Food Service Director magazine
April 15, 2002
Beginning on this page you'll find profiles of five non-commercial foodservice professionals who have ascended to the top of their respective fields. They are this year's winners of the Intl. Foodservice Mfrs. Assn.'s Silver Plate Award, and they, along with four operators from commercial restaurants, will find out if they have won IFMA's ultimate prize - the Gold Plate - next month in Chicago during the National Restaurant Association Show.
The profiles you'll read describe the careers of each Silver Plate winner leading up to their current positions. Here, then, is a summary of the key accomplishments that made them worthy of nomination.
Mary Keysor, dir. of food and nutrition at Maine Medical Center, oversees two in-patient feeding programs, five retail operations and meals for three out-patient centers. That translates to 750 patients and 5,500 retail customers daily, and annual revenue of approximately $3.9 million.
Retail sales on Maine's main campus increased 50% under Keysor's watch, with a 36% increase in the average check, 20% increase in transactions and a 50% drop in the hospital's subsidy. There are 21% more patient meals served, while catering sales grew 63%. A new marketplace concept, open 24 hours, records between 3,500 and 4,000 transactions daily.
Gary Green is ceo of Compass Group's North American Div., based in Charlotte, NC. According to FoodService Director's Contractor Census, Compass's portfolio exceeds 5,800 accounts, nearly half of which are in corporate dining. Revenues for FY 2001 were $4 billion, making it the third-largest contractor in North America.
Acquisitions completed during Green's tenure include Morrison Mgmt. Specialists, Bon Appetit Mgmt. Co., beaver Foods and Trinity. He also oversaw the acquisition of Au Bon Pain and the establishment of partnership with Levy Restaurants and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts.
Lavinia Johnson is a trainer and instructor in the Virginia Dept. of Corrections' Academy for Staff Development. The dept. comprised 96 jails, 22 prisons and 20 field units with collective daily meal volume of 1,200,000 at the time she moved into her position from dept. foodservice director.
The first person to hold such a title in Virginia, she works with the state dietitian to assist correctional foodservice personnel in earning dietary manager certification (CDM). She's now working with a task force to design a basic skills curriculum for new employees.
Donna Wittrock, exec. Dir. of food and nutrition services. At Denver Public Schools, manages an operating budget of more than $24.7 million. Her customer base includes 70,000 students in 127 schools, and the department serves more than 11,000 breakfasts and 35,000 lunches daily. Her summer foodservice program serves more than 6,000 meals per day in 30 schools.
Wittrock is very active with revenue-generating programs. A la carte sales are approximately $1.4 million per year throughout the district, and revenue from vending-which she took over in 2000-is $504,000 with profits of nearly $60,000.
J. Michael Floyd is head of the foodservice department at the University of Georgia in Athens, where meal plan participation exceeds 5,800 students. Campus foodservice revenue is approximately $15 million, and cash sales-thanks to continuing commitment to renovation-have grown 300% in the past five years.
The year he implemented an online meal plan payment option. And, two new dining centers to support an additional 5,000 residents are on the drawing board.
"To be successful, you have to be different," is the best advice J. Michael Floyd has received during his career in foodservice, he says. "People who follow what everyone else is doing never rise to the top. I've used that philosophy throughout my career. If everyone else is serving small boxes of cereal, I serve large; if they're serving four types of fruit juice, I serve 12."
Whether it's that advice, or simply his natural aptitude for his job, Floyd has enjoyed success. He worked in f/s for three years while studying education at Valdosta State (GA) University "and I realized that I was doing what I loved, so when I left, my first job was with Morrison. After 2 1/2 years I was invited to return to Valdosta as director. That was one of the highest compliments-that my alma mater wanted me back; and I was only 23."
Head first: In 1986 Floyd accepted the position of dept. head at the University of Georgia in Athens, where he has been ever since, and where he has implemented many positive changes, including increasing participation in the seven-day meal plan by 350%. "We promote the two Vs-variety and value-which has helped our meal plans.
"But the most successful thing we've done is extend our hours and students have unlimited access from 7 a.m. - 10 p.m. There was tremendous appreciation when I did this, especially by off-campus students. Our meal plan is totally voluntary, even for freshmen, and we sell more than there are bed spaces."
Rest room rationale: "We look at giving our customers something above what they expect. We validate parking at night, to let students know that we value them. And we even provide toilet seat covers because I think that our customers judge us by our rest rooms."
"It's the little things that make a difference. Another thing we offer is a 15-minute grace period to students. If a location closes at 7, for example, we let them in until 7:15. This eliminates confrontation and makes us the good guy."
Floyd sees meeting and greeting customers as one of the most important parts of his job. "My goal is to talk to 20 people per day. I want the students to know who I am and if they have a problem, I want them to come to me. It's the ultimate compliment when your customers recognize that you care."
Fridge philosophy: At the beginning of each school year, Floyd gives presentations to parents and students, to relieve some of the parents' worries. "We let them know that our dining halls are like a refrigerator — students just have to open the door and the food's all there."
All his hard work has not only paid off with the students, but Floyd's department has won Loyal E. Horton awards from the National Assn. Of College and Univ. Food Services 41 times during his stint as director. "We enter the competition because we're constantly trying to raise the bar and do better than the previous year,"
Despite all this hard work, he loves his job. "I enjoy the contact with customers, listening to them and taking care of their needs," he says.
College foodservice has changed during his years in it. "There used to be the mentality that the students had to buy food so we didn't really need to bother. Now, its' more service-driven and staff need to have more culinary skills. There's more food variety now. Years ago, you'd have two entrees, vegetables and a starch, but in the typical home now, no one's eating the same meal and that's what college f/s has to be like now. I couldn't even count the number of choices we offer."