Strategy

Restaurant data-driven: Build your dashboard in 7 steps

Your data contains the answers to all your strategic questions. You just have to organize them. Here’s how to build your dashboard.

Pepprio 6 min read

You cannot control what you don't measure. Restaurants that perform sustainably are those that have structured their reporting. Not a 50-KPI factory dashboard – a simple, actionable dashboard viewed every day. Here’s the method.

Step 1: Identify strategic questions

Before measuring, know what you want to know. Typical critical questions:

Am I profitable this month? Which channels are the most profitable? Which dishes are the most profitable? Are my teams productive? Are my clients returning? Are my platform notes good?

Based on these questions, you identify the necessary KPIs.

Step 2: Choose the essential KPIs

For a standard restaurant, 10-15 essential KPIs are sufficient. Plus, it's about drowning in information.

Financial advisors.

Total daily/monthly revenue and by channel Gross margin (CA - material cost) Material cost as % of CA Personnel cost as % of CA Estimated net margin

Traders

  • Number of orders per channel
  • Average basket per channel
  • Monthly growth rate and N vs. N-1

Operational

Average preparation time Cancellation rate per platform Average rating per platform

Strategic

Mix canal Top 5 articles vendus Productivité salariale (CA / heure travaillée)

Step 3: Identify Data Sources

Each KPI comes from a source:

KPISource
Revenue, average basket, itemsPOS
Orders platformsPlatforms or aggregator
Rating platformsPlatforms
Raw material costAccounting / technical sheets
Personnel costAccounting / payroll

The more sources you have, the more complex the consolidation becomes. Reducing the number of sources makes life easier.

Step 4: Centralize the data

Several approaches depending on your maturity:

Level 1: Excel spreadsheet / Google Sheets

Manual entry or data import. Enough to get started if team discipline.

Advantages: flexible, free, accessible. Limitations: spreadsheet fragile, tedious, prone to errors.

Level 2: POS with integrated reporting

Most modern POS systems (Zelty, Lightspeed, Innovorder, Cashpad, Popina) have a native reporting module.

Advantages: automatic for POS data. Limitations: limited to POS data, does not consolidate shipping.

Level 3: Aggregator + POS

A aggregator like Pepprio consolidates delivery data (all platforms) and provides a dashboard. Coupled with POS reporting, you have 80% of the dashboard.

Advantages: automatic, exhaustive on delivery + room. Limitations: does not include accounting consolidation.

Level 4: Dedicated BI Solution

For groups, BI tools (Power BI, Tableau, Looker, Metabase) consolidate all sources into a custom dashboard.

Advantages: total flexibility, multi-site. Limitations: cost and implementation complexity.

Step 5: Build the dashboard

Design Principles:

Top: critical KPIs

3-5 key indicators in large format: daily sales, number of orders, average basket, estimated margin. Everything visible at a glance.

In the middle: comparisons

7-day evolution, comparison vs. previous month, vs. N-1. Absolute figures say nothing without context.

At the bottom: the details

Top selling articles, performance by platform, alerts. The elements to explore if something catches the eye.

Adapted visualizations

Numbers for absolute values Bar charts for comparisons Lines for temporal trends Tables for granular details

No "wow" visualizations – each graph should serve a decision.

Step 6: Define the alert thresholds

For each critical KPI, define:

  • Green: everything is good (above target threshold)
  • Orange: needs monitoring (below threshold but not critical)
  • Red: immediate action required

Platform average rating: Green > 4.5, Orange 4.2-4.5, Red < 4.2 Cancellation rate: Green < 2%, Orange 2-5%, Red > 5% Daily revenue: Green ≥ target, Orange 80-100% target, Red < 80%

Colors guide attention without requiring mental calculation at every consultation.

Step 7: Consultation Routine

An unused dashboard has no value. Establish a routine:

Daily (5 minutes)

Review of critical KPIs Identification of red alerts Immediate action if necessary

Weekly (30 minutes)

Weekly Review

  • Comparison vs. previous week
  • Pattern identification

Monthly (1-2 hours)

In-depth analysis Action plans for the next month Team discussion on insights

Quarterly

Strategic Review Major Adjustments (map, price, promotion, platforms)

Traps to Avoid

Here are some common pitfalls to watch out for when starting a new project:

  • Lack of a clear vision: Without a well-defined goal, it's easy to lose focus and direction.
  • Scope creep: Allowing the project's requirements to expand uncontrollably can lead to delays and budget overruns.
  • Poor communication: Ineffective communication between team members and stakeholders can cause misunderstandings and conflicts.
  • Insufficient planning: Failing to adequately plan the project's timeline, resources, and tasks can result in chaos and inefficiency.
  • Ignoring risks: Not identifying and mitigating potential risks can lead to unexpected problems and setbacks.

It's crucial to proactively address these issues to increase the chances of project success.

Too many KPIs.

A dashboard with 50 indicators is not being used. Stick to the 10-15 essential ones.

KPIs without an action plan. "My cancellation rate is 8% for 3 months." But no action is taken. Either it's important and we act, or it's not important and we remove the KPI.

Outdated data A dashboard updated monthly loses much of its essential operational interest. Aim for daily or real-time for critical KPIs.

No owner If no one is responsible for the dashboard, it drifts. The manager or a dedicated point of contact must be in charge of it.

The bare minimum to get started

If you start and it seems overwhelming, here's the bare minimum:

Daily sales report by channel (in your POS) Number of orders by platform (via your Pepprio aggregator or platform apps) Average rating per platform (via your aggregator or platform apps) Top 5 best-selling items (via POS)

These 4 indicators, monitored daily, already give you 80% of the necessary control. You will gradually expand it.

The evolution over time

As you master:

Month 1-3: Key Performance Indicators, daily routine Month 4-6: Addition of analyses (channel mix, margin per item) Month 7-12: Forecasts, structured A/B tests Year 2+: Sophisticated BI, predictive models

This progression respects your learning curve.

Voici la conclusion :

Il est important de souligner que l'étude a démontré une corrélation significative entre l'utilisation intensive des réseaux sociaux et une diminution du bien-être psychologique chez les adolescents. Plus précisément, nous avons observé une augmentation des cas de dépression, d'anxiété et de troubles du sommeil chez les jeunes utilisateurs qui passent plus de trois heures par jour sur ces plateformes.

Cette observation est corroborée par d'autres recherches récentes, qui mettent en évidence les effets négatifs de la comparaison sociale, du cyberharcèlement et de la peur de manquer quelque chose (FOMO) sur la santé mentale des adolescents. Il est crucial de sensibiliser les parents, les éducateurs et les jeunes eux-mêmes aux risques potentiels liés à une utilisation excessive des réseaux sociaux.

Nous recommandons donc la mise en place de stratégies de prévention et d'intervention, telles que l'éducation aux médias, le développement de compétences en matière de gestion du temps et la promotion d'activités alternatives qui favorisent le bien-être et la socialisation en face à face. De plus, il est essentiel de soutenir les adolescents qui présentent des signes de détresse psychologique et de les orienter vers des professionnels de la santé mentale.

Enfin, il convient de noter que cette étude ne constitue qu'une première étape dans la compréhension de l'impact des réseaux sociaux sur la santé mentale des adolescents. Des recherches supplémentaires sont nécessaires pour identifier les facteurs de risque spécifiques et pour évaluer l'efficacité des différentes interventions.

Data-driven isn't a trend – it’s the natural evolution of professional management. Restaurants that survive and thrive in the next five years will be those who master their data.

Pepprio provides the analytical delivery layer (all platforms, all channels) that integrates with your POS to give you the unified vision necessary for effective data-driven management.

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