Have a plan in place before your restaurant opens to ensure the successful hiring of great restaurant employees. You want the people working for you to be dedicated to the success and reputation of your new restaurant. The number of employees you hire depends on the size of the restaurant, the hours of operation you intend to keep and also how many positions you require to fill.
An employee who is happy at a job will show through in their work performance and to the reputation of your business. Try to hire someone who will give you their best effort and is eager to work hard. Offer them compensation for their efforts and benefits as well. If you appreciate your employees and acknowledge their hard work, you will be repaid by your business success.
When you’re ready to hire employees for your restaurant before it opens, place an ad in a classified section of your newspaper or online agency. Mention in the ad what skills and experience you require and what characteristics you desire in a person. For example, they have to be pleasant, able to work hard and get along well with other employees and be customer friendly. If they are successful in obtaining an interview you can further screen them for appropriate skills and personality traits.
Try advertising at the employment office. They will enter the restaurant position(s) in their job bank online. Many people looking for employment are experienced in the restaurant industry and are eager to work in a new establishment.
If you’re interested in hiring a student, you could contact any of the high schools in the area. Many students are looking for a job after school or on weekends. Many post secondary schools have job posting boards where potential employers can put up their job advertisements. Another idea is to investigate potential chefs or cooks at a culinary college.
When you have finally opened your restaurant and realize you need to hire a bit more help, you can get recommendations from your best employees about friends or relatives that may need a job.
Place an ad in your restaurant window that you’re now taking applications for a specific position. Always put a date, time frame and telephone number where and when you can be reached to help the hiring process run smoothly. This will avoid people dropping off applications past the deadline and at all hours when you’re not prepared to speak to them.
The Saratoga Institute in the US conducted a survey and it revealed that 89% of managers believe employees leave for more money. But, in fact, the survey found that 88% of employees leave for reasons other than money. What a disconnect!
In reality, most employees are leaving because of poor induction, poor training, lack of development opportunities and bad management.
Experts have estimated the cost of replacing an employee to be between 29 and 45% of an employees annual salary when lost productivity, training and advertising costs are taken into account.
When your employees start working for you, how thorough is your training process?
The first impression your employee gets will either set them up for failure or success and you want to ensure it’s the latter.
Orientation shouldn’t end with details about where to hang your coat and how to sign in and out. In order to give your staff a proper start, you should provide them with a comprehensive training package.
A good orientation and training package contains:
New employee form
Company information
Job description
Employee Handbook
Manuals & Menus
New Employee Form
The new employee form should contain their contact info, position, availability, payroll and tax information, workers compensation information. If you do direct deposit for payroll, you will need their banking information or a void check. It is important to get all of this information before they start their first shift, and to keep it all together in their personnel file. Nothing will annoy an employee more than not getting their hard earned wages on time so use this form to get it right.
Company Information
You should provide the company name, address, phone number, email address, and website contact information. Other items to include are business hours, a description of the bar or restaurant concept, and anything else that is important for a new employee to know. If it’s a large establishment, it might be a good idea to provide a management chart (who is the boss, who are the supervisors, who reports to whom, etc.) so that the employee knows who to go to when they have a question.
Job Description
This is something that sometimes doesn’t get passed along to a new employee, especially if they are an experienced bartender, and they are going to be bartending for you. However, it’s important to list the details of their job, so that they are aware of your expectations. Keep the job description to a single page if possible, but list their regular duties and immediate supervisor on it.
Policies and Procedures
If you don’t have a policy manual, you should put one in place. Basic policies about employee conduct on and off shift, details about scheduling, on-calls, shift covering, illness and so on can differ from bar to bar, so it’s important to put your rules down on paper so everyone knows them. Writing things down also ensures that all employees get measured with the same stick. An Employee Handbook is the ideal way to document this information in one easy place and allows an employee to refer to it at anytime.
Manuals & Menus
Be sure your employees have copies of each menu you use – lunch, dinner, happy hour, cocktail, wine, specials, etc. Ensure that they have had adequate training on the items that you sell, and that they are comfortable with the menu options and pricing. This will ensure that their POS or order training goes smoothly.
