Empowered Decision Making at Leading Quick-Service Restaurant Brand Brings Revenue Growth

Wallboards Informs and Educates, but Original Iteration Was Due for an Update

A fast-growing U.S. quick-service restaurant brand revered for its efficiency is working on the next phase of modernizing the application operating their back-of-house digital information center known as Wallboards. The display aggregates and disseminates information to workers and fosters team investment in success.

Wallboards next-gen keeps each store updated on events, data and occurrences that can influence their operational decisions, including metrics, labor analytics, sales projections, historic comparisons and even local weather and event information. The first iteration was nearing end of life, however, and a better solution was due.

Technologies Involved

AWS

AWS RDS
AWS DynamoDB
AWS S3
AWS Lambda
AWS MediaConvert

TekStream Toolbox

React JS
React Native
Java
Python
Kubernetes

AWS

Solution Objectives

Rearchitecture needed to increase flexibility, maintainability and expandability of current system.

Find and implement a reliable corporate-backed device platform, including connected televisions.

Flexibility for local customization and scheduling of display with no data lag.

Solution Provided

TekStream worked with the QSR to rearchitect the Wallboards system into a modern cloud-first application which supports integration with a wide variety of internal data providers. New frontends were created to allow for separate administration and display of the data, using both ReactJS and React Native. Native applications are used to integrate to physical devices in-restaurant. New functionality was built to allow restaurant managers to create highly-customized “playlists”, with components ranging from near-real-time KPI metrics to custom images and messaging.

The original decision to use a specific Smart TV brand with a proprietary OS and management system as the platform choice presented a challenge; as unique per-restaurant authentication and security did not meet the project standards.  A revised path to identify the restaurant location and authenticate as a specific device was designed using an on-device certificate-based approach.

Key Successes

  • Local owner/operator selects tiles shown in their location
  • Video, photos and celebrations are location specific

Phase 2 is planned to include:

  • Scheduled, topical playlists per device can be customized to uniquely display separate playlists based on time of day and differing locations in the restaurant.  
  • Additional buildout of a managed media library for expanded tile offerings.
  • Pre-built playlist templates provide a starting point for restaurant managers with common, often-used metrics ready to go.

About the Company

Customer: Leading QSR brand

Industry: Restaurant

HQ: Atlanta, GA

Revenue: $7.9 billion (2023)

Number of Locations: nearly 3,000

The third largest quick-service restaurant company in the United States, this chain is known for its freshly-prepared food, signature hospitality and unique franchise model. More than 200,000 Team Members are employed by independent owner-operators in more than 3,000 restaurants across the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. In 2023, the company shared plans to expand by 2030 into Europe and Asia. Owner-operators live and work in the communities their restaurants serve, each supporting local efforts to address hunger, education, and making a positive impact. The family-owned and privately held company was founded in 1967.