Starting with Your Kitchen Today

• Tell me briefly about your operation, including service type, average covers per day, and primary meal periods.
• Walk me through your typical weekly ordering cycle for proteins, produce, and dry goods, from who places the order to who receives it.
• How many separate suppliers deliver to you in an average week? Options: 1-2, 3-5, 6-9, 10 or more
• When was the last time a delivery failure forced an emergency retail purchase, and what was the operational impact?
• Which roles on your team approve orders, receive deliveries, and reconcile invoices? Select all that apply. Options: Executive Chef, Sous Chef / Kitchen Manager, General Manager / Owner, Procurement Manager, Receiving Clerk, Other
• Who ultimately signs off on a supplier change or a trial recommendation in your organization? Options: Executive Chef, General Manager / Owner, Procurement Director, Finance Manager, Other
• Describe how your team reacts when a staple item is missing or substituted, including any operational steps and emotional effects in the kitchen.

Where Costs and Chaos Are Hitting You

• If a distributor promised two points of food cost savings but introduced unfamiliar protein cuts, what would stop you from switching?
• How often do fill rate shortfalls lead to emergency cash-and-carry buys in a typical month? Options: Never, Once, 2-3 times, Weekly, Multiple times per week
• Name the top five SKUs that most frequently arrive short, late, or incorrect.
• Who on your team is usually first to notice a quality or substitution issue, and how do they raise it? Options: Executive Chef, Sous Chef / Kitchen Manager, Receiving Clerk, Procurement Manager, Other
• Which consequences from ordering failures hurt you most operationally or financially, for example emergency spend, labor overtime, or menu changes? Options: Emergency retail purchases, Menu item removal or change, Kitchen overtime, Guest complaints, Increased food cost percent, Other
• List the workaround steps your team uses when an order is late or short, and estimate the average additional labor minutes per incident.
• If a trial experienced a persistent 5 percent drop in protein or produce quality, would you stop it immediately? Options: Yes, stop the trial, No, continue and document, Depends on category and duration

How Your Kitchen Knows Success

• Imagine your owner asked for a 60-day report proving a two-point food cost reduction, what specific line items and metrics would you expect to see on day 60?
• How do you currently track fill rate, delivery reliability, and order accuracy for your top SKUs? Options: Manual logs or spreadsheets, POS-driven usage reports, Inventory counting, Point-of-sale and purchasing integrated, Not tracked consistently
• How many KPIs do you share with ownership monthly, and which ones drive their decisions? Options: 1-3, 4-6, 7-10, More than 10
• When assessing product quality, which concrete checks does your culinary team perform on proteins and produce at delivery? Options: Temperature check, Visual inspection, Cut/trim quality check, Flavor/odor check, Packaging integrity
• Name the person or role who signs off that a new supplier's product meets your kitchen's quality standards. Options: Executive Chef, Culinary Specialist / Consultant, Sous Chef, Procurement Manager, General Manager / Owner
• Would a consistent 97 percent fill rate on trial SKUs be sufficient for you to recommend full adoption to ownership? Options: Yes, No, Only with price guarantees, Only if quality and accuracy also meet thresholds

Supply Risks and Menu Integrity

• How much menu disruption are you willing to accept in exchange for lower per-item cost? Options: None, recipes must stay exact, Minimal, minor cuts only, Moderate, with chef approval, High, willing to redesign menu
• List the SKU-level items that are nonnegotiable for menu integrity and cannot be substituted.
• Tell me about a recent supply interruption, who made the substitution decision, and how long the menu impact lasted.
• To whom on the team do you escalate when a substitution is unacceptable and a guest-facing change is required? Options: Executive Chef, General Manager / Owner, Purchasing/Procurement Manager, Corporate Culinary Director, Other
• Count the number of approved substitutions you allow per category today, for example a primary and two backups. Options: 0, 1-2, 3-5, More than 5
• Suppose your preferred protein cut is unavailable for 10 days, what is the operational consequence and who approves any menu change?
• What specific supplier quality concern would make you keep the incumbent instead of switching, even if the new supplier beats price targets?