Now that your new employee has their new training package, don’t leave them on their own just yet. Proper training should contain shadow shifts in the various areas of the restaurant or bar so that the employee learns your way of doing things. Staff turnover can be decreased by ensuring that your training process is solid.
Taking the extra time from the start to train your new employees thoroughly is an invaluable step in the success of your employees and the success of your bar or restaurant.
If anyone wants these forms and templates they can visit ManageYourBar.com
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Barry Chandler is Managing Director of ManageYourBarOnline.com, the complete online resource for independent bar and club owners and operators, designed to assist bar owners manage their business more effectively and provide all the tools/downloads/templates/articles for prospective bar owners to research and plan their new bar.
I would like to give an insight to those aspiring hospitality professionals as well as those already working in the industry on the qualities that makes one successful in Hospitality Industry.
This is from my practical experience and through my observation and analysis spread over a career span of 12 years in many countries. I have seen over and over again, some people who were successful in the hospitality industry, nearly always had the same qualities listed below and they had it consistently, day after day, 365 days a year, which led to their success.
Though they are basic qualities, following them will have a wonderful effect, irrespective of what position one is in. Though product knowledge, intelligence and connections play a role in ones success, the qualities mentioned below take precedence for ones success in the hospitality industry.
Attitude: Service Oriented and a positive attitude towards guest and other team members.
Hardwork: This is the most important required quality in this industry. There is no short cut to hard work.
Friendliness: An Outgoing, Friendly and cheerful disposition, both towards guests, staff members and staff from other departments, to ensure a smooth working environment.
Appearance: Appearance in the form of well groomed and neat presentation is very important in creating the right impression to guests and other staff members.
Courtesy: Good manners and courtesy is very important when dealing with guests and other staff members.
Honesty: The priority, because, one deals with cash and other guest belongings and valuables on a day to day basis.
Creativity: Hospitality/Food and Beverage offers many avenues to display ones creative talents either in the form of creative food and drinks, good buffet and banquet set ups etc.
Ownership and responsibility: Not doing the “passing around the buck” thing, but owning and solving some serious issues and problems that come up from time to time.
Commitment and Consistency: Good job done, once, is not enough, the golden rule is: Good job always.
Passion for and pride in job: only get in to the industry if you like what you are doing, irrespective of monetary gain
Punctuality and discipline: You don’t just miss your flight/train and girlfriend/boyfriend if you are late, but also respect and also your job at the end
Ability to take orders and instructions from superiors: Don’t like taking orders and instructions from Superiors, than better start your own business than to work for someone.
Communication skills: The world runs on Communication. This is not just about speaking many languages which will help you out on a day to day basis as you come across guests/staff from different countries, but also communicating your ideas and instructions to your staff as a manager and as a staff to communicate your concerns to your managers.
Respect for others: I have worked in different countries with different socio-economic conditions and cultural beliefs and one thing that comes handy always is the respect one gives to Views, Traditions etc of other people.
Patience: Many a times when things get quite stressful and tempers run high in Hospitality industry, when it’s very busy, the only protection shied is “Patience”.
Empathy: Empathy towards your colleagues.
Personality: By personality I mean the nature of a person as to if one is an Introvert or an extrovert. It’s always been, or most of the time, though not always, people with outgoing personality are easily successful in this industry.
Adaptability: Adaptability to changes and new ideas.
Attendance: Irrespective of your late night party or your early morning hangover, not calling in sick when not really sick.
Hands on: This industry is all about being practical and hands on, irrespective of the position one is in. More Physical presence is required in operations than in the office, before computer.
Long Hours: long productive hours at work are one of the top open secrets to success in this industry.
Flexibility: Many a times one has to be flexible in this industry either in the form of change in working shifts, days off, annual leave etc.
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Santosh Koripella has been involved in the Hospitality and Food and Beverage Career in 11 different Countries all over the World. He is currently a Food and Beverage Consultant. Santosh recently published a book called: Food and Beverage Bible, you can find it here: www.foodnbeveragebible.com
I recently had an interview with Matthew W. Ray from WorkAlertz.com who happens to have a really interesting service that can help businesses involved in the hospitality industry manage their employees better through the communication of SMS (aka cell phone texting). Let’s face it, your younger employees text, why not communicate on a level they want to be communicated with.
