In this episode of BDO To-Go, Gregg Thomas, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Practice, sits down with Mary Jo Larson, Vice President and Publisher of Franchise Times, to discuss the key trends shaping the restaurant and franchising industries ahead of the Restaurant Finance and Development Conference (RFDC). In her role, Mary Jo oversees both Franchise Times magazine and the Restaurant Finance Monitor and leads sales and planning for RFDC. Their conversation explores the evolving definition of value for consumers, the rise of multi-unit and multi-brand operators, challenges in the lending environment, innovative restaurant formats, and the increasing presence of international brands in the U.S. market. Mary Jo shares her expert perspective on how operators are responding to economic pressures and changing consumer preferences, providing listeners with timely insights into the future of the industry.

Join BDO To-Go host Meg Potts, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group, as she interviews Jerry Dalton, Account Executive at Stable USA. Jerry brings extensive experience in financial commodity price risk management and supply purchasing, having successfully executed strategies for various companies since 1998. He specializes in commodity intelligence and price forecasting, providing guidance to food service companies and manufacturers. Jerry's expertise includes teaching supply purchasing disciplines and utilizing financial tools to protect profit margins, making him a valuable resource for navigating today's economic challenges.

Join BDO To-Go host Gregg Thomas, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group, as he interviews Greg Gratteau, Business Services & Outsourcing Managing Director at BDO. Greg has over two decades of human resources experience and oversees BDO's Human Capital Management Consulting practice, focusing on both day-to-day HR functions and strategic support for BDO clients. He has worked in both publicly traded and privately held companies, handling diverse employee populations and excelling in strategic business leadership, compensation and benefit design, and organizational development.

Join BDO To-Go host Meg Potts, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group, as she interviews Jay Duke – Global Head of Advisory at BDO. With over 35 years of public accounting experience, Jay has held significant leadership roles at BDO, including leading the Advisory practice and serving on the Board of Directors Executive Team. He has managed numerous audit and consulting engagements, assisting clients with mergers, acquisitions, and complex transactions across various industries.

Join BDO To-Go host Gregg Thomas, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group, as he interviews Jeannie Hylant – Executive Vice President at Hylant. With over 25 years of experience in the Franchise and Hospitality industries, Jeannie specializes in developing insurance and risk management programs to minimize balance sheet impacts. She offers valuable insights on trending coverage issues and market opportunities for franchisors, franchisees, and hospitality clients.

Join BDO To-Go host Ben Johnson, Director with BDO’s Transaction Advisory Services, as he interviews Susan Miller – Partner and Co-founder at Morgan Kingston Advisors. Susan’s transaction experience includes buyside and sellside mergers and acquisitions, sales, divestitures, joint ventures, financial restructuring, and much more. Her advisory experience represents a broad range of industries, including, consumer products, food and beverage, restaurants, retail and healthcare.

Join BDO To-Go host Meg Potts, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group as she interviews Toby Malbec – Managing Director at ConStrata Consulting. Toby manages the day-to-day operations for ConStrata, working with clients in the hospitality, foodservice and retail industry to develop a comprehensive technology strategy to support their operational goals, and to leverage their technology investments to bring impactful results to their business’s operations.

Join BDO To-Go host Gregg Thomas, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group, as he interviews Dennis Monroe, Co-Founder & Chairman of Monroe Moxness Berg PA. Dennis is a pioneer in corporate financing and assists businesses, from emerging companies to multi-national firms. With over 30 years of experience in franchise finance, he has been recognized as a leader in the franchise community.

Join BDO To-Go host Gregg Thomas, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group, as he interviews Kim Jensen-Pitts, Founder and CEO of KJP Marketing Services. Kim has over 25 years of experience within the restaurant industry. Her expertise lies within fast food, family dining, casual dining, specialty retail, and packaged goods - both corporate and privately held.

