What are the biggest operational shifts you anticipate needing to make in 2026 - labor, supply chain, menu, or technology?

Having the insight to predict upcoming operational changes and being able to adapt to those changes goes a long way in the success of any business. As we look ahead to 2026, Franchise Update asked members of the Multi-Unit Franchisee Advisory Board for their thoughts about some of the biggest operational issues they anticipate in the coming year.

The most popular response to that question was the topic of labor. Whether it is through higher minimum wage rates or other factors, the cost of labor continues to increase. That causes restaurant operators to try to offset these expenses through greater efficiency. That may come through streamlined processes, scheduling, or the use of technology.

Implementing technology, and in some cases AI, will continue to be a priority for restaurant franchisees in the near future. While that also goes hand-in-hand with increasing labor efficiency, harnessing the best use of technology is also visible in the front of the house by optimizing the customer experience.

In Multi-Unit Franchisee magazine, we try to go beyond just the professional stories of the franchisees we feature. We also want to give our readers an idea of what these successful entrepreneurs are like as a person. One example is when we ask for one thing that most people don’t know about them. It could be a hidden talent, personal interest, or their history before getting into franchising. See the Franchisee Bytes section below to gain additional insights about these multi-unit restaurant operators.

David Ostrowe

Company: 180 Business Solutions and O&M Restaurant Group

Brands: 28 Taco Bell

Years in Franchising: 30

Labor efficiency and automation will be the story. With labor cost stability, the focus shifts to productivity — better scheduling tools, cleaner processes, and tech that removes friction for both employees and guests. We’ll keep tightening supply chain partnerships and pushing for more predictability as commodity pressure continues. Menu simplification and speed will matter more than ever, especially as construction and insurance costs push us toward higher-return projects.

John Hotchkiss

Company: DHC of San Antonio

Brands: 45 Little Caesars, 4 Dave's Hot Chicken, 2 Firehouse Subs

Years in Franchising: 25

As labor costs continue to climb, our primary operational focus remains on maximizing unit efficiency and optimizing flow-through. Our franchisors are playing a crucial role by providing guidance to help us stabilize costs. This includes optimizing our operations flow, utilizing technology for streamlined order and inventory management, refining our menu pricing, and working to diversify our supply chain to mitigate exposure to both inflation and new tariffs.

Tamra Kennedy

Company: Twin City T.J.’s

Brands: 6 Taco John’s

Years in Franchising: 41

Labor will continue to be our most serious need indefinitely. With labor costs continuing to rise, mandatory benefits per our state adding to the expense, we are faced with labor efficiencies that are difficult to achieve with understaffed locations.

Hannibal Myers

Company: Global Restaurant Hospitality Group

Brands: 31 Church’s Texas Chicken

Years in Franchising: 33

Given the anticipated further minimum wage increases in the California markets where we operate and continued pressure on the fundamental QSR supply chain elements, regardless of concept particulars, the following operational shifts are being prepped by our team and many other QSR franchisees:

• Tighter labor scheduling, including a maniacal focus on eliminating “overtime creep” by staying fully staffed at all times across all positions.
• Enhanced menu management with an eye towards ensuring any promotional offers are properly tested and vetted by the franchisor prior to rollout. That also includes very slow-moving menu items that are more thoroughly and quickly analyzed than in the past and removed from the menu, if warranted.
• Continued technology assessments to identify ways to automate the simpler, repetitive tasks or processes involved in operating our stores. The initial focus of this initiative will be on ways to extend the life of products used in the cooking process, ways to extend and monitor the mean time between failure metrics of key equipment, and opportunities to automate simpler cooking tasks that don't require meaningful skill or human judgment to perform.

Robert Branca

Company: Brand Management Group

Brands: 39 Dunkin’, 7 Interstate Battery

Years in Franchising: 22

Technology is always evolving, and our industry as a whole seems to always be on some older version of it, and not the newest. However, the newest is often not ready for scale in a large franchise network. It typically is one size fits all and not molded to a particular brand standard. We as an industry need to be more demanding and, as franchisees, more demanding in terms of user friendliness and ease of integration. Systems need to talk to each other and cannot be more costly than the sales and efficiencies that they drive.

While supply chain constraints have eased, there have been newer challenges with things like tariffs on products we cannot produce here. We recently got some relief on that, which was due to our robust government relations team’s efforts. The GR efforts have been the gift that keeps on giving since we began doing it years ago. The franchise industry needs to continue its efforts in this space. The results of the effort are plain to see. We need all hands on deck, especially in some states that are piling on regulations and unfriendly policies.

Franchisee Bytes

What do most people not know about you?

I lived in Germany two separate times when I was a kid as both my parents served in the Army. My dad is a retired lieutenant colonel, and my mom is a retired major. We moved every two to three years. I think that's why I can adapt to different environments and make friends so easily.
-Jerome Johnson, Multi-Unit Franchisee, John Cove Management and Jbar Inc., 4 Sonic Drive-In, 10 Dunkin', 4 Baskin-Robbins, 1 Jersey Mike's Subs

I love the art of design and innovation.
-Chris Aslam, CEO & Principal, Rock Strategies and various entities, 59 Jack in the Box, 5 Golden Chick, 5 Hawaiian Bros Island Grill

Before franchising, I had a background in the medical field.
-Yunus Shahul, Franchise Owner, Smartfoods Group, 24 Cousins Maine Lobster, 1 German Doner Kebab

I used to be an event DJ. I started while I was in high school.
-Amol Kohli, Managing Partner, Legacy Brands International, 63 Orange Leaf, 61 Friendly’s (franchisor), 60 Clean Juice, 36 Red Mango, 6 Humble Donut Co., 3 Souper Salad, 1 Smoothie Factory + Kitchen

I received a scholarship to play Division 1 football at Oregon, but after the first season, I actually gave my scholarship back, left school, and married my wife. I started my career rather than going back to college and began working with a franchisee of multiple McDonald’s. I worked my way up through the ranks and ended up running multiple stores for them.
-Tom Lovelace, Owner/President, Tom Lovelace Group, 96 Papa Murphy’s

I want to live in The Bahamas one day. The only time I am truly clearheaded is when I am on the water.
-Nick Crouch, Co-CEO, Dyne Hospitality Group, 118 Tropical Smoothie Cafe

I love to raise goats and chickens. After a long day at work, it is therapeutic to just watch my goats and chickens as they go about their day.
-David Weeks, CEO, The Bean Team, 9 Barberitos, 8 Dunkin’, 4 Newk’s Eatery, 1 Dunkin’/Newk’s co-brand

I have remarkably impressive penmanship, which is a rare and surprising skill in today's digital age.
-Jacob Webb, Franchise Owner, MPUT Holdings LLC, 22 Marco's Pizza, 4 Tropical Smoothie Cafe