BKUK achieves cost-neutral labour model with Fourth’s Auto-Scheduling capability

Customer Profile

Burger King UK (BKUK) is the Master Franchisee for Burger King, one of the most recognised QSR brands in the UK. The group has scaled from 80 directly owned locations to 293 restaurants and boasts a diverse estate that includes drive-thrus, kiosk and in-line locations, and 24-hour sites.

Locations: 293 | Employees: 4,600

Challenges Faced

Managers at BKUK’s sites relied on historic shift patterns to schedule staff. These didn’t align with peak demand and made no considerations for the specific staffing needs of individual venues. As a result, Google reviews often highlighted slow service and order delays. With wage costs increasing significantly in April 2024, BKUK needed to find a way to manage labour costs while improving service levels and enhancing guest experience.

Solution

BKUK needed a tool to ensure the right people were on shift at the right time. A long-standing Fourth customer, the team jumped at the chance to become an early-adopter of the new Auto-Scheduling solution. It was implemented by Fourth’s Productivity Consulting team alongside refinements to BKUK’s labour deployment rules.

• The project’s focus was not to cut hours but to ensure more efficient labour deployment – something historic shift patterns failed to do.
  Fourth’s AI-driven sales and labour modelling helped predict optimal staffing levels, ensuring peak periods were covered.
• Managers were set labour deployment accuracy targets (90% green before sign-off, 80% once actualised) and required to hit their allowed hours targets.
• The rollout started with a single location before expanding to 10, then 30, and eventually all 293 restaurants.]

It was a complete overhaul of previous ways of working, and BKUK invested heavily in managing the change. The leadership team were fully bought-in to the project and engaged Restaurant Managers early on. This ensured broad support and participation from end-users and helped the QSR chain achieve its goals.

Results Achieved

By leveraging Fourth’s scheduling solution, including the Fourth iQ Auto-Scheduling capability, BKUK achieved:

• 1% labour cost saving
• Cost-neutral labour model for 2024
• 7-10% increase in labour deployment accuracy
• Enhanced service quality