Hiring, training and maintaining the best staff possible

Hiring the best staff for your restaurant and foodservice operation is one of the most important keys to your success. As we all know, good customer service tops the list of every “Must Do” manual for running a restaurant. One bad employee could potentially drive away customers for good.

However, finding the right staff is not an easy job. There is also a lot of work and preparation that must be done before you even begin the interview process. The harder you work to find the right people, the better the people you will find.

Now that you know exactly who you want to hire, you need to go about finding such a person. In today’s “labour-challenged” market, it can be a difficult task of attracting any applicants, much less quality applicants. You might have to look further than posting a “Help Wanted” sign in your window.

Consider in-house first. Is there someone currently on your staff who could do the job, or someone who used to be on your staff that you could lure back? If not, ask your staff if they know anyone.

Advertise your job opportunity online, and be sure to list all the qualities you are looking for. Make sure that you get applicant references, not just from their previous boss or manager, but from fellow employees as well. Many times, the best reference you can get will be from the person who had to work alongside this applicant every night, five nights a week. Ask about teamwork, dependability and attitude.

If you don’t have the time or energy to do this, also consider hiring a staffing company to recruit and vet potential employees first.

There is a fine balancing act of how much training is necessary before an employee begins working. To find that balance, figure out a minimum level of acceptable performance for each job in your restaurant. List the specific tasks and training needed to support them, and then determine the relative importance of each task. Decide which ones need immediate action, and which ones that can be mastered on the job or down the road.

Be consistent with your training. Make sure that each and every employee receives the same information and training, and is able to offer the same levels of service expected from your operation.

If training is not your strong suit, consider hiring a consultant to build a training program, and/or write a training manual for you and your staff.

Many restaurants and foodservice operations reward their best servers and bartenders by promoting them to be managers. However, in many instances, this move sets up these outstanding employees for failure. No matter how good they are serving customers, they are usually not adequately trained or prepared for their new roles in management.

Managers must be able to lead their teams and communicate properly, while offering support to team members. They also must handle disputes between staff and customers, as well as between staff members themselves. A manager is the coach of the staff, and must lead his/her team to a victory every night. Send your managers for formal training and educational courses. This may cost money and take time, but the value of what they will learn and apply to your restaurant is worth it.

Staff retention is a major struggle in the restaurant and foodservice industry. You must reward and recognize your staff for a job well done, but at the same time, you must also fix and rectify mistakes immediately. Consider putting together an employee incentive program, whereby employees that provide excellent standards of service receive bonuses. Contests are also ideal as they add some fun, competition and excitement to the job. Host or organize “staff” nights, so that members of your team can spend time with each other on a social basis. This will make for a friendlier environment, which will reflect in your restaurant and trickle down to your customers as well.