How Kent Companies Drives Accountability and Great Guest Experiences

The Kent Companies is a locally owned and operated company with a rich history beginning in 1957 when E. L. "Buck"​ Kent founded Kent Oil and Kent Distributors. Kent Companies is comprised of Kent Kwik Convenience Stores, Kent Tire, Rustic Café, Kent Car Wash, Mr. Payroll Check Cashing Centers, Huddle House, Baskin-Robbins, Rustic Cafe, and Kwik Eats Café.

Today, Kent Companies still operates with the same attitude and spirit that made Buck such a success–challenging work, dedication to guests and team members, and a constant focus on being a guest-driven quality power retailer. To preserve the essence of its founding principles, Kent Companies implemented Zenput, Crunchtime’s Operations Execution platform, to bring operations up to the standards expected in every store. 

Some of the operational issues Kent Companies experienced before implementing Zenput included:

• Low completion rates
• Human error
• Pencil whipping
• Accountability
• Inconsistent archiving

After careful consideration, Kent Companies decided to go with Zenput to mitigate these inefficiencies and bring guest experiences up to par. Some of the key deciding factors in choosing Zenput included:

• User-friendliness: Many employees were not very tech-savvy, especially those not using it on a regular basis.
• Ease of use: It’s extremely simple for managers to set a task and have employees dive right in.
  
• Visibility: With an increase in accountability across stores and insight into store performance, pencil whipping was reduced drastically, and operators don’t need to physically be in the store to see the quality of work in real time.
• Accuracy: Eliminating human error allowed managers to know that the information they viewed was correct, rather than constantly worrying about its validity.
• Flexibility: Zenput’s mobile capabilities allow operators to devote more time to higher-value tasks, like coaching employees and helping guests. 

“Zenput has been a game changer for our company and has really improved our guest experience. The amount of efficiency, accountability, operational excellence, and just the overall attitude of our team being able to utilize this technology has been phenomenal. With Zenput, all of our critical tasks are completed daily and to a great standard across the board.”  - Kent Companies Operator

Since the Zenput implementation, Kent Companies has seen mystery shopper success rates increase and has felt more secure that its valued founding principles will remain intact for years to come. Zenput is Crunchtime’s Operations Execution platform, a solution that helps elevate team execution in every location to ensure great guest experiences.