Here is how the interview went:
Matt, tell us a bit about your background in or how it relates to the hospitality industry?
In the summer of 2000, just like any normal teenager, it was time to get a part-time summer job. I spent the better part 6 years in a pizzeria, with nearly 50 employees, called Pontillo’s Pizzeria in Bushnell’s Basin, NY while juggling school and a business internship on the side. I worked my way up from dishwasher to manager in a short few years, learning as much of the business as I could and realizing the scheduling hassles first hand. From there, I was able to feel the pains of missed shifts, finding shift covers, and wasting time on the phone and not enough time with the customer. When I joined the MyMinderz, with bootstrap founders Dan Agnew and Steve Palo, we had many long discussions about a next-generation notification company. I was sold and wanted to spend my spare time coming up with something really great. We have started with WorkAlertz, to become the leader in work schedule notification, and will soon launch a whole suite of applications that fit under the MyMinderz patent-pending privacy platform.
What do you think are the main challenges managers and supervisors have with scheduling?
The main challenges management has with scheduling is making sure they have shifts covered properly. Keeping a properly staffed facility with call-ins and no shows takes time away from your customer. Managing employee time-off requests is a nightmare when juggling through 20+ pieces of oddly shaped, illegibly written employee notes.
What do you think are the main challenges that managers have with their staff in regards to schedules?
Many hospitality jobs are flexible part-time positions. It’s a challenge to manage employees fluctuating availability and conflicts to schedules based on school, sports, and second jobs. It’s always time consuming and there’s plenty of room for error. Many younger employees also forget when they are working, especially when their shifts are changing from week to week. One of the last challenges managers have is employees disrupting operations by calling in or stopping by to get their schedule and request time-off. All the unnecessary time spent with scheduling hassles should be spent on the customer experience.
What do you think are the things that can help hospitality staff with their schedules?
Having 24/7 access to their work schedule would be a huge benefit to any hospitality staff member. Getting their individual work schedule on their cell phone as a text is really getting embraced for obvious reasons – they love it! Being able to view the department’s entire schedule online helps employees find coverage if they need time-off. Saving personal time by not needing to call in or drive in to view their schedule and take time off.
Tell us a bit about your product and how it addresses these challenges?
WorkAlertz is an online work schedule notification system that is a easy-to-use solution for scheduling and communicating with employees. Employees aren’t calling and stopping in to see when they’re working or having the excuse that they forgot when they were scheduled. Employees can opt-in to receive notifications before every shift and are now on-time. Being a software application, no one needs to download any software ever!
How does it help if a staff doesn’t have a cellphone?
WorkAlertz can also send employees’ schedules to their e-mail and Facebook accounts. The manager can still print the schedule in a clean, pre-formatted printout if desired to post on the wall in the back room. Time-off can still be taken off online at home, at work, and at school.
How does it help when a staff member is running late?
WorkAlertz can send shift reminders before every shift if desired by the employee. Many places have varying weekly shifts for their employees. From the management’s perspective, it takes the old excuse “I forgot when I was working” out of the equation. It really makes the employees more accountable.
How does it help the staff in switching shifts?
The employees can view the entire staff’s schedule so they can see who’s not working and make the initial call before getting the manager’s approval. Just like before, but without stopping by or calling in to disrupt business operations.
Does it help with on call type staff such as in night clubs, busy holidays, catering, etc?
WorkAlertz’ StaffAlertz module is a truly great time-saver. You can send messages to employees filtered by schedule and those who are working or not working. You can even type in who can’t come in and it will automatically generate a message based on their shift assignment and send it to employees not scheduled. It increases communication with your staff 100%!
Are the staff’s cellphone numbers private when using this system?
WorkAlertz runs on the MyMinderz patent-pending privacy platform which protects users’ cell phone numbers just like many online financial institutions. It’s also optional for employees to share your number with your coworkers once inside the system.
