Employee Management
To be successful, you want customers to return. Employees are pivotal in ensuring that diners get the best experience and want to return. Having a knowledgeable, motivated and happy workforce increases your chances of that happening. As the owner/manager, there is much that you can do to ensure that employees are happy where they were and give their best. Here are some of the ways you can ensure that management of your employees works well for everyone.
About employees
Your restaurant will have different groups of employees and it is important as a manager to understand the tasks each employee must complete. Be clear about your expectations and explain the reasoning behind them, for example, serving staff may not be aware of the importance of serving sizes not just to the bottom line, but also in managing diners expectations.
As a manager, make time to regularly walk the floor to witness your staff at work. If there is a repeated mistake you want to correct, go over this at a time when they are not busy. Offer suggestions for improved performance, being both personable but authoritative. If you have rules that state serving staff have to wear a name badge and they come in without one, remind them of the rules and if it’s lost, make another whilst being clear that it needs to be worn each shift. Reward staff for good work. A cash bonus or vouchers will encourage repeat performance and set the standard for others. Lead by example: If your restaurant has a rush, help out until the rush is over. The staff will appreciate that you have stepped in to help.
Shift schedules
There are times in every restaurant that are quieter than others. Be as fair as you can, spreading staff out evenly amongst the hours available and not just leaving busy times to the more experienced staff. The experience of working shifts at different times of the day also creates the opportunity to gain experience and be properly trained on all the different responsibilities that come with each shift. An added bonus to this is that you create flexibility when needing cover for absences.
You want your staff to be the best they can be and not stressed and tired. Staff should be given at least one day off each week, but I recommend to be two days, ideally on consecutive days. Only in an emergency ask someone to work the late shift and then an early shift the next day. Also have a clear system for staff to request time off. Always consider your legal obligations when scheduling shifts for those you employ under the age of 18 and plan so that overtime is not a regular cost. Online restaurant scheduling programmes are available for all types of establishments to make this job much simpler.