Jack In The Box 2005 Annual Report Download - page 7

Quick-serve is a highly competitive segment
of the restaurant industry. And with the
emergence of fast-casual dining, how will
Jack in the Box attempt to grow sales?
Same-store sales at company-operated
Jack in the Box restaurants have increased for
nine consecutive quarters, and the 2.4 percent
increase in 2005 was on top of a 4.6 percent
increase last year. To build upon these results,
we must distinguish Jack in the Box from com-
petitors and be the preferred fast-food destination
for our core audience as well as others looking
for a choice of quality, portable products. It’s
important that we establish and maintain an
emotional connection with our guests by delivering
a superior dining experience with each and every
visit. That experience encompasses everything
from the food to the service to the restaurant
facility. We’ve already made great progress in
reinventing the Jack in the Box brand by upgrading
our menu with products like our entrée salads,
ciabatta burgers and sandwiches, and Natural
Cut Fries. Along with continued menu innovation,
other key elements of brand reinvention include
improving guest service and re-imaging our
restaurant facilities.
What are you doing to improve guest service
at your restaurants?
Only by hiring and retaining the best employees
can we expect to deliver the best service to our
guests. So we’ve rolled out several programs to
support employees through each stage of their
“life cycle” with the company, from recruitment
through retirement. These workforce programs,
which are intended to engage employees in our
culture while fostering job satisfaction, include
computer-based training, affordable healthcare
for all hourly workers and an ESL (English-as-
a-second-language) program that helps our
Spanish-speaking employees improve their
communication skills. Largely as a result of
these and other internal service programs, crew
turnover is down while our restaurants’ guest-
service scores are on the rise. That’s according
to feedback generated through a new restaurant-
evaluation program called “Voice of the Customer”
that we implemented at the beginning of the year.
This program provides each restaurant with more
relevant and more frequent guest feedback than
the mystery-guest program that we used previously,
and at a much lower cost.
What’s the status of your program to re-image
Jack in the Box restaurants?
We began testing several designs in the second
half of 2005 with a goal of more effectively inte-
grating Jack’s personality into the restaurant
facility. We’re looking at both interior and exterior
enhancements, including new color schemes,
furniture, lighting, flooring and landscaping, as
well as music, menu boards, product packaging
and employee uniforms. Re-imaging our restaurants
is a major component of brand reinvention, so
we’ll roll out a new design scheme only after it
meets our performance objectives.
What did you learn during your market
tests of JBX Grill?
We learned a lot, and we’re applying much of what
we learned to our Jack in the Box brand. JBX Grill
was a great catalyst for developing innovative
“It’s important that we establish and
maintain an emotional connection
with our guests by delivering a
superior dining experience with
each and every visit.”
&A