Gavin Gooddy, Director of Marketing, Digital & ESG at Restaurant Associates, explores how corporate hospitality is entering a new and transformative era. 

As corporate businesses continue to see a strong return to the office, both employers and employees are reevaluating what the workplace experience should deliver. Today’s workforce expects far more from workplace dining spaces, seeking environments that actively support wellbeing, productivity, and a seamless, frictionless daily experience. At the same time, consumers are more informed, more health conscious and increasingly time poor than ever before.

Our UK Eating at Work Survey 2025 highlights a significant shift in employee expectations and behaviours. With one in five employees now taking breaks of less than 15 minutes, speed, simplicity, and convenience have become critical components of the workplace food experience. The research also reveals growing demand for technology enabled hospitality solutions, particularly among younger generations, with 94% of Gen Z and 88% of Millennials saying they value the integration of technology within workplace dining environments.

Digital innovation is also having a measurable impact on customer satisfaction and accessibility. More than half of respondents (57%) believe digital loyalty programmes enhance their overall experience, while 54% say digital kiosk ordering improves the customer journey. Importantly, technology is also helping to create more inclusive dining experiences: 70% of employees with allergies say digital ordering makes it easier to access ingredient and nutritional information, compared with 60% of the wider workforce.

Through real client case studies, our white paper examines where technology is delivering the greatest impact across workplace dining and hospitality, from personalisation and operational efficiency to enhanced customer engagement. It also takes a balanced and honest look at the evolving role of AI, exploring both its opportunities and limitations, while highlighting where human expertise, hospitality and creativity remain irreplaceable.

White Paper: How AI will Transform the Workforce and Guest Experience by 2030