Working With Universities To Meet Evolving Student Needs
By Kevin Rettle, Global Vice President of Digital and Innovation
In the last few years dining options have rapidly advanced to meet the evolving needs of today’s students, faculty and staff. New features, creative dining models, and operational adjustments have helped colleges navigate through the many challenges, from post-pandemic norms and novel trends in campus culture.
These innovative solutions are now propelling campus dining into a new era, marked by increased options, seamless technology integration, optimized experiences, new subscription models and affiliate partnerships with national and local brands. 
Sodexo’s research has found several key trends had emerged in college students’ expectations: notably, 81% of consumers wanted 24/7 access to healthy, convenient snacks. This trend only continued to grow in recent years, creating opportunities for universities to leverage automation, as well as delivery and app-based ordering to better serve students seeking 24/7 access to meals and snacks.
Digital tools that were once considered a novelty have become an essential element of successful campus dining programs. In addition, new service models make it possible to provide the options students want, increasing the time they can allot to their studies.
For decades, Sodexo has been a leader in the digital space, providing robust e-commerce capabilities and other web-based tools to our valued partners. More recently, we’ve evolved our digital strategy by launching Bite, our mobile dining app.
The pandemic rapidly escalated the demand for mobile solutions, prompting Sodexo to quickly scale and deploy these solutions to thousands of sites around the world. As part of this response, Sodexo launched Bite for Universities, a version of the app specifically tailored to meeting the needs of colleges and universities.
Bite for Universities brings an unparalleled level of flexibility and convenience to dining on campus. An intuitive user interface makes it easy to find everything students need. Through Bite for Universities, students can view menus, place fully customized orders, schedule orders for pick-up or delivery, pay using their dining plan or credit/debit card, earn and redeem loyalty rewards, and access special promotions. At select campuses, students can also use the app to order groceries for delivery and sign up for meal kit subscriptions via Sodexo’s partnership with HelloFresh.
The app also facilitates the implementation of ghost kitchens, also referred to as cloud kitchens, which allow guests to order from their favorite retail venues and pick their food up from one centralized location. This model extends availability and operating hours, providing more variety in dining choices and improving student satisfaction. Campuses have gone from offering pick-up and delivery from five restaurant concepts on campus to ten just by implementing a ghost kitchen model. For example, Bentley University in Massachusetts doubled the number of menu concepts available after the retail dining location implemented a ghost kitchen model. Empowered by a robust mobile ordering system like Bite, the dining team could double the offerings available to mobile customers.
Rolling onto a Campus Near You: Delivery Robots
Like mobile ordering, contactless delivery enhances campus convenience and improves safety by minimizing in-person interactions
Part of a comprehensive campus convenience strategy, contactless delivery is as important as mobile ordering. Sodexo partnered with two leading companies - Starship Technologies and KiwiBot - to develop a unique self-driving delivery robot program that offers high-tech contactless delivery.
Originally launched at George Mason University, these robots have since expanded to nearly 20 campuses around the country, including Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, New Mexico State University and Gonzaga University. At each of these universities, a fleet of small, autonomous robotic pods deliver food all over campus.
For student-users, it’s simple: students place orders via an app and specify a delivery location on campus. An interactive map allows users to watch as the robot makes its journey to them, a feature user have come to expect from delivery services like GrubHub or Uber eats. Unlike those apps, since this service is unique to the campus, delivery usually takes only a few minutes.
Our robots are intelligent and adaptable to any environment. The zero-emission robots use a combination of sophisticated machine learning, artificial intelligence, and sensors to navigate, mapping their environments to the nearest inch. They can cross streets, climb curbs, travel at night, and operate in both rain and snow.
The nature of campus convenience and retail itself is also changing, and it’s vital to understand shifting consumer expectations. Although today’s students are extremely comfortable using digital technology, there is still considerable demand for in-person shopping experiences. A recent survey found that 58% of Gen Z students prefer shopping in a brick-and-mortar location. While there is still a desire for something traditional, young consumers also seek unique retail options, with 56% of Gen Z stating they want fun store experiences that keep them from getting bored.
To meet this shifting demand, Sodexo has been launching pioneering new retail solutions. One example is Lounge Twelve, a modern retail venue featuring a fully self-checkout experience. Guests simply scan their items, pay and go; no queues, no waiting. Lounge Twelve offers premium coffee and tea, prepackaged foods and ready-to-eat meals in a modern, relaxing space.
Sodexo has also launched eat> Now, a concept that takes the idea of autonomous retail a step further. Eat>NOW offers guests a seamless, 100% contact-free experience. Guests start by scanning a QR code within the Bite for Universities app to enter eat> Now. As guests shop at this upscale retail/groceraunt hybrid, cameras placed throughout the location track the items they choose and add them to a virtual cart. When the guest exits eat> Now, the items are charged to the payment method on file within the Bite app. Guests receive a detailed receipt on their smartphone within moments of exiting.
Autonomous restaurants, from vending-type machines to full-sized carts, are another advancement popping up on college campuses and offering high-quality, fresh, delicious meals and snacks with a high-tech twist. These advanced vending machines provide 24/7 access and serve as another contactless option. Sodexo is currently working to bring these concepts to partner campuses as soon as the spring 2022 semester.
As we student demands evolve campuses can rest assured that we will work with them to deliver enjoyable, accessible, and easy food services.