Chipotle即将利用机器人帮助切鳄梨,并削减成本。关于Autocado机器人的消息最早出现在去年夏天,当时该快餐公司计划首先利用机器人进行鳄梨的切块、去核和剥皮,然后由人类捣碎,制作Chipotle的招牌酪梨酱。该公司的第一季度财报显示,这款机器人即将发布。
公司首席执行官布莱恩·尼科尔召开了一次相当愉快的电话会议,他宣布公司销售额“增长了14%,达到27亿美元”,这要得益于Chicken Al Pastor等热门菜肴的回归。本月早些时候,一些人猜测,随着加州20美元最低时薪法律的出台,快餐公司可能会身陷困境,但Chipotle最近的业绩表明,快餐公司可以在为员工支付良好薪酬的同时维持盈利,他们只需要做出明智的调整即可。
其中一种措施就是让机器人搭配人类员工。尼科尔表示:“我们的餐厅不断探索利用技术工具,提高效率,并改善团队的整体体验。”这款鳄梨捣碎器就可以降低成本和提高效率,同时提高员工的薪酬。他补充道,该公司还在研究利用“机器人和人工智能,并寻找其他提高效率的方式”。
尼科尔还表示,他“对今年下半年将这些技术引入餐厅感到非常满意。”准备好迎接机器人-人类混合加工鳄梨泥吧。目前,这位CEO表示公司经历了史上最低的人员流动率。
当然,这些工具有时可能让员工紧张,他们担心当管理者寻求交易而不是按照团队的价值支付报酬时,他们的工作会被外包或侵占。例如,温迪快餐厅(Wendy’s)最近在得来速餐厅采用了人工智能技术,素食外卖公司Kernel则使用一个六轴机械臂,在生产线中增加素食汉堡。当然,事情并非总是一帆风顺,例如Chipotle已经停止使用其玉米片AI机器,原因是难以清洗。但总的来说,快餐公司站在了使用人工智能服务的最前沿,并且许多公司已经找到了让人类和机器人和平共处的方法。
美国银行(Bank of America)分析师莎拉·塞纳托雷与《财富》杂志的萨莎·罗格尔伯格谈到这些人工智能工具时表示:“这些公司不一定要裁员。” 她补充道:“它们更有可能提高员工的效率和幸福感。” 她在一份报告中解释称,自动化工具能够降低劳动力成本,这些成本在餐厅成本中的平均占比为36%。
接受新的技术创新只是连锁餐厅在各州的新法律下维持生存的方式之一。他们也可以稍微涨价,例如Chipotle表示,在加利福尼亚将菜单价格提高了6%至7%。
在过去的一年里,Chipotle的店内销售额飙升了19%,因为该品牌各个收入阶层的消费者普遍增长。虽然有些人可能对为奶酪酱额外支付一美元有些不满,但需求仍然存在,而且客户能够接受涨价。
该公司首席财务和首席行政官杰克·哈廷在电话会议上表示:“我们认为Chipotle会维持在预算范围内。”总之,这家墨西哥卷饼品牌的成功,对于那些对新劳工权利法的实施感到担忧的连锁餐厅品牌来说,是一个积极的信号。只要首席执行官们能够在削减成本和提高效率方面发挥创意,他们就可以继续给自己和员工提供更多机会。(财富中文网)
翻译:刘进龙
审校:汪皓
Chipotle即将利用机器人帮助切鳄梨,并削减成本。关于Autocado机器人的消息最早出现在去年夏天,当时该快餐公司计划首先利用机器人进行鳄梨的切块、去核和剥皮,然后由人类捣碎,制作Chipotle的招牌酪梨酱。该公司的第一季度财报显示,这款机器人即将发布。
公司首席执行官布莱恩·尼科尔召开了一次相当愉快的电话会议,他宣布公司销售额“增长了14%,达到27亿美元”,这要得益于Chicken Al Pastor等热门菜肴的回归。本月早些时候,一些人猜测,随着加州20美元最低时薪法律的出台,快餐公司可能会身陷困境,但Chipotle最近的业绩表明,快餐公司可以在为员工支付良好薪酬的同时维持盈利,他们只需要做出明智的调整即可。
其中一种措施就是让机器人搭配人类员工。尼科尔表示:“我们的餐厅不断探索利用技术工具,提高效率,并改善团队的整体体验。”这款鳄梨捣碎器就可以降低成本和提高效率,同时提高员工的薪酬。他补充道,该公司还在研究利用“机器人和人工智能,并寻找其他提高效率的方式”。
尼科尔还表示,他“对今年下半年将这些技术引入餐厅感到非常满意。”准备好迎接机器人-人类混合加工鳄梨泥吧。目前,这位CEO表示公司经历了史上最低的人员流动率。
当然,这些工具有时可能让员工紧张,他们担心当管理者寻求交易而不是按照团队的价值支付报酬时,他们的工作会被外包或侵占。例如,温迪快餐厅(Wendy’s)最近在得来速餐厅采用了人工智能技术,素食外卖公司Kernel则使用一个六轴机械臂,在生产线中增加素食汉堡。当然,事情并非总是一帆风顺,例如Chipotle已经停止使用其玉米片AI机器,原因是难以清洗。但总的来说,快餐公司站在了使用人工智能服务的最前沿,并且许多公司已经找到了让人类和机器人和平共处的方法。
美国银行(Bank of America)分析师莎拉·塞纳托雷与《财富》杂志的萨莎·罗格尔伯格谈到这些人工智能工具时表示:“这些公司不一定要裁员。” 她补充道:“它们更有可能提高员工的效率和幸福感。” 她在一份报告中解释称,自动化工具能够降低劳动力成本,这些成本在餐厅成本中的平均占比为36%。
接受新的技术创新只是连锁餐厅在各州的新法律下维持生存的方式之一。他们也可以稍微涨价,例如Chipotle表示,在加利福尼亚将菜单价格提高了6%至7%。
在过去的一年里,Chipotle的店内销售额飙升了19%,因为该品牌各个收入阶层的消费者普遍增长。虽然有些人可能对为奶酪酱额外支付一美元有些不满,但需求仍然存在,而且客户能够接受涨价。
该公司首席财务和首席行政官杰克·哈廷在电话会议上表示:“我们认为Chipotle会维持在预算范围内。”总之,这家墨西哥卷饼品牌的成功,对于那些对新劳工权利法的实施感到担忧的连锁餐厅品牌来说,是一个积极的信号。只要首席执行官们能够在削减成本和提高效率方面发挥创意,他们就可以继续给自己和员工提供更多机会。(财富中文网)
翻译:刘进龙
审校:汪皓
Chipotle is about to get some robotic help to cut both costs and avocados. News of an Autocado robot first arose last summer, as the fast-food company looked to robots to cut, core, and peel avocados before a human takes on the mashing part for Chipotle’s signature guacamole. And the robot unveiling is imminent, according to the company’s first-quarter earnings.