What are the abuses that can possibly happen or that you’ve seen happen using this system?
Just like any other communication medium, managers can abuse the service by sending out announcements too frequently and at inappropriate times. But, only those deemed management have access to send out messages to staff members that have opted in to the WorkAlertz work notification system. If abused, management will surely hear from their staff and it would most likely be quickly resolved.
Is there anything else that this system can do to help hospitality workers?
WorkAlertz helps your company’s green initiatives. Less paper schedules and notes, no more wasted trips to the restaurant or facility to see the schedule. Also, no more time spent on the phone with co-workers chatting over when they are working next. The StaffAlertz module allows instant communication of company promotions and event reminders like staff meetings. Employees can forward their schedule to their friends and family as desired.
What are some of the new features that your team is coming up with in 2009?
There’s a whole suite of notification applications planned on the MyMinderz platform, but as far as WorkAlertz goes, we will be working on labor law compliance, filtered schedule views, ability to set constraints on when one receives an alert on their phone, and tagging of employees to name just a few. All new features, of course, are added in with no additional charge once an account has be processed.
Well it is Christmas and its party time…at least for your customers and staff it is! Hopefully you’ll be able to take some time off to spend with your loved ones over the Holidays too.
Although it is the season of goodwill (and at the risk of raining on your parade..) I wanted to take a minute to remind you to be extra vigilant about your stock this season.
Opportunistic thieves will waste no time to take unlocked stock off your hands so you need to be aware of this and take action to prevent it. Just do a search on Google news and you will see everyday restaurants and bars being robbed by external and internal thieves during the holidays.
Prevent Staff Thefts
Staff will be attending many parties over the holiday season and will no doubt need to bring the obligatory bottle of wine or spirits with them. You need to ensure that it hasn’t come from your bar at your expense. The most likely items that will catch a dishonest staff member’s eye are Vodka, Jack Daniels, Tequila, Wine and perhaps even Baileys. These are all party worthy drinks, though I’m sure you’ll agree that this list is not exhausted.
By now you should have an idea as to the approximate sales quantities of these items. If you’ve been undertaking your inventories and your nightly spot checks then you should know whether you need 5 bottles or 15 bottles on an average night.
Taking the example that you need just 5 bottles, make this your Par Stock. In other words the quantity of stock needed to service an average night of service in your bar. This will be made up in any number of ways: 2 bottles on the shelf, 2 opened and one in the speed rack (bar-well) as an example.
At any time during the night, there should always be those five bottles in the bar. Some may be empty as the night progresses and will be in the bottle bin, but you should be looking out or at least aware that five physical bottles of that product exist in the bar.
If additional bottles are needed from the store, do a swap of the empty bottle for the full bottle, maintaining your par stock of 5 bottles for that item.
By the end of the night, you will know that none of your bottles on the bar have been removed, if you’ve been keeping an eye. Do a count at the end of the night of these few items to confirm.
Of course this is all dependent on you being the only key holder to the stores, that no access is available to unauthorized personnel to the storage areas and that you’ve been counting correctly. By keeping a close eye on these items or your items that always seem to be short following an inventory, you will get more of an idea as to when the items are going missing and start asking more questions of your staff.
Preventing External Thieves
Sadly, Christmas time is very lucrative for thieves. People let their guard down, carry extra cash around to buy gifts, store gifts before Christmas and Food & Beverage Businesses stock up on products for the busy party nights and carry larger amounts of cash on the premises.
Here are a few tips to prevent a robbery in your business over Christmas:
Keep the exterior of the bar well lit, including alleyways.
Do not leave deliveries outside unattended at anytime.
Ensure the entrances and exits are monitored by camera/security.
Vary the times you drop your cash to the bank to avoid a predictable routine.
Keep all stores locked securely at all times and keep keys safe.
Nobody wants to be another crime statistic and we all owe it to our families to protect our own safety as well as that of our staff and customers.
Wishing you all a Happy, Healthy & Prosperous Christmas & New Year
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Barry Chandler is Managing Director of www.manageyourbaronline.com, the complete online resource for independent bar and club owners and operators, designed to assist bar owners manage their business more effectively and provide all the tools/downloads/templates/articles for prospective bar owners to research and plan their new bar.