Join BDO To-Go host Meg Potts, Co-Lead of BDO’s National Restaurant Industry Group and true fan of data as she interviews Kirstie Tiernan – Principal with BDO Digital and enthusiastic helper of businesses choosing to make better decisions with data and AI. Kirstie spearheads BDO’s Data, AI and Labs teams. Leveraging her expertise in artificial intelligence and machine learning, she collaborates with clients to enhance operational efficiencies, automate processes, and employ advanced analytics. Kirstie is dedicated to helping clients navigate the ever-evolving landscape of digital transformation.

Ari Weinzweig is the Co-Founding Partner of Zingerman’s Community of Businesses, a nationally renowned food icon that’s grown to over $70million in annual revenue. In this episode, Ari discusses how he was able to build the vision and the culture for his company and what process he had to undertake to properly map it out so that everyone could see it, believe it, and get on board with it. Ari joins our new host, Giselle El Birri to deliver best practices around building vision and culture in today’s industry.

In this episode, we hear some sound bites from the 2022 BDO Restaurant CFO Bootcamp where Alicia Voltmer of GreenbergTraurig, LLP provides an overview of current and emerging L&E issues faced by the restaurant industry, including some hot-topic items in employment law. Board Certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and AV® Preeminent® Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubble®, Alicia advises employers, from start-up companies to Fortune 500s, in a wide variety of employment matters.

Gregg Thomas and Meg Potts joined BDO in 2020 through the acquisition of CFO Advisors, a trusted ally to retail and restaurant brands for over 25 years. The team provides C-suite services such as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Data Officer expertise, as well as providing data analytic services, all on an out-source basis to multi-unit restaurants and retail groups. Gregg and Meg join host Jeff Tubaugh to dish about best practices and strategies for the industry.

Bill Lindsey is the partner and co-founder of COGS-Well, a company named one of the top five new restaurant technologies by MURTEC. In this episode, Bill dishes on how technology has revolutionized the industry with the rising expectations of consumers. Host, Jeff Tubaugh and Bill navigate into the importance of innovative systems to continue to stay ahead of the technology curve.

Stephan Harman and Mike Speck are both partners at the restaurant FUSIAN with Mike serving as CEO. FUSIAN exists to connect people through collaboration, culture and cuisine. In this episode, the duo shares where they see the industry headed and how FUSIAN is evolving with our host, Jeff Tubaugh.

In this episode, Dana Zukofsky interviews Justin Klein, one of the leading franchise business attorneys in the United States. Named to the International Who’s Who of Franchise Lawyers, Justin’s knowledge and insights provide listeners with a sneak peek behind the curtain of the franchising world today.

In this week’s episode, Dana Zukofsky interviews Annie Fitzsimmons, a travel expert, to share her experiences on the ground about what’s happening in the travel and restaurant industry on an international level. Annie shares how she navigates the restaurant scene nationally and internationally.

Richard Rosendale trained in several kitchens across the United States and mentored under several Certified Master Chefs. He was the youngest member of ACF Culinary Team USA since the team’s inception and was one of five chefs who represented the U.S. in the 2004 World Culinary Olympics in Erfurt, Germany. In this episode, Jeff Tubaugh and Richard talk about thinking outside the box when it comes to how you approach the restaurant business from the other side of the table.

Mark Bromberg is the President at Apex Restaurant Group, a firm that focuses on chain restaurant improvement, management, rejuvenation, and more. In this episode, Dana Zukofsky and Mark talk opportunities, what he’s been seeing within his space, and how his organization is working to overcome labor shortages. Mark provides an update to help listeners get a better idea of what’s happening on the ground, and what they can do about it.

Greg Creed, the Former CEO of Yum! Brands and Taco Bell joins Dana Zukofsky in our latest podcast. Creed retired after a successful 25-year career with Yum! and has more than 40 years of extensive global experience in marketing and operations with leading packaged goods and restaurant brands. Dana and Greg discuss the key ingredients to building and maintaining a thriving brand and reflect on some of Yum! Brands most memorable campaigns.