No one panic, but it appears we’re already too late to stem the inevitable tide of robot overlords waiting to take over our planet and suck out our souls via some as yet unimagined technological terror. Because clearly, adding more kiosks and taking away a few cashiers at Panera Bread is a clear sign of that impending doom.
Okay, it’s not that dire. Probably. But Panera is going to be cutting down on the number of cashiers in a new store design, as it attempts to fix its speed problems.
The chain has faced criticism in the fast over its service, notes Businessweek, so why not put the power in customers’ hands with kiosks to order from directly?
“The dirty little secret in the food industry is one in seven orders is wrong,” Panera Chief Executive Ron Shaich said in an interview. “We’re one in ten, a little better than average. Half of those inaccuracies happen during order input.”
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11 comments:
I won't even use the self checkout lanes in Wal Mart.I grudgingly use the kiosk at the WAWA food counter.The last thing I want to do is eliminate the need for employees.
929-Do you pump your own gasoline?
9:29 I feel the same way but with the minimum wage going up it won't be long before we see this in more places. As the article said it's not just about speed and wage cost but also about accuracy of the order. Automation took over in agriculture 80 years ago and cost went down and productivity went up. 40 years ago the same thing happened in manufacturing. Now it is beginning to happen in the service industry and education. Next will be health care.
Keep the employe. Jump their pay to $15/hour. Don't fault them when they make mistakes, show up late, argue with customers. Let the customer whine about higher prices and sloppy service. That's what freedom is all about.
Make it happen... screw the liberals who think raising the minimum wage has no consequences... Business will become smarter and decrease costs.
There should be no minimum wage.. let the market dictate the wages
The next thing is liberals passing a law against computers and these automatic check-out stations...lol
The bad news is the kiosk have more personality than the cashier in most places!
9:34-Yes I do,but not until I go into the store and pay the employee,who then turns on the pump.
944 yeah because min. wage did nothing to raise the standard of living or economic prowess of the US.
The standard of living and economic prowess of the U.S. was because of the productivity of American workers and businesses which led to the higher wages for those productive workers. Minimum wage had nothing to do with it.
Will they still have a tip jar?
Well Jim Ireton is pretty computer savy so he should still be able to bring Panera Bread lunch to your next "meeting":-)
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