Competitive Landscape and Your Alternatives

• Identify the alternatives you are actively evaluating, including staying with the incumbent, consolidating to one broadline, or building an internal solution. Options: Stay with incumbent, Consolidate to a single broadline distributor, Use multiple specialty suppliers, Solve internally with in-house buying, Other
• Pick the option you are most likely to choose today. Options: Stay with incumbent, Switch to a single consolidated distributor, Maintain current mix and add partial consolidation, Build internal procurement capability, Undecided
• Have you previously run a consolidation study or pilot to compare single-supplier total cost versus multiple specialists? Options: Yes, pilot completed, Yes, study only, No, but we plan to, No, not considered
• Would you remain with your current distributor if they matched the trial pricing, service levels, and quality guarantees exactly? Options: Yes, No, Depends on proof over 60 days, Only if written guarantees and penalties included
• Is there an internal proposal to solve purchasing fragmentation without an outside partner, for example hiring a buyer or centralizing purchasing? Options: Yes, active proposal, Yes, discussed but not funded, No proposal exists, Not sure
• Identify the one factor that would make you switch suppliers even if the incumbent matched the trial terms and guarantees.

Operational Readiness and Constraints

• Do you have a dedicated point person available for a 60-day operational trial, and who else must be involved from your side? Options: Yes, full time assigned, Yes, shared responsibility, No dedicated person available, Need to hire or reassign
• Provide the names of the primary systems that manage your orders, inventory, and menu records, such as your ordering platform, POS, and inventory tool. Options: Your primary ordering platform, Your POS system, Inventory management tool, Manual spreadsheets, Other
• Do your ordering systems support API or EDI exports that can be used for order-guide mapping and catalog alignment? Options: Yes, API available, Yes, EDI available, No, manual export only, Not sure
• Are there scheduled delivery windows, dock access rules, or union constraints that would restrict next-day consolidated deliveries? Options: Yes, strict windows, Some restrictions during peak hours, No significant constraints, Not sure
• Is there any legal, procurement, or supplier exclusivity clause that could block moving categories to a new distributor? Options: Yes, contractual exclusivity, Potentially, need review, No contractual blocks, Not sure
• What internal headcount and receiving bandwidth can you realistically dedicate during the phased rollout, for example daily receiving hours and additional staff?
• Assuming catalog mapping and integrations require three weeks, would you be able to meet that timeline and free the necessary people? Options: Yes, No, Only with support from external resources, Need to negotiate timeline

Designing the 60-Day Trial and Acceptance Criteria

• Imagine we run a 60-day operational trial, what exact metric or single outcome would make you confident enough to recommend a full switch?
• Select the representative categories or the 50 SKUs you would include in the trial, choosing from the list below. Options: Center-of-plate proteins, Fresh produce, Dairy and eggs, Frozen goods, Dry goods and disposables, Beverages, Other
• Explain how your culinary team will evaluate product quality acceptance for proteins and produce during the trial, including any sampling frequency.
• Indicate the acceptance thresholds you require to call the trial successful, for example minimum fill rate, maximum order error rate, and target per-item cost reduction. Options: Fill rate >= 95%, Order accuracy >= 98%, Product quality pass rate >= 95%, Per-item cost reduction >= 2%, Other
• By when do you need the trial results to reach a decision to align with seasonal purchasing cycles or contract renewals? Options: Within 30 days of trial end, Within 60 days of trial end, Before major seasonal menu change, No fixed deadline
• Are you willing to run the trial as a phased category rollout over 4 to 8 weeks, or do you require a single-category pilot first? Options: Phased over 4-8 weeks, Single-category pilot first, Full 50-SKU pilot immediately, Undecided
• Assuming trial metrics meet your targets, what remaining approvals, budget items, or operational obstacles would prevent signing a commercial agreement within 30 days?