Opening a bar or managing a bar is not as easy as many would have you believe. Although the rewards for those who get it right can be great, a large majority fail for the same few reasons again and again.
We’ve listed the 10 things we have come across most often that have ended up costing a lot of money, alienating customers and even contributed to the closure of the business. In no particular order:
1. No research done on location or market
Too many times I have met with struggling bar owners who spent a fortune on a concept that worked well somewhere else but for some reason it isn’t doing the business for them. Could it be because the high end bar/restaurant you built is in a brand new neighborhood where the inhabitants are young couples tied into mortgages and childcare costs? Could it be that the area doesn’t have sufficient passing traffic to capitalize on walk in trade? If you’re wondering why a particular style or concept hasn’t opened in your area before, don’t take it as a sign that this is a gap in the market. It may be, but it will take extra research to determine the local market, local businesses, spin off business from sports/concerts, disposable income available to your potential customers. Some bar chains spend months “casing” an area to count footfall, passing traffic and much more, so if you as an individual aren’t learning from the big boys, then you should be.
2. Not analyzing the recipe cost of everything
Everything you serve has a cost. What is the cost of the bottle of beer or the nachos and dip, or the steak and fries? If you don’t know the total ingredient cost (which includes salt, pepper, garnishes and everything else) then you probably won’t know whether you’re making money or losing money until your month end or worse, you run out of cash to pay vendors and staff. Create a spreadsheet and track the ideal cost of everything. The ideal cost is what it should cost you to serve that item. Human error will always make that figure fluctuate, but it shouldn’t be by much. If it is, then you need to provide additional training to staff. Anytime I’ve done this exercise with bar owners, they were shocked by the cost of at least a handful of items every time and needed to increase their prices to make their margins.
3. Skimping on the purchase of essential technology
There are some things you cannot do without as a bar owner and you should not try and cut back on costs when it comes to buying them. These include Video Surveillance Systems, Inventory Control Software, POS systems, Lighting & Sound Systems if running a club and ovens for the kitchen. There is no way around these items if they are needed in your business to provide the service you advertise. You should spend as much money as you can possibly afford on these items as without them, you could be scammed by staff and customers not spotted robbing from you due to faulty video cameras, you might be receiving short deliveries or not spotting the bottle of vodka a week that’s going to the staff party in the case of inventory software. So budget wisely and if there is something you need to save on, it’s not these items I can assure you!
4. Not understanding the bookkeeping or accounts
Many bar owners delegate the task of bookkeeping to an external bookkeeper to manage, yet how many of them know what the bookkeeper is doing? Could the bookkeeper be siphoning out cash on a weekly basis without the knowledge of the owner? It can and does happen. While outsourcing services is important, you need to know what you are outsourcing. This is important for two reasons, one, you will know when the contractor is trying to scam you if you have an understanding of the service and two, you will know how long the outsourced tasks should take when you are paying by the hour. It takes some time to learn the essential aspects of accounting but could save you a fortune in the long run.
5. Waiting too long for financial results
As a business owner, there are a few key results and numbers you need on a weekly basis and you need to setup the reporting to accommodate this. Waiting for quarterly management reports to identify problems isn’t good enough. Your three biggest costs are most likely going to be food, beverage and labor. Have these figures available each week and compare them to your sales. Are you spending more than you are making? Don’t forget you still have utilities and other expenses to come out of your sales, so make sure these figures are to hand each week and make changes as necessary to meet your targets.
6. Setting a bad cost control example for staff
If you as a bar owner are frequently seen by staff giving away drinks to friends, comping meals for family and having a few drinks yourself without paying, then you are sending the message to staff that you consider this practice acceptable. It doesn’t matter that you own the place, you need to show staff that every item is accounted for. Make it a habit to pay for these items out of your pocket and ask a staff member to ring it up for you and give you your change. You’ll be surprised how staff will respond to this example. Cost control policies come from the top, so start making the change yourself.