CEO Brian Niccol led a pretty chipper call, saying company sales “grew by 14% to reach $2.7 billion,” boosted by the return of popular menu items like chicken al pastor. Earlier this month, some speculated fast-food companies would be in hot water following California’s new $20 minimum-wage law, but Chipotle’s recent earnings shows companies can afford to maintain profits and pay workers well—they just have to be smart about how they adjust.
One such effort is using robots alongside workers. “In our restaurants, we continue to explore technology tools that could drive higher productivity and improve the overall experience for our teams,” Niccol said. This avocado masher could be one such way to reduce costs and increase productivity while paying workers more. The company is looking to use “robotics and AI and finding other ways to do productivity,” he added.
Niccol also said he’s “feeling really good about getting those into a restaurant probably in the back half of this year.” So get ready for some robot-human-hybrid guac. Currently, the CEO boasted of some of the lowest turnovers the company has seen.
Of course, such tools can sometimes make workers nervous about their jobs being outsourced or encroached upon as managers look for a deal rather than paying their team what they’re worth. For instance, Wendy’s recently implemented AI in its drive-thrus, and vegan takeout company Kernel hired a six-axis robot arm to add veggie burgers to the assembly line. Of course, it doesn’t always go without a hitch, as Chipotle itself stopped using its tortilla-chip AI machine because it was too difficult to clean. But in general, fast-food companies are on the frontline of adding in these AI services, and many have found a way to keep both humans and robots living in peace.
“It’s not that they are necessarily reducing the number of people,” Bank of America analyst Sara Senatore told Fortune’s Sasha Rogelberg of these AI tools. “It’s more that they’re making those people more productive and happier,” she added, explaining in a note that automated tools cut down on labor costs, which account on average for 36% of restaurant’s costs.
Embracing new technological innovations is just one way chains can stay afloat under new state laws. They also can afford to raise their prices a bit, as Chipotle said it raised its menu prices by 6% to 7% in California.
Over this past year, in-store sales at Chipotle soared by 19% as the brand saw gains with consumers of all income brackets. It seems as if while some people might grumble a bit at an extra dollar for queso, the demand is still there and customers are willing to pay more.
“We think Chipotle will stay in the budget,” Jack Hartung, the company’s chief financial and chief administrative officer, said on the call. To wrap it all up, the burrito brand’s success marks early good signs for chains worried about implementing the new workers’ rights law. CEOs can serve themselves—and their employees, too—an extra helping of guac, as long as they really think creatively about how to cut costs and enhance productivity.