Restaurant Talking Points

It was a sad day in the Hookham household. My oldest daughter, Paris, started Kindergarten. My wife cried because her daughter is getting older and growing up. I cried because I’m getting older

This is the time of the year when kids go back to school. Which means it’s also the busiest time of the year for our clients in terms of hiring and training. We have clients that are experiencing a 50% turnover rate this fall. And that, my friends, will bring tears to any management team!

Hiring is an important part of a manager’s job function. By hiring the right people, and I’m talking about people that are service oriented, your training will be that much more effective.

I once had a manager tell me that he only hires people that have been trained by a national chain restaurant. He figured that since the employee had already received some training he wouldn’t have to do much. He wasn’t a client so I just bit my lip and kept quiet, but if he was a client (or even a just a friend) what I would have said was….

“So let me see if I get this right. You only hire the people that your competitors down the street either fire or won’t give any hours to, is that right? And you don’t see a problem with this strategy?”

I’m not saying you shouldn’t hire someone with experience; just make sure you find the real reason that experience is coming in your door looking for a job. Maybe they moved into the area to attend a local college, or their best friend works for you. During the interview ask the question “Why do you want to work here?” and check references.

And while hiring someone with experience is great, the most important component you should look for in an applicant is that they have people skills. Seems obvious but let me explain.

There are two sides to the Remarkable Service coin. On one side is the technical performance. This includes things like timing issues, how to deliver the food, clearing the table etc. In general these are the systems and procedures of the job that our training products teach in order to provide Remarkable Service.

On the flip side we have what I call the hospitality factor; the ability to display warmth and friendliness to your guests. This side of the coin is harder to train your staff on then the systems and procedures side. Our training products teach ways to provide hospitality, but it’s always more effective if you hire people that are friendly, courteous and enthusiastic. Take these people and then train them in the systems and procedures of being a server.

Things to look for during an interview include eye contact, good verbal skills, enthusiasm and attentiveness. Asking open ended questions during an interview will help to uncover if your applicant has these things. A great question to ask is “Tell me about a great service experience you’ve had at a restaurant?”.

The last tool I want to talk about in helping you hire the right people are assessment tools. Currently we are testing an online assessment tool that can be used for both FOH staff and managers. These tools measure things like work ethic, integrity, teamwork and reliability. I know of several establishments that are having great success using these types of tools as a part of there hiring process.

Hiring for service can be a difficult task, but looking for the hospitality factor in your applicants will increase your chances for successful hires. Now if I could just find a tool to keep me from aging!