Independent Joe #52 October/November 2018

The flourishing realm of voice activation isn’t quite up to these last tasks – yet. But for Dunkin’ Brands, voice-activated ordering is a clarion call towards sales growth and forward-thinking. Nearly one in four 16 to 24 year-olds use voice search on their mobile devices, according to the Global Web Index. And by 2020, half…

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A Reason to Stand Together

Last month, I visited the 9/11 Museum and Memorial at the site of the World Trade Center towers in New York City, which were knocked down by terrorist attacks 17 years ago. The memorial is a stark but solemn reminder of that horrific day when America came under attack. During my visit, I recalled how,…

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Alexa, Tell Me About Dunkin’ and Data

“Alexa, open Dunkin.” “Alexa, order me a pumpkin spiced iced coffee.” “Alexa, drink my coffee for me and bring me my slippers and newspaper.” The flourishing realm of voice activation isn’t quite up to these last tasks – yet. But for Dunkin’ Brands, voice-activated ordering is a clarion call towards sales growth and forward-thinking. Nearly…

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Smart Policies and Procedures are Keys to Crime Prevention at Dunkin’ Shops

As any Dunkin’ franchisee can attest, criminal threats – both internal and external – are an unfortunate reality of doing business. And although crime rates have been in steady decline since the late 1990’s, QSR operators still have to deal with robberies, break-ins, employee theft, and increasingly, drug-related issues inside their businesses. The good news,…

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Why DD Perks is a Top Loyalty Program

A recent article in the restaurant news site Eater referred to data as “the new gold,” pointing out that “consumers should know that in 2018, basically every restaurant and business is trying to collect personal data — some are just more up front about it than others.” Speaking at the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators Conference in Dallas…

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Maryland Franchisee Recalls Her Path to Dunkin’ Ownership

As the spectacular tan and orange landscape, the clear blue water and the architectural magnificence of the Hoover Dam sprawled below her, Maria Icaza reflected on the relationships, connections, and commitment to hard work that brought her and her general manager Kaiesha Carter on a helicopter ride and, later that day, to a champagne dinner…

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Pins are in at In-N-Out Burger

Appeals Court protects employees’ right to wear buttons advocating higher wages While employers may require employees to wear a uniform at work, under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) employees have the right to wear union buttons and insignia while working. Those conflicting rights have created fights over what a company may require and what…

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Dodging the Joint Employer Bullet, Again

If the questions and skepticism of two judges for the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals are any indication, McDonalds does not meet the definition of a joint employer under California law. 9th Circuit Judges Susan Graber and Andrew Kleinfeld indicated their belief that McDonald’s relationship with its franchisees did not give it control over…

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