Host: Chris FletcherGuests:

Liz McKinnon – Strategic Accounts, Sky Business (13+ years at Sky)
Jatin Chandwani – Chief Product & Growth Officer, Byte by Yum (overseeing KFC, Taco Bell, Habit Burger & Pizza Hut's SaaS platform)

Recorded live on stage, this episode dives deep into how reliable connectivity has become the backbone of modern hospitality operations — from QSR chains to stadia. The conversation covers how real-time data, AI-driven automation, and seamless guest experiences are all dependent on getting the fundamentals of connectivity right.

1. The Three C's of Connectivity (Liz McKinnon)

Coverage – ensuring your restaurant has signal everywhere it needs
Capacity – handling the growing volume of data traffic
Connectivity – making it fit for purpose and reviewing it continuously, not just at install

2. Connectivity as a Data Continuity Engine (Jatin Chandwani)

Connectivity has evolved from a utility (like water or electricity) to a mission-critical data pipeline
Without it, team members work blind and guest experience suffers immediately
Digital orders (mobile app, aggregators, kiosks) can make up 30–60% of revenue — all dependent on connectivity

3. Speed, Taste & Experience in QSR

The challenge of serving fresh food (e.g. KFC's 15-min cook time) to customers who expect it in 2 minutes
Technology and data forecasting are key to managing this tension
AI forecasting for inventory and labor scheduling has delivered measurable improvements

4. Real-Time Data & Agentic AI

Moving from "dashboard era" (acting on yesterday's data) to agentic workflows (acting within the shift)
Fryer data, hot-hold systems, sales data and customer data combined = next best action in real time
Properly connected stores can improve performance by 10–20%
Kill switches and guardrails are essential — AI governance must be built in from day one, not added later

5. Guest WiFi as a Business Channel

"Snacking data" — QSR customers connect briefly; stadia customers stay for hours; both need seamless WiFi
Guest connectivity supports app check-ins, order status, and acquisition/retention
WiFi splash pages can drive promotions, loyalty sign-ups, and personalized messaging

6. GDPR & Consent> "Bad consent kills good data. Good consent builds long-term customer relationships." — Jatin Chandwani

GDPR is not a constraint — it's a trust engine
Sky supports customers with a robust framework to handle data collection properly
Targeted, meaningful consent leads to better, more relevant customer conversations

7. The Future: Unified Ecosystems

Operators must move away from point solutions toward unified, connected ecosystems
AI + connectivity together will automate mundane tasks, reduce team cognitive load, and elevate the customer experience
"We're moving from the age of dashboards to the age of agent workflows for specific business outcomes." — Jatin Chandwani

"You cannot function without connectivity." — Jatin Chandwani
"It's not install and forget — you put it in and you re-look at it." — Liz McKinnon
"We were dropping money on the floor because of poor connectivity." — Chris Fletcher
"Humans are craving more human connection — tech should free up your team to provide that." — Jatin Chandwani

Treat connectivity like labour and food cost — it belongs at the boardroom table
Review and right-size your connectivity estate regularly as your tech stack evolves
Build redundancy and failover into your solution — downtime is immediately visible in sales
Partner with your connectivity provider; it's an evolving relationship, not a one-time install
Start collecting consented, structured data now — it's the foundation for everything AI will enable

Connectivity, Data & the Future of Hospitality Tech