Restaurant Job Board Blog

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.

Way back when I use to server tables I never had any trouble scoring the job of my choice. I believe I did two things that other possible candidates probably did not do. Once I choose the establishment I wanted to work, I then made a it a point to put some of my P.I. skills to use.

I’d go by to the restaurant/bar before I applying and I basically ‘case the joint‘. I’d note what the other servers are wearing. I’d ask for a take-home menu and take notes on their bar drink list. I’d get familiar with the items they sold. So familiar, that basically if I was hired on the spot I could start working right away.

I’d then apply (make sure you never apply to a restaurant during peak serving hours). I would make sure when I applied I am wearing something that is similar to what the wait staff wears while serving, this way I subconsciously look like I could start right away. I’d also apply when I know the manager and/or owner was in, so often I received an interview on the spot.

Once I had the interview (whether it was on the spot or not), I was prepared and confident because I knew their menu(s). I would let them know that I knew their menu(s) and asked them ask me anything about it. Once they asked me a question or two they were usually impressed that I took the time to learn the menu in advance. (Most servers don’t know their own menu for months after working a restaurant, so this can be a real hot spot for most managers/owners.)

SIDENOTE: Now don’t do this unless you really are going to learn the menu(s). You’ll look like a real knob if you try this and really don’t do you homework.

Once I had shown that knew their menu(s) and noticed that I had built a little rapport. I let them know that I am serious about working at their restaurant and let them know I can start as soon as they need me to, but (very gently) let them know that I will not wait around to be hired. (This is key because it puts them in a spot of ‘fear of loss‘.)

You have to understand that Managers and Owners want the best staff. They want this because it usually makes their lives easier. They know that sharp people are hard to find. It doesn’t take much to stand out above the masses of other servers. Just go a little ‘beyond the call of duty‘ before getting hired and you would be surprised at how fast an restaurant employer will snatch you up.

The end result was… I almost always started the next day. Works like a charm!

So to summarize the two quick tips:

1. Dress similar to the existing staff does for your interview.
2. Know that restaurant’s menu(s) in advance.

Happy restaurant job hunting!

Search for Restaurant Jobs in Your Area

A very under used method of getting attention for small local restaurant businesses is submitting Press Releases. Submitting a press releases about your restaurant during the holiday season can be a great way to create buzz, awareness, and even increase your profits. If you follow most PR experts they will tell you that anytime you can tie you story into current events is a great time to release a press release.

‘The Holidays’ are a excellent opportunity for a restaurant to be creative with a campaign that is worthy of publishing in local news events. One of the best ways to get your events noticed by news channels is to submit press releases. We reccommend using a service from PRWeb which releases their PR’s into Google News and Yahoo News, where many news channels, (offline and online) are scouting for their next news story.

SIDENOTE: It is usually easier if you cater your press release to being related to a local event or cause because your chances of being picked up in one of the local news channels is greater as opposed to trying to get recognition nationally or internationally.

We wanted to get a list started of some great Holiday Press Release Ideas for Restaurants:

1. Tie a day of your sales into you local Food Bank like the way Cobre’s did with their Corazon Day, where 100 percent of its net food revenues to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank.
2. Get involved in a give-a-way like Restaurant.com’s Feed it Forward program or create your own give-a-way program.
3. Have a Christmas Party and donate the funds raised from the party to worthy local cause like the way Johnny D’s Restaurant does for the homeless.
4. Create a special “holiday menu” the way Hart House at Deer Lake did, it scored them a write up in UrbanDiner.ca
5. Stage an event the way Charleston Restaurant with their annual Progressive Dinner Dickens Dinner, where they take visitors by horse-drawn carriage to several historic inns and restaurants for different dinner courses. What a great way to network with your local restaurateurs too!
6. Create a special item for the holidays like Swirlz’s holiday cupcakes, if is a remarkable item it is worthy of a press release.

Now we gave some great examples of ways to use holiday press releases to create some local buzz about your restaurant, but we know there are many other great ideas floating around out there.

Here’s your chance to get in the holiday spirit of ‘giving and share’… tell us in the comment section below what great ways you think a restaurant can use press releases during the holiday season to help increase awareness, buzz, and profits for their business.

Are you a unemployed restaurant worker, or currently employed in a restaurant and looking for a change? One of the first things you’ll have to do is prepare or upgrade your resume. If you haven’t entered the job market and are unaccustomed to constructing a resume, or if you are searching for a new job and haven’t updated your resume for a while, the process might seem intimidating.

One of the most difficult aspects of the restaurant job application process is the chore of providing references. While some jobs you apply for may not ask for references, almost all do, and almost all will check them. You should always assume that references will be asked for and will be followed up on. So make sure your references are lined up and ready to go and that they are legitimate and easily contacted.

There are two basic types of references: personal and professional. Typically, your application should have a combination of the two. As a rule, try for at the very minimum references to accompany your application.

When drawing up your resume it is not uncommon and is perfectly acceptable to state, at the bottom, “References Available upon Request.” If you apply for a restaurant job you may not be asked for an interview, and references are a form of information that does not need to be given until the potential employer has committed to calling you in for an interview.

However, if you do book a job interview, make sure you’ve got your references beforehand and have them available when you arrive. Sometimes, because prospective references need to be asked by you for their approval, you might not have all of them ready when the interview day arrives. It is acceptable to assure the employer that your references are forthcoming, but don’t make them wait for more than a day or two. If you do, it will demonstrate that you don’t take the offered restaurant job seriously, or that you are irresponsible and disorganized.

