Advancing Product Strategy to Drive Market Leadership

The
Client

Restaurant Technologies, a prominent player in the national food services industry

Restaurant Technologies (RT) is a prominent player in the national food services industry based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Their 1,200+ employees serve 36,000+ restaurants, hotels, casinos, convenience stores, universities & hospitals across 41 locations nationwide.

The Challenge

Building a product roadmap to drive long-term market leadership

RT’s business model has historically been built around a single flagship product. While this offering remained core to the company’s success, RT’s executive team recognized that sustained long-term growth would require both product diversification and a more scalable, end-to-end product strategy.

RT had begun developing new product strategies, but progress was slow. They struggled to integrate Voice of Customer (VOC) insights into product development and commercialization and needed a strong plan.

Several previous attempts to hire product executives had resulted in a poor fit, so they reached out to us.

The Solution

Driving innovation and scalability with a seasoned product leader

Understanding that getting this hire right was mission-critical, we conducted comprehensive research during our PrecisonPath™ process to ensure we matched RT with a candidate who could meet their objectives.

We targeted leaders from product-driven organizations with strong P&L accountability, proven success driving both product innovation and commercial performance, and the adaptability to thrive in RT’s fast-scaling environment.

Using our OpportunityLens microsite, we communicated a clear picture of what it would be like to work within RT’s highly entrepreneurial culture.

Our open, transparent communication enabled us to attract leaders who had “seen what great looks like” and could take ownership of product performance to drive both growth and profitability.

The Outcome

A product management executive with deep expertise in product growth and business leadership

“Cultura’s transparency and thoughtful communication gave me confidence throughout the process. Their custom OpportunityLens microsite provided me with all the context I needed to evaluate the role and make an informed decision. Cultura’s attention to detail—on both sides of the table—is what makes them different. They don’t just fill jobs; they build lasting partnerships.”

We presented RT with a very strong shortlist of 8 candidates. They ultimately chose a product management and business unit leader with over 15 years of experience across engineering, product management, marketing, and P&L leadership roles with Cargill, Emerson, and AmesburyTruth.

Most recently, he served as Business Unit Director at AmesburyTruth, where he led full P&L operations for the company’s most critical product line. Prior to that, he led global product management and market development initiatives at Emerson Automation Solutions.

His diverse background equips him with a unique perspective on driving innovation and growth in competitive markets, making him the ideal choice to lead RT’s product evolution.

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