86 Reason Ep 11: Bill Lindsey - From Dishroom to Tech Pioneer Mastering Restaurant Inventory Control

Описание: Join host Xavier Mariezcurrena on 86 Reason for an eye-opening conversation with Bill Lindsey, Partner & Co-Founder at COGS-Well and a living legend in restaurant technology. Bill's 50-year journey from a dishroom in 1974 to revolutionizing inventory management for multi-unit operators is a masterclass in operational innovation, technological adaptation, and understanding what restaurant operators truly need.

This isn't your typical tech founder story. Bill candidly shares how a spinal injury forced him out of kitchen operations and into programming, the "cooking method" he used to build software that actually works for real operators, and why making inventory control easy—not just powerful—became his life's mission. His approach to centralized purchasing transformed casino operations and set the standard for modern restaurant technology.

Essential for: Multi-unit restaurant operators, hospitality technology professionals, restaurant owners struggling with inventory control, and anyone who believes better systems start with understanding the problems firsthand.

🎯 KEY INSIGHTS
The "College of Dishroom Knowledge" How washing dishes in 1974 taught Bill more about restaurant operations than any MBA—and why observing what comes back on plates was his first lesson in inventory management.

Revolutionizing Casino Purchasing The groundbreaking centralized purchasing system Bill built for Boyd Gaming Corporation that standardized procurement and slashed costs across five casinos—proving technology could tame multi-unit chaos.

The Iterative "Cooking" Method Bill's philosophy of software development with his wife Deb: test with live data, adjust like seasoning, and never build features operators don't actually need.

From Kitchen to Code How a career-threatening spinal problem became the catalyst for learning dBase and FoxPro during recovery, leading to revolutionary cost control products for major hospitality players.

The Compeat Years: Scaling Challenges Lessons learned as VP of Sales for Compeat Restaurant Management Software, redesigning inventory modules, and navigating the complexities of private equity growth.

COGS-Well: Making It Actually Easy Why Bill co-founded a self-funded, cash-positive company in 2019 with one clear mission: make inventory control so easy that restaurants can be up and running in days, not months.

💼 ABOUT BILL LINDSEY

Bill Lindsey brings nearly 50 years of restaurant industry experience, from washing dishes to pioneering the technology that powers modern multi-unit operations. As Partner & Co-Founder of COGS-Well, he's dedicated to making inventory and cost management genuinely accessible for restaurant operators and their teams.

Bill has held leadership roles at Compeat Restaurant Management Software, served as Strategic Advisor at Plate IQ, Inc., and currently serves on the Advisory Board at Loop AI - Delivery Intelligence Platform. Known throughout the industry for his kindness and deep operational expertise, Bill has spent his career building solutions that make restaurant operators' lives easier.

💡 KEY TAKEAWAY

"Technology should make people's jobs easier, not give them another complicated system to learn."

Bill's journey proves that the best restaurant technology comes from people who've lived the problems, from the dishroom to the back office. Real innovation happens when you combine hands-on operational experience with the vision to build systems that actually work for the people using them.

This episode delivers invaluable insights on inventory management, centralized purchasing strategies, technology implementation, and the philosophy behind building tools that restaurant operators will actually use.

🔔 SUBSCRIBE to 86 Reason by Over Easy Office Get more unfiltered conversations with hospitality leaders who've been in the trenches and emerged with hard-won wisdom.

➡️ Learn more about Over Easy Office: Expert bookkeeping, AP processing, and inventory management for the restaurant industry:
https://www.overeasyoffice.com/

🔗 CONNECT WITH BILL LINDSEY - COGS-Well: www.cogs-well.com

📍 TIMECODES
Welcome and Bill's Journey Overview
The "College of Dishroom Knowledge" - Starting in 1974
Early Technology: Teletypes and Analog Modems
The Vegas Years: From Craps Dealer to Boyd Gaming
Building the Central Purchasing System Revolution
Meeting Deb: The "Cooking Method" of Software Development
Career Pivot: From Spinal Injury to Programming
The NCR and Remax Years: Developing Cost Control Products
Las Vegas Hilton and Excalibur Success Stories
Leadership at Compeat Restaurant Management Software
Advisory Role at Plate IQ: Understanding Data Integration
Co-Founding COGS-Well: The Mission to Make It Easy
Why Setup and Maintenance Matter More Than Features
Current Advisory Work with Loop AI
Advice for Multi-Unit Operators on Inventory Control