Domino’s Pizza Supply Chain: Where’s My Pizza?

In many organization, Supply Chain management is sometimes viewed as a necessary evil or a cost-center where the the goal is to make it less of a cost center. But it is so critical, especially if life saving pharmaceutical drugs need to flow to patients, for example. It is rare that we see Supply Chain Operations become a strategic arm to growth for a firm. Amazon’s Supply Chain powerhouse is clearly an example where Supply Chain and Operations are what has been the key to its growth. And, taking a cue from BMW’s fun and delightful Supply Chain, I’d say Domino’s Pizza is another.

But wait, there are other food supply chains we’ve traced. But none is as cool as this one.

Where’s My Pizza?

Domino’s Pizza took a common question for pizza delivery orders and made it into a supply chain wonder and delighting the customer along the way. You can get a behind the scenes look at Domino’s Pizza online has what it is calling the “Domino’s Tracker”, which tracks the steps involved in the pizza you ordered. The steps are:

1. Pizza Order Placed
2. Prep Pizza
3. Bake Pizza
4. Quality Check the Pizza
5. Pizza is Out for Delivery

Knowing where your pizza is in the pizza “manufacturing” process provides several benefits:

1. Showing the order pipeline of events for the pizza baking process gives the customer peace of mind.
2. Showing the order pipeline of events for the pizza baking process reduces inbound “Where’s my Pizza?” contacts. This reduces costs for Domino’s Pizza.
3. The Domino’s Tracker shows a commitment to transparency.
4. The Domino’s Tracker is fun for the customer – it’s actually pretty cool.

Taking Something Old and Making it Novel

But wait – it doesn’t stop there. Domino’s Pizza takes a question it’s been getting for years and makes it into an opportunity to improve how they operate. The Domino’s Tracker also provides a 5 question survey entitle “Help us Get Better”, which is phrased in a simple but compelling way – in a way that would make me want to complete the survey.

Then, a perfectly phrased question: “We want your ordering experience to rock. How was it?”

Then, a question to capture the end-to-end pizza ordering experience by asking a satisfaction question after the pizza arrives: “Our goal is exceptional delivery. How was your delivery experience? Can you let us know after your order arrives?”

Then a quality question on taste and overall experience.

What is great about this survey is that it’s interactive and it is asked during the transaction – immediate feedback while the experience is fresh in our memory. Most surveys are sent out after the event, but this is during, which is a very unique approach. Moreover, the questionnaire was short and shows respect for the customer’s time, which is perfectly aligned to their approach of transparency and one of the reasons behind the Domino’s Tracker in the first place.

And, the free text responses, for a time, were publicly shown on Times Square. This is probably the most honest and boldest move Domino’s takes in their approach to transparency:

Domino’s really puts itself out there by providing both the good and the bad reviews to be publicly viewed by the world. This shows a commitment to transparency and its commitment to improving their internal operations by taking those reviews seriously.

About Domino’s Pizza Supply Chain

Domino’s offers Pizza, Pasta, Breadsticks, Cheese Dips, Beverages as its main offerings. In March 2010, Domino’s Pizza opened its 9,000th store. Approximately 3,400 of those stores are outside the United States. In 2010, Domino’s Pizza made 400 million pizzas.