• Solution Experience, Menu Scenario Walkthrough

• Confirm the current state and quantify the cost
• You confirm the demonstrated workflows eliminate the emergency purchases and kitchen disruptions described in Discovery.
• Provide a comparative pricing file listing per-item cost versus the incumbent for the buyer's top 50 SKUs, with projected cost delta.
• You validate that the proposed culinary substitutions meet your acceptance criteria for proteins and produce.
• Walk through three real menu scenarios
• Deliver a proposed phased category transition plan and consolidated delivery cadence for review before trial kickoff.
• Show operational proof points for delivery and fill rate
• You agree that the sample per-item pricing and consolidated delivery cadence show a credible path to the required food-cost improvement on your top SKUs.
• Share the buyer's top 50 SKUs with current per-item pricing and the most recent 30-day fill-rate exception log.
• Review substitution rules and culinary acceptance criteria
• Document and confirm the buyer's culinary acceptance criteria for proteins and produce to be used as trial acceptance gates.
• You and the seller align on the exact acceptance metrics to use during the 60-day trial.
• Validation checkpoint

• Solution Experience, Menu Scenario Walkthrough
• Solution Experience Deck
• Solution Brief

• meeting
• slides
• document

• Next-Day Multi-Temperature Deliveries
• Consolidated Cross-Category Order Fulfillment
• Deliver Custom Order Guide
• Supply Protein Cuts to Kitchen Specs
• Deliver Fresh Produce Meeting Quality Standards
• Switch Specified SKUs to Private Label
• Publish Itemized Pricing for Benchmark SKUs
• Execute Trial Order Program for Selected SKUs
• Phased Category Transition from Prior Suppliers
• Provide Consolidated Invoicing and Packing Lists
• Order Accuracy Packaging and Delivery Verification
• Dedicated Territory Rep and Culinary Specialist Support

Next-Day Multi-Temperature Deliveries

• Which of your receiving windows are acceptable for next-day deliveries (e.g., 6-10 AM, 10 AM-2 PM, 2-6 PM)? Options: 6-10 AM, 10 AM-2 PM, 2-6 PM, Other
• Are separate time windows required for frozen, refrigerated, and dry items during a single delivery? Options: Yes, No
• How many deliveries per week do you currently receive for each kitchen location that will use next-day service? Options: 1, 2-3, 4+
• Specify the temperature log or cold-chain documentation you need attached to the packing list (for example, pickup temp, recorded product core temp).
• Indicate any dock access constraints or receiving labor windows we must align with (for example, single dock between 11 AM-1 PM, no deliveries before 8 AM).
• Confirm who on your receiving team signs temperature logs and the packing list at the back door and their preferred identification (name or role).

Consolidated Cross-Category Order Fulfillment

• List the product categories from your top 50 menu items that must be present in a consolidated catalog (for example, proteins, produce, dairy, disposables, smallwares).
• Do you have any supplier exclusives or manufacturer agreements that cannot be consolidated into a single supplier catalog? Options: Yes, No
• How many unique SKUs from current suppliers do you expect to migrate into a single order guide for consolidated fulfillment? Options: Less than 50, 50-200, 200+
• Specify any billing or PO-numbering rules required when consolidating orders across categories (for example, separate PO per cost center or per location).
• Choose your preferred mixed-case handling for multi-category orders (single pallet, segregated by temperature, case-level segregation). Options: Single pallet, Segregated by temperature, Case-level segregation, Other
• Who on your team will reconcile consolidated invoices against receiving logs and any cash-and-carry receipts during the transition?

Deliver Custom Order Guide

• Which menu sections should map to order-guide groups (for example, breakfast proteins, dinner entrees, pastry ingredients)?
• Are daypart-based ordering limits or par levels required for any menu items in the custom order guide? Options: Yes, No
• Estimate how many SKUs you want locked versus suggestive in the custom order guide (for example, top 50 locked, remainder suggestive). Options: All locked, Top 50 locked, Custom mix
• Detail the portion sizes or portion-control specifications the order guide must enforce for proteins and produce (for example, 6 oz portions, diced yields).
• Indicate whether you need order-guide exports in PDF, CSV, or both for kitchen reference and procurement upload. Options: PDF, CSV, Both, Neither
• Who on your operations or culinary team will approve the final order-guide mapping before it goes live?

