FS/TEC advisers span full spectrum of industry segments, conditions

Nation's Restaurant News, April 17, 2006

Reflecting the dynamism of the industry it serves, the 2006 advisory board of the International Foodservice Technology Exposition, or FS/TEC, now includes representatives from major restaurant companies in motion, including Burger King Corp. and Wendy's International Inc.

FS/TEC 2006 will take place Nov. 5-8 at the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center in Long Beach, Calif.

Joining the 21-person FS/TEC advisory board this year is Jonathan Fitzpatrick, Burger King's vice president of information technology, or IT, for the Americas, and Robert Whittington, Wendy's senior vice president and chief information officer, or CIO. Those officials of the industry's No. 2 and No. 3 burger chains join an FS/TEC board representing such eminent foodservice organizations as contract sector leader Compass Group, dinnerhouse titan Darden Restaurants Inc. and quick-service giants McDonald's Corp. and Yum! Brands Inc.

Miami-based Burger King this year is making an initial public offering. Wendy's, of Dublin, Ohio, is spinning off shares of its Tim Hortons bakery-cafe concept and selling to franchisees some of its company-owned Wendy's restaurants in a restructuring encouraged, in part, by large shareholders.

"Advisory board members such as Jonathan Fitzpatrick and Robert Whittington help us keep in mind the changing needs of changing companies. They are an important part of the mix of industry, education and conference management experience represented on the panel," said Alan Gould, publisher of Nation's Restaurant News, which manages and produces FS/TEC with Robert Grimes of Accuvia.

Grimes added, "The wide range of perspectives found on this year's board is invaluable, as this group is a key source of ideas for conference program content, keynote speakers and award recipients."

Fitzpatrick's involvement with the FS/TEC Advisory Board in 2006 marks the first time in five years that the world's second-largest quick-service burger chain has had representation on the panel.

Whittington, in his posts at Wendy's and on the advisory board, succeeds John Deane, who late last year was named Wendy's executive vice president of operations.

Returning members of the FS/TEC Advisory Board are Steve Barrow, vice president of IT for Luby's Inc., Houston; Larry Beckwith, vice president of information services for Bob Evans Farms Inc., Columbus, Ohio; Delaney Bellinger, CIO of Yum! Brands Inc., Louisville, Ky.; Jeff Chasney, executive vice president of strategic planning and CIO of CKE Restaurants Inc., Carpinteria, Calif.; Valerie K. Collins, senior vice president and CIO of Darden Restaurants, Orlando, Fla.; Ron DiNella, chief financial officer of Morton's Restaurant Group Inc., Chicago; Lou Grande, vice president of IT for Rare Hospitality International Inc., Atlanta; and Martyn Holland, CIO and senior vice president of systems, HMSHost Corp., Bethesda, Md.

Also renewing their association with the advisory board are Rob Jakoby, CIO and vice president of management information systems, Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc., Greenwood Village, Colo.; Michael Kasavana, NAMA professor for the school of hospitality business at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich.; Elizabeth King, vice president of information management services for Starbucks Corp., Seattle; Alan Liddle, technology editor for Nation's Restaurant News, New York, N.Y.; Stuart H. Mann, dean of the William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration at the, University of Nevada, Las Vegas; and Darla Morse, vice president of IT, Walt Disney World, Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Other 2006 FS/TEC Advisory Board members are: Peter Nyheim, technology instructor for Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa.; Mark Ozawa, managing director of consulting for Accuvia, Potomac, Md.; Mike Plunkett, senior vice president of food and beverage, purchasing and operations strategy for Dave & Busters Inc., Dallas; Rob Watkins, CIO of Compass Group Americas Division, Charlotte, N.C.; and David Weick, senior vice president and CIO for McDonald's, Oak Brook, III.