7. Hiring unsuitable staff
Not every job applicant has the qualifications or personality to work for you. As a bar owner, if you are doing the hiring and you are paying the wages, then it’s your responsibility to eliminate the applicants that clearly don’t meet your requirements. Once you have narrowed down your search, then it is essential to check past references of prospective staff members. Previous employers will be more than happy to let you know how suitable the applicant is for the job so make this step a priority in the hiring process. If after all this, the hired employee turns out to be unsuitable, waste no time in removing them from your business. A bad apple can infect the rest of the staff too, so don’t waste any time.
8. Being a friend before a boss.
A bar is a very social environment, not just for patrons, but for staff alike. Don’t make the mistake of crossing the line between boss and friend. You as the owner are there to make decisions that won’t always endear you to the staff, but you’re not there to make friends, you’re there to make a profit and that sometimes calls for unpopular decisions. Stand by these decisions and don’t let personal relationships affect your judgment. Staff will come and come and go, but businesses might not.
9. Not playing a role in the community
You rely on your community for business and likewise you ought to show the locals that you are doing something to give back. Nothing alienates communities more than businesses that alienate them and try to exploit them. If local community groups want to hold their meetings in your bar, don’t charge them for a private room; if the football team wants you to be a sponsor, do everything you can to oblige, you will most probably be the centre of any celebrations for the fans and team afterwards. Donate to local causes within reason and your business will be held in high esteem locally.
10. Spending too much time in the office and not enough time on the floor with customers and staff
Wal-Mart head office has a policy whereby they call the managers offices in Wal-Mart branches around the country and if the manager answers, they are asked what they are doing in the office when they should be out in the store! Office work is for outside of bar hours or at the very least in the quietest times of the day. By spending time with your customers and staff, you will quickly learn what works and what makes customers happy as well as ideas for improvement. Don’t rely on staff and customers to seek you out to tell you what’s wrong with the business. It’s your job to find out!
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Barry Chandler is Managing Director of www.manageyourbaronline.com, the complete online resource for independent bar and club owners and operators, designed to assist bar owners manage their business more effectively and provide all the tools/downloads/templates/articles for prospective bar owners to research and plan their new bar.
Have you ever walked into a business like a clothing store or restaurant and the employees there didn’t acknowledge you? You knew that they saw you enter, yet they didn’t feel that it was more important that a potential customer was greeted and served right away than finishing their current conversation or whatever they were doing.
How did you feel?
Did you want to spend your money there?
Not good, right?
I don’t blame you, now that you are the business owner, what are you going to do differently? I don’t have any statistical data of how much it would harm your business; however, it will definitely not be good for potential customers to get this kind of first impression when they enter your business.
Here are some steps you can take to teach your staff how to welcome and acknowledge every customer in your restaurant.
Teach it
Yes, it’s true, most things in life are intuitive, yet in your business, never assume that what you want to be done is known by your staff. ESP doesn’t work in relationships and it doesn’t work in business either. Show your staff what you want them to say to customers, when and why. Demonstrate and role play some possible scenarios. Ask them how they feel when they are ignored?
Repetition
Repetition is the key in every type of learning. Don’t talk to and treat people like they are stupid, just simply practice constistency. Employees prefer predictablility. Good business practices are clear and predictable. If your staff are not clear on the task, then they won’t perform the task. Drill it into your staff’s heads so that when a customer walks in, they don’t think about what they should do, they’ll just do it.
Reward Good Good Modelling
Reward and recognition doesn’t always have to be related to money. A word of praise privately or in front of co-workers, or a pat on the back will do for most things. Recognize the desired behavior no matter how redundant it may seem. Not being appreciated is one of the major reasons of work dissatisfaction.
Fire
Nobody likes to have let staff go, but it is a tough task that is involved in being a business owner. If someone doesn’t buy into your restaurant culture with repeated attempts to persuade them, then they should go to a company where they will buy into that culture. You’ll be doing that person a favor in the long run. One bad apple WILL corrupt the bunch. It takes very little effort to criticize and complain- destroying what you are trying to build. Take notes on the ones who roll their eyes, snicker or offer unwanted advice or comments. Convert or eliminate negative energy. It takes constant positive energy and effort to create and maintain good attitudes and practices in your business.
