Soon after I became editor-in-chief, I judged article entries in an award program that our company used to have. As business-to-business publishers, we have publications for many different industries, and had even more at the time. I remember getting wrapped up in an article in one of the automotive magazines that we used to own. It would not have been Road & Track or Car and Driver; it might have been Heavy Duty Trucking. I don’t remember what the story was about, but I was so impressed that an article on a topic I didn’t understand or even care about could hold my attention.

I started looking for ideas to steal to make Chain Leader’s stories that compelling. And I still try to judge a journalism award program once a year or so to keep finding those ideas worth swiping.

Another awards program that I participate in is the Silver and Gold Plate Awards from the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association. In this program, industry leaders nominate foodservice executives in nine categories. The judges, trade-media editors and the prior year’s winners, select the best based on factors like operations success, human resources, menu and marketing innovation, and industry participation. We talk it out at a day-long session and select the nine winners. Then there’s a secret ballot for the Gold Plate.

There are plenty of ideas worth stealing in the pile of nominations, and not just from the forms touting chain operators.

Tour kitchens and facilities frequently. If you want to get in somebody else’s facility, you need to let people in yours. In the noncommercial segments like schools and health care, operators are eager to share what’s new. They don’t compete with each other the way chains do, but there are noncompetitive areas where you can share ideas like food safety and purchasing efficiencies.

Be active in industry associations so you’re helping to set the agenda, to the benefit of the industry and your company. Most Silver Plate winners are active members.

Watch what your customers throw away. Schools do it to see what the kids don’t eat. You can do it to see if people are avoiding bread, hate the new sandwich spread or getting cold fries.

Get opinions from customers however you can, and get them involved in the process. At top colleges, foodservice directors hold contests and serve parents’ recipes. They listen to their vegan students and end up serving veggie dishes that appeal to more than vegetarians.

Don’t assume you’ve got a captive audience, no matter where you’re located. The best foodservice operators in corporate accounts and hotels don’t just strive to keep their customers in for meals, they compete to bring in customers from outside. They think beyond their core customer, as do hospital kitchens that don’t just serve patients and doctors but administrators, families and the community in a variety of settings.

Oh, and there are also ideas to steal from the chain winners, who at press time don’t yet know they’ve won. I won’t spill the beans here, but I’ll promise to profile the winners and their concepts on our Web site as soon as we can.

UPDATE: IFMA has announced the winners of its Silver Plate awards. Phil Friedman, Chairman and CEO, McAlister’s Deli Corporation, won in the full-service-chain category, and Roland Smith, CEO of Arby’s Restaurant Group Inc., won the fast-service-chain category. Congratulations!