Supply Protein Cuts to Kitchen Specs

• List the protein cuts and portion weights that must match your butcher specifications (for example, 6 oz center-cut sirloin, 3 oz diced chicken breast).
• Do you require trim level, fat cap, or aging specifications to be documented on the packing list for each protein SKU? Options: Yes, No
• When you place a special fabricate or custom-cut protein order, what lead time do you need (next-day, 48 hours, 7 days)? Options: Next-day, 48 hours, 7 days, Other
• Provide the accept/reject criteria your kitchen uses at receiving for proteins (for example, color, odor, marbling grade, packaging integrity).
• Select required packaging for portioned proteins to match your prep workflow (overwrapped, vacuum sealed, either, neither). Options: Overwrapped, Vacuum sealed, Either, Neither
• Name the kitchen owner responsible for sign-off on protein fabrication adherence to spec.

Deliver Fresh Produce Meeting Quality Standards

• Define the produce quality standards you require (for example, USDA grade, supplier pack codes, defect tolerance per case).
• Confirm whether you operate a FIFO first-use guideline for short-shelf-life produce items. Options: Yes, No
• Quantify the minimum remaining shelf life you expect on receipt for high-turn produce (for example, 3+ days, 5+ days, 7+ days). Options: 3+ days, 5+ days, 7+ days, Custom
• Describe the visual inspection checkpoints your staff applies on delivery (for example, maximum bruise percentage per case, color uniformity).
• Select the flags you require on pick tickets for produce (certified organic, locally sourced, neither, both). Options: Certified organic, Locally sourced, Neither, Both
• Identify who on your team approves substitutions for produce when specified varieties are unavailable.

Switch Specified SKUs to Private Label

• List benchmark SKUs that are candidates for private-label substitution by current SKU number or item description.
• Explain whether private-label product labeling or allergen tables must differ from the incumbent for any SKU. Options: Yes, No
• When you accept private-label substitutions, how many weeks of price guarantee do you need post-transition (30, 60, 90)? Options: 30 days, 60 days, 90 days, Custom
• Detail minimum order quantities or pack sizes that are acceptable for private-label SKUs.
• Choose the sample approval workflow required before a private-label SKU replaces a current item (formal sample approval, informal kitchen tasting, no approval). Options: Formal sample approval, Informal kitchen tasting, No approval required
• Who will retain sample certificates of analysis or spec sheets for private-label items in your records?

Publish Itemized Pricing for Benchmark SKUs

• Identify which benchmark SKUs (by description or current vendor SKU) comprise your top 50 items for per-item cost comparison.
• Would you like landed cost breakdowns published for each benchmark SKU (base price, freight, fees)? Options: Yes, No
• Estimate how frequently you want price updates published for benchmark SKUs during the trial (daily, weekly, at start only). Options: Daily, Weekly, At start only, Other
• State the currency and tax treatment you require on published itemized pricing.
• Rate whether you need tiered pricing or volume breaks included in the published item list (include tiered pricing, flat per-item only). Options: Include tiered pricing, Flat per-item pricing only
• Assign who on your team will validate the per-item pricing against incumbent invoices during the comparison.

Execute Trial Order Program for Selected SKUs

• Outline which SKUs will be included in the 60-day operational trial and provide expected weekly velocity for each.
• What acceptance criteria will validate trial success for each SKU (for example, target fill rate percentage, maximum substitution rate, acceptable per-item cost delta)?
• Attach or describe how you will provide order history and incumbent invoices for per-item cost comparisons during the trial (upload CSV, grant portal access, email statements). Options: Upload CSV, Grant portal read access, Email statements, Other
• Assign the kitchen receiving contact and the person who will record fill-rate and quality issues during the trial.
• Explain the escalation steps you expect if a delivered SKU fails acceptance criteria during the trial (immediate replacement, credit, remove from trial).
• Will you require parallel deliveries from incumbent suppliers during the trial to avoid menu disruption? Options: Yes, No

Phased Category Transition from Prior Suppliers

• Outline which categories will transition in phase 1, phase 2, and phase 3 (for example, proteins phase 1, produce phase 2, disposables phase 3).
• State whether blackout dates exist where no supplier transitions may occur because of peak service or events. Options: Yes, No
• Give the number of business days' notice you require before each phased cutover (7, 14, 30, custom). Options: 7 days, 14 days, 30 days, Custom
• Include the documentation and owners required for each transition milestone (for example, new order guide version, training sign-off, inventory runout plan).
• What acceptance criteria will confirm completion of a phase (for example, target fill rate met, zero critical quality incidents, accounting reconciliation)?
• Clarify who will coordinate with prior suppliers to confirm final backorders, returns, and final invoices.