You can’t lose if customers that feel welcomed and appreciated. The good will generated can’t be measured, except that you will get repeat business and eventually referrals to your business. Stand above your competitors by putting the extra work in creating an environment that is both warm and inviting.
For many restaurants the holiday season can be extremely busy with customer X-mas parties, that often business owners push off their own Christmas party for their staff or even worse decide not to have one for them. This is a huge mistake. What better time to show this appreciation and build a sense of community and loyalty at the same time with an annual staff party?
It will be worth every penny to build good will and show appreciation. Allow your staff to bring dates, family and friends there to eat and drink. Have a rewards/gifts of appreciatation. Don’t penny pinch in the wrong areas. Having an annual party is good business. You staff will grow closer as a team and you will have better moral all round with employees.
Let us know your favorite memory from a work christmas party?
Besides money, what can you trade with your staff that is like currency?
In other words, what are the intangibles in your restaurant business that make people feel appreciated and want to stay? Were you able to stay working for miserable and ungrateful people in horrible work environments for very long? If you can tolerate that, then good for you, but most people that will work for you won’t.
Good Will. Give more than you take and most people will return the good will.
Don’t be a tyrant. That crazy chef shows like Hell’s Kitchen with Gordon Ramsey on the food channels are great for TV, but not for your business.
Fair Scheduling. Work with people’s lives. Allow flexibility in your scheduling to accomendate employee’s lives. Care about what happens in their lives and they will care about your business.
Help out. During service with customers, jump in and don’t be afraid to pitch in. Don’t have the attitude of: “I pay them, so I shouldn’t have to do that“.
Praise people privately and publicly. Words are so powerful. Use your words to build up and encourage. Focus on what people do well. Don’t make it a public event every time you pat someone on the back because that will be seen as insincere. But be sure to have a constant stream of appreciation and compliments for when staff are doing an excellent job.
Correct Privately. Make a public humilation of someone and you’ll get yours someday. It takes energy and patience, but you’ll kick yourself later if you let your frustration and anger make you say or do things that you’ll regret. Never, never scold an employee in front of other employees or customers.
These six restaurant management tips, if done consistently and with everyone in your organisation is a recipe for making a work environment that your employees can feel the difference and be drawn to your business. For employees it’s not always just about the money either, if they are happy when they come to work it makes a world of difference. And trust me, your customers will feel and notice the difference between happy staff and dissatified staff.
What can you do about lateness in your Restaurant business?
Don’t be late yourself. Make sure that your managers and supervisors are never late. Model the behaviour that you desire. When you and your key players live above your rules, then you create class separation within your own organisation resulting in resentment and disobedience. Status always separates people.
Teach to employees call right away as soon as they think they will be late. EVERY TIME. Drill in this procedure over and over again. Wondering about people creates stress and immobilisation because you don’t know if the staff member is okay or if you need to start looking for a replacement for that shift. Service businesses are always running on the bare necessities as it is, a little hiccup can cause everyone unnecessary stress and possibly affecting service to your customers.
Listen and communicate with your staff. Have rules, but be flexible and compassionate when out of the out of the ordinary happens. Don’t go straight to punishment each time. Train managers to be good listeners in the cracks of time that are available when the staff are not dealing with customers. If owners/managers know what’s going on with boyfriend breakups, looking for a new apartment, family tragedy, vehicle breakdown, etc., then they can help their staff think through, plan and switch around priorities, so that their lives are better off and your business is not affected by everyone’s personal tsunami. People want to know that people care. You will create incredible loyalty because this attitude of win/win is not apparent in practice for most business environments.
Pay for people who are early and willing to do some work. There is always work that needs to be done. Some owners deduct for lateness, but why not pay people who jump in early. Encourage earliness.
Reward people who pick up the slack when other employees have not shown up on time. If the good staff are punished with extra work because you are short a person, then show that person that you appreciate them. Give them a free dessert to take home to their girlfriend. Or at least a few kind words and praise.
Follow these five tips and you should notice a decrease your staff’s latest in your restaurant.
