News

HotSchedules launches restaurant data marketplace

HotSchedules, provider of mobile and cloud-based technology for the restaurant and hospitality industries, today announced the launch of Bodhi, an open platform-as-a-service solution, designed to promote lower cost integrations and the rapid development of mobile applications.

March 19, 2015

HotSchedules, provider of mobile and cloud-based technology for the restaurant and hospitality industries, today announced the launch of Bodhi, an open platform-as-a-service solution, designed to promote lower cost integrations and the rapid development of mobile applications. Bodhi allows restaurants and retailers to collect and leverage their data to improve insight and drive business transformation.

Bodhi intends to eliminate the barrier between restaurants and data by providing a marketplace for restaurants to find new apps that can work with their systems. Bodhi's restaurant middleware collects data from any source, consolidates real-time data in the Bodhi Cloud and delivers data through Bodhi Mobile apps or to third-party solutions through the open Bodhi API, according to the announcement. Restaurants can act on key performance indicators in real time, a feature designed to promote efficiency and productivity. Independent solution providers can integrate their existing solutions, build and host new mobile apps on the Bodhi platform and increase their reach by offering their apps to HotSchedules' customers across the globe, the press release said.  

Examples of the data restaurants can access with Bodhi include:

• In-store data such as POS, scheduling systems, IP enabled restaurant equipment and devices like fryers, sensors and beacons
• Near-store data from location-based apps like weather, calendars, traffic and social media information (such as Yelp, Google Places and OpenTable)
• Above-store data such as inventory management, ordering, marketing and accounting systems

The data collected can be used in a number of ways.  A few simple use cases for Bodhi might include:

• Displaying key performance indicators such as live sales, guest counts and transaction data on mobile dashboards, regardless of source POS system.
• If bad weather is forecasted, Bodhi can alert managers at affected areas and recommend shift changes.
• As employees walk into the store, a Bodhi mobile app detects the user location and prompts the user to clock in (or clock out when they leave the store).

Dipock Das, HotSchedules vice president, Technology, said in the release, "By delivering pre-built integrations to the POS and simplifying cloud and mobile development, Bodhi shifts the focus so that Restaurant IT and developers can create, deploy and operate apps that deliver value to the industry, much faster and at lower cost instead of struggling to integrate disparate systems for single point solutions. We want to give developers the tools they need so they can be heroes to the business."