STAFF: 4 Reasons Why You Need Staff Feedback at Your Restaurant
As operators and managers, we’re obsessed with what our guests think of us. And it makes sense. Guests are the ones carrying the cash, so happy guests turn into a happy sales report, right? But by focusing on making our guests happy we can’t ignore what our staff has to say. Here are some reasons why you should regularly ask your staff for feedback.
DID YOU KNOWS…
AAF Debuts to Strong Ratings
The Alliance of American Football debuted this past weekend to strong ratings. In fact, it matched the NBA on ABC in head-to-head overnight ratings (2.1). One of the more novel moments of the game was the AAF mic’d up their replay officials, letting fans get in the brains of what the officials are seeing and thinking. It’s a cool idea that the NFL should consider stealing.
No Bugs is Bad for Nature
The research found that the world's insect populations are hurtling towards extinction, threatening a "catastrophic collapse of nature's ecosystems." 41% of the world's insect populations are declining while a third are endangered. The extinction rate of insects is eight times faster than mammals, birds and reptiles and there are suggestions that they could totally vanish within a century.
Feed Your Ex to a Bear
The Oregon-based Wildlife Initiatives will feed your ex to a bear for as little as $20… kinda. They’ll actually name a salmon after your ex and feed that to the bear because it’s much less likely to be a problem with the police. It’s part of their “Catch and Release” fundraiser. Not only will a Kodiak bear eat your ex’s fish-proxy, but you’ll also get a special certificate and photos of the bear going to town on the fish. Happy Valentine’s Day!
PUT ME IN COACH [Song]
Why it matters to you: You have more in common with athletic coaches than you think.
The analogy between the head football coach and the restaurant general manager is elegant and easy to appreciate. For example, most of the work done all week is in preparation for the game this weekend. Head coaches have an offensive and defensive coordinator; you have a kitchen manager/chef and a front of the house service manager. Head coaches don’t play, but they are a clear and integral part of a winning team. So, you shouldn’t expect Bill Belichick to be running expo on a Saturday and maybe you shouldn’t either.
Great managers work through others to succeed and they do so with all the available tools. For example, coaches are driven by the numbers and make most of their personnel and tactical decisions based on them. You too have a data rich playing field and it’s up to you to leverage that data for your decision making. Remember the numbers are valuable, especially when it comes to preparation, but game time decisions have to be based on both the numbers and your experience -- just like a coach. So, while there aren’t winners and losers in the game we play, there are great performers put in a position to succeed by gifted and motivated coaches.
[Source: Restaurant Business Online]
MOTHER’S MILK MONEY
Why it matters to you: In today’s labor market, it’s better to be accommodating to staff that sued by them.
A Delaware KFC franchisee has been hit with a $1.5 million settlement after a jury found a breast-feeding employee was treated poorly because she was nursing. This is an especially dumb story. Start with the fact that she was hired only a few weeks after she gave birth and made no secret about her need to pump breast milk while at work. For any of you that haven’t experienced the responsibilities of a breast-feeding mom, if you don’t continue to use the milk it ceased to be made by the body. For any woman that wants to share this with their newborn child, the devastation caused by disrupting that has implications for both the mother and child.
Ok, so no one wants a lesson in the importance and power of breastfeeding, except that in today’s world of impossible staffing challenges, you might need one. This lesson isn’t limited to lactating mothers, but more so an allegory for all the accommodations a manager must now make to attract quality employees. Would you turn someone away that was qualified if they couldn’t work Sundays due to their religious beliefs? While it is your right, can you afford not to be flexible if the employee shares their limitations prior to employment? Most operators would say no these days.
That is why this story is particularly vexing. Not only did the employee share here status, but asked for defined time to be able to pump breast milk. The problem is that there was no place private for her to be accommodated and the manager’s office had a security camera. See where this heads? The owner of this KFC franchise allowed his own behavior to cost him $1.5 million. Please be thoughtful about how you approach your staff with any personal needs or limits they have, or this might be your own future.
[Source: The Hill]
