Phil Crawford will oversee IT and retail technology for Dairy Queen corporate and its 7,800 restaurants worldwide as EVP and CTO for International Dairy Queen, according to a Tuesday press release. He succeeds Kevin Baartman, who is retiring.
Crawford, who previously served as the global head of food, beverage and hospitality at Adyen, has over 20 years of experience in IT and technology and has worked at restaurant brands including Carl’s Jr., Hardee’s, Shake Shack and Yard House, as well as retailer Godiva Chocolatier.
In his most recent position leading food and hospitality verticals at payments platform Adyen, Crawford partnered with various teams to help unlock new revenue streams and provide scalable solutions for better decision-making, according to his LinkedIn profile. At CKE Restaurants, he worked on development and management of global tech strategies for its QSR brands Carl’s Jr and Hardee’s.
“I am excited to lead the next chapter of the company’s technology strategy that builds a truly unified, scalable commerce ecosystem,” Crawford said in a statement. “Our goal will be to deepen consumer engagement and deliver exceptional experiences – whether our fans are ordering at drive thru, via delivery, in restaurant or through our digital platforms.”
Crawford wrote in a LinkedIn post that he aims to bring “fresh, tech-forward energy” to the company to make sure that operators have the tools they need to remain profitable.
Modern technology could also attract new franchisees into DQ’s system, especially as the chain is working to add more food-focused Grill & Chill locations. It began offering a $150,000 lump sum incentive in May and an additional $200,000 per store if development within 18 months of the first Grill & Chill opening.
DQ is already expanding a drive-thru voice AI test with Presto and began offering the tech to select franchisees earlier this year. The test at company-owned units led to positive results.
