F
or companies operating in a rapidly changing and modernizing industry, it’s imperative that they stay ahead of new ideas and technologies so they can keep pace with the skills and capabilities demanded by today’s marketplace. This is especially true of the foodservice equipment and supplies industry, where dealers are continuously seeking ways to optimize their operations and deploy new software or systems that will make them more efficient or open the doors to new markets. However, it can be difficult for one company to sort through all that information alone, which is why education is one of FEDA’s core missions. By providing educational programming and training opportunities, FEDA helps members stay informed about industry trends, enhance their skills, further individuals’ professional development, and sharpen companies’ competitive edge. The 2024 education lineup addressed each of these areas while focusing on three topics members have said they most want to know more about: technology (especially emerging technologies), the supply chain and finance. To deliver the kind of impactful and actionable education that members are looking for, FEDA not only tapped experts from within its existing network but has established key partnerships with two outside organizations that will carry into 2025 educational programming. Over the past year, both the Association for Finance Professionals and the Global Supply Chain Institute at the University of Tennessee’s Haslam College of Business have delivered quality and customized courses for FEDA members on essential finance and supply chain topics, respectively.
FEDA is excited to continue building on these newfound relationships as it works toward an even fuller slate of compelling education courses and development opportunities in the coming year.
Technology Inspired by the popular TED Talks series, FEDA
introduced its own take on the format at the 2024 FEDA Annual Executive Leadership Conference. Called FEDA Tech Talks, the 10-minute-long presentations centered on emerging technologies in the foodservice industry such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and the power of data. For an inaugural session, the Tech Talks proved
FEDA is excited to continue building on these newfound relationships as it works toward an even fuller slate of compelling education courses and development opportunities in the coming year.
to be overwhelmingly popular, with attendees spilling out of the lecture room as they heard specialists from FEDA member companies share tips, tools and strategies for seizing the opportunities created by these exciting, but complex technologies. The positive feedback from attendees affirmed members’ interest in seeing the series continue. As such, FEDA is pleased to reveal that not only will the Tech Talks return to the 2025 conference, but there will also be a virtual edition held sometime in the second quarter of the new year. The successful format will remain largely unchanged, with guest speakers and presenters from forward-looking FEDA member companies exploring the vast potential of emerging technologies and data.
Just as in 2024, FEDA members who attend the
Tech Talks and complete an accompanying quiz will be eligible to earn credits toward a FEDA Technology Strategic Skills Certification. In fact, those who missed this year’s Tech Talks can still earn education credits by watching the on-demand videos available on the FEDA Learn Institute (
www.learn.feda.com).
Finance
In partnership with the Association for Finance Professionals, FEDA presented two live webinars in 2024 that covered best practices for business modeling and data analytics applications in finance. These courses were customized to deliver relevant content for the finance professionals at FEDA member companies, allowing them to obtain continuing
Winter 2024 35
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