Provide Consolidated Invoicing and Packing Lists

• Pick the invoice delivery format you require for consolidated billing (single invoice per delivery, weekly consolidated invoice, per cost-center invoices). Options: Single invoice per delivery, Weekly consolidated invoice, Per cost-center invoices, Other
• Is per-line PO number mapping required on invoices to match your accounting system? Options: Yes, No
• Describe how packing lists should display temperature and case-level details required by your receiving team.
• Mark your preferred electronic invoice delivery method (email to AP inbox, portal upload, EDI integration, other). Options: Email to AP, Portal upload, EDI integration, Other
• Rate the remittance terms and payment methods you require for the account (Net 30, Net 45, Prepay, ACH). Options: Net 30, Net 45, Prepay, Other
• Give the name and contact of the person on your accounting team who will verify consolidated invoices against packing lists and receiving logs.

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• Master Supply Agreement (MSA)
• Statement of Work (SOW) — Transition & Culinary Services
• Service Level Agreement (SLA) Attachment
• Pricing & Price Guarantee Addendum
• Trial Acceptance Certificate
• Transition Plan & Timeline
• Order Confirmation & Initial Purchase Order
• Billing, Credit & Payment Terms
• Product Quality, Returns & Substitution Policy
• Confidentiality & Data Use Addendum
• Regulatory & Food Safety Addendum (conditioned)

• Go-live Health Check (weeks 1-4)
• First Measurement Review (weeks 4-10)
• Post-trial Outcomes Review and Transition Readiness (around day 90)
• Quarterly Operational Review (ongoing)

• Circulate minutes and any agreed configuration changes with implementation dates after each quarterly review.
• Confirm the date for the post-trial outcomes review aligned to the 60‑Day Trial Evaluation timeline.
• Restate acceptance criteria from 60‑Day Trial Evaluation
• Confirm which trial acceptance criteria recorded in the 60‑Day Trial Evaluation were achieved and capture any remaining remediation required to reach steady-state.
• Establish a clear incumbent wind-down plan including data handling and the date after which the old supplier is read-only or decommissioned.
• Publish the final trial outcomes packet citing the 60‑Day Trial Evaluation targets and detailed measurements.
• Publish the incumbent decommission checklist with dates for contract closure, data archive completion, and fallback process retirement.
• Open timeboxed remediation tickets for any unmet criteria with target resolution dates tied to return-to-normal operations.
• KPI trend review
• Confirm ongoing adherence to the operational targets established during the trial and identify any creeping gaps in fill rate or quality.
• Keep the issue tracker current and ensure remediation items are closing on schedule so operational performance does not regress.
• Maintain and share the rolling KPI dashboard that surfaces fill rate, quality incidents, and per-item pricing variance against the 60‑Day Trial Evaluation baseline.
• Update the open-issue tracker with status notes and target resolution dates before the next quarterly review.
• Reconfirm success criteria and ownership
• Deployment tasks required for initial deliveries are confirmed complete or have committed remediation dates.
• Any showstopper issues that would prevent continued trial progress are identified and assigned a remediation plan.
• Publish the go-live issues log with remediation dates and circulate to operational stakeholders.
• Schedule a short follow-up check in 7 calendar days to confirm progress on critical fixes.
• Present trial KPI data
• Confirm whether fill rate and order accuracy are trending toward the targets in the 60‑Day Trial Evaluation and identify any blockers.
• Agree a timebound corrective plan addressing the primary root causes of any KPI shortfalls.
• Deliver a one-page KPI summary showing calculations and source data for fill rate, order accuracy, and per-item cost variance.
• Create and publish a corrective action tracker with remediation items and target completion dates.
• Present final trial outcomes
• Pricing and cost variance review
• Root-cause diagnosis
• Deployment and account validation
• Outstanding gaps and remediation
• Product quality observations
• Early adoption signals
• Open issues and escalation status
• Enhancements and minor adjustments
• Incumbent retirement checkpoint
• Corrective actions and timeline
• Open issues and blockers
• Immediate remediation plan