How do you approach acquiring high quality references? As pointed out earlier, you make sure you have both professional and personal references to go with your job application. Professional references are people who can account for your employment in the jobs you list on your resume: former superiors, bosses, co-workers or members of human resources divisions of larger companies. Professional references are meant to provide proof of employment, not attest to your skills, personality or job performance. They should be able to provide the dates you began and left the former job, as well as the titles you held and the duties you performed.

Personal references are people who will provide insight into your abilities, your work ethic, and various details about you relevant to your value as a worker. They could also be former co-workers, or can be people you’ve worked with in other areas (such as volunteer work, community organizations such as arts or sports groups, and so on), or even friends who have valuable information that can shed light on your professional attributes.

When selecting personal references, try and select people who you know are trustworthy, articulate, and have some kind of professional status that will make them seem credible. Your old buddy from high school may know you better than anyone, but is he or she really the person you want making claims on your behalf if he or she has no sense of your work abilities? It’s best not to use family members as references either; they will be viewed as biased. If you’ve never held a job before, you obviously will not have any employment references, and can rely solely on personal references.

Before you pass names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses of prospective references on to an interviewer, Don’t neglect to contact the references themselves and ask for their permission. It is disrespectful to use someone’s name as a reference if they don’t know in advance that they might be called upon. Also, if they know in advance, they can be ready with the necessary information when the call comes.

References are a major element of the restaurant job application process. Make sure you take the soliciting of your references seriously and have them with you for your interview. A great reference can make all the difference between you and another equally qualified candidate!

Gordon Ramsey has become one of the most known chefs and restaurant owners of all time. He lists off five key elements to running a successful restaurant:

1. Passion
2. Commitment
3. Competition
4. Creative
5. Customer

Do you possess these five key elements…?

What is an automatic gratuity? It is when an establishment or workers at an establishment force a 15% gratuity (TIP$$$) on a customer’s bill. It is usually applied in most places that have this policy to parties/groups of 6 or more people. The customer’s forced tax is then divided between the workers that helped with that table depending on how tips are handled at that particular business.

The disadvantages and advantages have to be weighed with each business model, so in the end you have to decide what’s best for your business.

Who likes to get if over with and start with the bad news? What are the disadvantages of having an auto grat (for short) policy?

Well… for starters, it can alienate and upset your customers because as part of human nature, no one likes to be forced to do anything. Living in Toronto, Ontario, Canada we are already taxed to death here with a 13% combined federal and provincial sales tax, if your unfriendly neighbourhood buffet, big chain restaurant or bottle service lounge or nightclub slaps a 15% grat on your bill, then a 1/3 ON TOP of your bill is thrown to tax and tip on already inflated subjective pricing.

How do you quantify bad will from an upset customer? If one customer is upset and complains and doesn’t come back, then how many were upset who didn’t say anything? Are these people going to recommend anyone to your business?

Auto gratuity without proper management can create entitlement issues with servers that expect a 15% tip whenever 6 people get seated in their section, but are not over delivering in service in order to EARN it. Result? More resentment on the part of the paying customer. Being forced to tip and end up with crappy service? Sign me up!

The advantages of having an auto gratuity policy is that everyone else is doing it, so people are used to it, so it isn’t so bad. Sorry, my mistake if you think this way, but this is actually a disadvantage.

The main advantage is that it helps supplement your employees’ income at the cost of your customer’s goodwill and pocketbook/ available credit.

Knowing that 15% of nothing is still nothing, a good server will up sell each of the 6 or more diners to the maximum point that each diner can politely say ‘no’ to any suggestions thrown at them. Group peer pressure is a great environment for up selling. Almost as good as a guy on a first date. This means bigger sales volume.

If anyone has gone out with 3-4 free loading friends, then you’ve experience the ‘who had the chicken?’ game when the bill arrives. Usually in this fun, friendship destroying game, no one takes into account the tip or the tax whether they recognised good service or not. Simple math is thrown out the window by free loaders because they want to divide the total evenly even though they were the only ones who had an extra beer and dessert. This game always requires a mother hen-like someone to responsibility to round up everyone else’s money (and change), recount, recount again, and ask ‘who had the chicken’, then recount again, coax more money out of the free loaders, then count again, then be last to leave to make sure no one reaches back to grab an extra twoonie?

So having an auto grat on larger parties is good for staff morale. If your staff gives great service, then gets stiffed because you don’t get great human beings in your business, then guess who your staff will blame? You, Your Customers and Your Customers who just walked in the door. This is not good when you are trying to create an inviting atmosphere with repeat business. So if you have a lot of large groups in your business, this policy will help you keep morale high and therefore lower the quit rate (attrition) of your staff.

Having an auto grat allows your managers to expect and push for exceptional service from their staff. When we know what it is worth, then we can play a tighter, more focused game. The results, happy customers and hopefully part of the reason for creating raving fans.

This policy may help keep some people out, which may not be a bad thing. If someone don’t have money to tip and pay tax, then they might avoid places that do that when they going out with 5 people or more. Or they might take up the large table and skip the appetizers, desserts and drink water.

This policy may waived to be used as a bargaining chip when employee mistakes happen and customers are looking for a court room settlement to applease their dissatisfaction. You might have to bench the unhappy employee for the rest of the night that cost that loss, but at least you won’t be giving out free food.

In the end, as with everything in life- it’s up to you. The smart businesses have the policy listed on their menus, and give the managers the flexibility to wave it to make the customers feel special and therefore indirectly coaxing a 15% or greater tip through reciprocal guilt. And the smart managers may choose to give this option to the best staff to decide for the chance of earning a greater than 15% tip, and decide for the weaker staff.