Human at the Counter

What do a bear, a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos, and a blue jean Pinto have to do with hospitality? Turns out, quite a bit.

In this episode of Human at the Counter, I’m joined by Ginnie Dunleavy, Executive Director for Auxiliary Services at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), to explore the intersection of AI, storytelling, and hospitality.

Drawing on Ginnie’s background as a storyteller and her leadership in a deeply creative campus environment, we talk about why great storytelling is more than marketing, it’s how we make experiences memorable, communicate what matters, and help people feel connected to the places they inhabit.

Along the way, Ginnie shares a few unforgettable stories of her own. We also explore where AI can help us uncover and amplify great stories, where it risks sanding off the wonderfully weird human details that make stories worth telling, and what hospitality leaders can learn from storytelling about creating connection and belonging.

Because sometimes the stories that stick aren’t the most polished ones. They’re the ones that remind us there are real humans on both sides of the counter.

Episode 9 - "The customer is always right."

Few phrases have shaped hospitality more...and few have caused more unintended damage.

In this episode of Human at the Counter, Elizabeth sits down with Jennifer Wood and Johann Leitner from Touchwork to explore what happens when AI enters the feedback loop.

Today's technology can analyze thousands of guest comments, identify trends in seconds, and alert leaders before small problems become big ones. That's powerful.

But AI doesn't know the difference between a true service failure and a guest having a really bad day.

Together, they unpack the evolving role of sentiment analysis, real-time feedback, and customer reviews—and why the most effective leaders use data to create context, not just react to complaints. Because great hospitality isn't about chasing every negative review. It's about building systems where guests feel cared for and employees feel respected.

After all, the goal isn't perfect satisfaction scores. It's sustainable hospitality.

What you'll learn:

• Why "the customer is always right" may be overdue for a rewrite
• How AI can help separate meaningful trends from one-off complaints
• The hidden costs of managing moment by moment
• Why employee experience and guest experience are inseparable
• Practical ways leaders can use AI to support, not punish, their teams

Episode 7 – Now Hiring: Humans & Algorithms (with Jon Riede)

What happens when the first handshake in a job interview isn’t with a person—but an algorithm?

In this episode of Human at the Counter, Elizabeth explores the growing role of AI in hiring—from résumé screening and automated video interviews to the promise of reducing bias and expanding candidate pools. But as organizations adopt these tools, a bigger question emerges: Are we making better hiring decisions—or just faster ones?

Elizabeth sits down with technology and talent expert Jon Riede to unpack the good, the bad, and the slightly creepy side of AI-powered hiring. Together they explore how leaders can balance efficiency with judgment, and why culture still depends on the human behind the interview.

Artificial Intelligence isn't a future conversation, it's already shaping how we staff, advise, forecast, and serve.

In this episode of, Elizabeth sits down with Appalachian State University CIO Keith Werner and Deputy CIO/Deputy COO Tom Van Guilder to explore what responsible AI leadership looks like in high education and why it matters across hospitality and service industries.

From predictive analytics to policy guardrails, they unpack the tension between efficiency and equity, proactive support and the risks and rewards of being "creepy helpful"

Because AI can optimize operations. But trust? That still requires humans.

In this episode, Elizabeth sits down with hospitality leader Jon Webster to talk about the messy middle of supervising - where data meets humanity., AI meets real-life constraints, and supervisors somehow keep everything (and everyone) from falling apart.

It's a conversation for anyone who's ever been the peanut butter holding two slices of organizational expectations together - and for the technologists building tools for people running at full tilt.

Aprons off, wisdom on. Elizabeth dives into the life lessons service work leaves behind - joined by Julie Holmes, a tech innovator helping teams capture their hard-won know-how, to explore how AI can help keep hospitality human.

EPISODE 3 - The Data Diet

Data and trends are everywhere in foodservice, but not all of it deserves a seat at the table. In this episode, Elizabeth Riede sits down with industry analyst and strategist Maeve Webster, President of Menu Matters, to talk about how operators can use data to forecast demand, cut waste, and engineer smarter menus without losing the human judgment that makes hospitality work.

From "data rich and insight poor" dashboards to the ethics of AI and personalization, Maeve and Elizabeth dig into what it really means to go on a data diet: choosing the right metrics, asking better questions, and remembering that numbers don't feed people - people feed people.

EPISODE 2 - The Personal Touch: From Chaos to Connection

The moments that matter most in hospitality aren't always the big ones, they're the personal ones.

In this episode of Human at the Counter, Elizabeth Riede sits down with Michael Craig, co-founder and Chief Customer Officer of Nutrislice, an Inc 500 SaaS company based in Denver, to talk about how personalization transforms the guest experience. Since 2011, Mike has helped shape Nutrislice into one of the fastest growing tech companies in foodservice, leading strategy, sales, and marketing before turning his focus to the future of digital hospitality. He's a sought after speaker and writer on the intersection of nutrition, consumer preferences, and technology. At home in Denver, he's the proud father of eight kids - which means he knows a thing or two about managing chaos.

Episode 1: Humanity Check: Do You Pass? Welcome to Human at the Counter, the show where we explore what it really means to lead, serve, and connect in a world that sometimes feels like it’s running on autopilot.

In our premiere episode, host Elizabeth Riede kicks off the conversation about where hospitality is headed in the age of AI, automation, and convenience culture.

We ask a big question facing hospitality professionals: Are we using tech to release people or to replace them?

To explore that, we’re joined by two incredible guests who live at the intersection of operational intelligence and real-world empathy:

Page Schult, CEO and Co-Founder of TopangaAdam Bailey, CTO, President and Co-Founder of Topanga

Together, we dig into:

• The "Humanity Check" and what it means to show up fully human in a world of bots and touchscreens
• How AI and automation can empower more meaningful service, not less
• The ethics of personalization, digital empathy, and guest trust

• The future of foodservice leadership when machines take over the mundane

Whether you’re a hospitality pro, foodservice operator, tech designer, or just someone who misses real eye contact at checkout, this episode will give you something to chew on. Because the future of service might be automated,but humanity is still up to us.

Guest Bios

Page Schult, CEO and Co-Founder, Topanga

With deep experience across CPG, grocery, and digital strategy, Page is passionate about fixing legacy systems through thoughtful, human-centered design. At Topanga, she leads efforts to reduce waste and complexity in kitchens, proving that sustainability and business results don’t have to be at odds.

Adam Bailey, CTO, President and Co-Founder, Topanga

Adam blends philosophy, data, and machine learning to create AI tools that are actually used in real kitchens. Previously at Sweetgreen, he helped scale intelligent operations across hundreds of stores. Today, he leads Topanga’s tech and product strategy, building tools that respect both margins and teams.

Topanga is building the future of kitchen intelligence: operational AI that helps foodservice reduce waste, save time, and improve margins. Their solutions work with kitchen teams, not against them, and they’re already serving more than 500 kitchens nationwide. Learn more at ⁠topanga.io⁠.

Human at the Counter

Hosted by Elizabeth Riede

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