Training Your Staff
Continual training will not just leave your team with no excuses to be abreast of what’s going on in their establishment. It will also challenge you as a manager to stay at the cutting edge of what’s happening in the industry.
It’s damn well near impossible to hold a training session where you’ll get a 100 percent turnout. Don’t let yourself get bogged down trying to find the perfect day for everyone. Plan your meeting and set the time. If your training sessions are made fun and interactive, you get started on time and your staff gain something relevant and informative, your training sessions will increase in popularity and your staff will make more of an effort to attend them; some may also serve as team building and bonding sessions.
Short unplanned sessions will also prove helpful. A few minutes with one of your section waiters just before service can make a world of difference; talk about the flavours of a dish they’re having trouble with. Try the sauce or dressing and talk about the ingredients, taste the garnish and discuss what flavours standout. Do some polishing with your junior while explaining the importance of sparkling glassware and gleaming silverware. Interact with your staff as they go about their work and discuss what values are important to the look and feel of the restaurant.
Get your suppliers to assist with training. Don’t think you have to come up with all the good ideas yourself. Have your wine reps come to the restaurant and hold a tasting. Send your staff to industry events. Take a field trip to a local producer you use and take a first hand look at their production methods. As your staff become more informed about the product they are working with their self confidence will grow and sales will soar.
You may be able to arrange a staff exchange program with another business. Send one of your staff to a conference centre and they’ll pick up a few tricks on running functions. Take your staff to a restaurant that’s more in line with your vision and discuss what differences made things better or worse. Go somewhere that offers bad service and talk to your staff about how it made them feel.
Interactive fun training sessions will be more stimulating for your staff than handing them a set of instructions and droning on about how and what they should be doing. It will also motivate you and at times demand of you to search for improvements within your own restaurant. And as you build relationships with wine merchants, attend trade shows, visit producers and dine in other restaurants, it will keep you aware of what’s happening at the cutting edge of your industry.
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