Bringing FCSI members together for an event to inspire and inform before The NAFEM Show kicks off is a tradition that attendees always look forward to.
And if delegates leave the FCSI The Americas Symposium with three new ideas to take back to their businesses, executive director Wade Koehler will be satisfied. Alongside FCSI’s director of member services Penny Price and their 12-strong conference planning committee he has worked on a program that will educate, inspire and excite in equal measure.
From a magician to fairground rides and even a dunk tank, you’d be forgiven for mistaking this year’s pre-NAFEM Show Symposium for a carnival. And that is precisely the theme of the 2025 event, which, as always, will take place just before the NAFEM Show, on February 24-25, in Georgia, Atlanta.
A fun and unique theme
“The night before the Symposium, we’re throwing what is almost like a live county fair. We’ll have a bunch of different games where prizes can be won and plenty of bars where people can get cocktails and carnival food, but we’ve learnt from previous events to keep entertainment to a minimum,” says Koehler who has worked on the organizing of the Symposium since it started in 2015.
“If you put on a band or a comedian, not a lot of people pay attention and you end up feeling bad for the performer. Attendees are here to network. It’s the first time many of them will have seen each other since our conference last April, so, although we always try to come up with a fun and unique theme, we tend to get out of the way and let everybody catch up.”
That is, until the educational program gets underway at 7.30am the following morning. This year, the opening keynote will come from motivational speaker Phil Gwoke (see p16), who will delve into the latest trends among Gen Z consumers. He will explore what the younger generation is looking for in terms of food and the wider dining experience, as well as the key characteristics of Gen Z and how these are influencing the foodservice industry.
The rest of the day will largely be made up of panels. “Attendees of past events have been very clear that they really love a panel session – they like to hear different inputs from a variety of people instead of just one person standing up and talking at them,” says Price who has been with the organization for the past 12 years. Topics to expect include: the ‘Power of no’; AI-driven solutions; staff development; how to meet code and decarbonize kitchens; the future intersection of design, equipment, maintenance and training; and tech tools to manage workload and increase productivity.
A program that appeals to everyone
While it’s now possible to condense the program of events into a short list, the process of putting it together was far from that simple. Each year, a conference planning committee of Professional member consultants and Allied members meticulously designs the Symposium. This year’s group is the largest yet.
“The one thing Penny and I always stress is that we’re not foodservice consultants – we don’t know the industry’s pain points,” says Koehler. “That’s why our 12-member committee includes both consultants and Allied members, ensuring we get input from all perspectives to create a program that appeals to everyone, not just the consultants.”
But they don’t just rely on ideas from the committee itself. “A key part of the planning process is soliciting ideas from our members,” says Koehler. “People can pitch proposals they want to talk about or tell us what they’re struggling with at their company or in their particular job. Then we all get together for a full day somewhere, in person, and go through all the proposals. We kind of throw them up on the wall and see if there are any themes, patterns or trends, and the program begins taking shape from there.”
For Price, that in-person meeting is invaluable. “Of course, we go through a lot of things on conference calls and video chats, but it’s really important to get everyone in a room together where they can brainstorm and interact with each other,” she says. “That’s where we get the best ideas about the way we’re going to take the sessions.”
AI was unsurprisingly a topic that many members were keen to learn more about, and FCSI members Doug Huber and Andrey Teleguz, who have both worked extensively with AI design, were happy to step in and develop a session on the subject. But others were more of a surprise. “One topic that ended up emerging from a bunch of questions we got was the ‘Power of no’ session,” Koehler says.
“More than three quarters – 78% – of our consultants in the Americas are small business owners, meaning their businesses are made up of five people or less. You’ve only got so many hours in the day and only so much bandwidth that you can handle as far as work goes. So, if you’re at your peak right now, how do you say no to something that needs to be done right away from a current client without having them go somewhere else? That topic came about after a long conversation around the table and those are the fun ones to watch, because they kind of come organically from discussions.”
Three is the magic number
After the educational sessions, the carnival theme will return in force. The closing keynote will come from magician Tom Pesce (see p22), who will deliver a highly visual and interactive ‒ but most importantly, uplifting ‒ close to the slow. He will then stay on and deliver roaming magic tricks, while the workshop portion of the program kicks off. “We’re going to have four demo stations for the last hour of the day – sort of micro-learning experiences where attendees can enjoy some hands-on challenges,” says Price.
As with every Symposium he has been involved in organizing, Koehler’s goal is for everybody to walk away with three new ideas to take back to the office. “That’s it,” he says. “Three. They might get one from a session. They might get one from a keynote. They could get one from a discussion they have with someone at lunch or from a chat with a fellow consultant at the bar. It doesn’t matter where the ideas come from. If leave with three new ideas that you can implement when you get back to the office, you’ve had a successful conference.”
Although the vast majority of attendees won’t be going straight home, with Koehler estimating that 90-95% will go on to attend at least one day of The NAFEM Show, which starts the day after, and where Koehler and Price will be waiting for them at the FCSI booth. “It’s kind of a meeting spot for our members. They can attend our Symposium, then they have kind of a ‘home base’ to come during the show where they can have meetings or just kick back, relax and catch up with other FCSI members.
“It’s great for us because during the Symposium, we are invariably running around, ensuring everything goes smoothly, but at NAFEM, we have three days to just sit down and talk with our members. We love The NAFEM Show for that; they are great hosts for us on the show floor.”
In the dunk tank for bragging rights
A few FCSI personalities ‒ including Koehler ‒ will need to make sure they are dried off first. “During the carnival party, there is going to be a dunk tank!” he grins. “Myself and event chair Sojo Alex, as well as some other well-known faces and some people that are a bit newer to the industry will be in the dunk tank for 15 to 20 minutes and all the money raised is going to the FCSI Educational Foundation. It’s a bit of a bragging rights contest to see who sells the most tickets.” Let the games begin!
Elly Earls
