, and collaborating to find an answer.”

Ready for the long haul

Thanks to Kimpel’s passion, determination and forward-thinking approach, 4 Rivers Smokehouse overcame the biggest challenge no one saw coming. And if Kimpel has to face more unexpected challenges, he knows he has the right technology services and partner by his side.

To learn more, read the case study.