Keeping your staff happy and motivated is the secret ingredient to any business’ success. And over the last couple of years, we’ve shared a ton of useful tips, best practices, and key strategies to help you manage your staff efficiently. In this super blog, we’ve put them all together so you can enjoy an all-you-can-eat buffet of team-building techniques, so your people are at their peak.
1. Keep your staff smiling.
A happy team is a productive team. When you create a positive work environment, not only do you boost their motivation and loyalty, but you also enhance your restaurant’s reputation. Happy employees, satisfied customers, and a better bottom line — that’s what we call a hat trick.
We’ve shared 5 savvy strategies to help lift team spirit. Let’s take another look at those:
- Welcome work-life balance.
By offering flexible scheduling and accommodating time-off requests, you’ll help your employees live well and work better. Start by setting up your restaurant staff on an online scheduling app, like 7shifts.
- Serve an assortment of assets.
Invest in training programs, mentorship, and skill development for your employees. When they see the path to growth within your restaurant, they’re more likely to stick around.
- Empower employees to express themselves.
Create a culture of respect, open communication, and teamwork – where everyone’s voice is heard. You can do this by regularly asking for feedback so your team feels comfortable sharing concerns and suggestions. It goes both ways — your communication matters, and your employees’ voices count.
- Give them a shout-out.
Who doesn’t love a pat on the back? Implementing recognition programs to let your team know they’re stars can make a big difference. Simple gestures like verbal gratitude or offering free staff meals can boost morale and motivation with your staff.
- Spice up salaries.
Offering competitive wages and benchmark benefits are sure-fire ways to keep your staff smiling. Start by reviewing salaries and providing performance-based incentives to get the ball rolling.
Dig into the full article right here.
2. Navigate short staffing storms.
If you ever find yourself short-staffed, it’s good to have a game plan ready to keep things running smoothly. Here’s a quick recap of a few effective short-staffing solutions we’ve discussed.
- Cross-train your crew.
Boost your team’s versatility with cross-training opportunities. When your staff can handle multiple roles in your restaurant, they’ll be able to cover where you might need them. When everyone can pitch in during a crunch, you can better manage any changes in staffing levels.
- Make small menu changes.
The more items on your menu, the longer the prep and cooking times. If your back-of-the-house team is feeling the heat, you can give your menu a temporary makeover and put those less-ordered items on the backburner.
For more info on how to solve staffing shortages, read the full article here.
3. Create the recipe for retention.
By incorporating team management tools into your restaurant operations, you can enhance organization and productivity while keeping your employees motivated and engaged.
Here’s a little refresh on some of the strategies we dished out to help you improve employee retention:
- Try new tech.
Streamline your processes by investing in a great POS system to help keep orders in check while assisting with other tasks like inventory management and scheduling.
- Hire some HR help.
Bringing a human resources manager on board can help you focus on running your restaurant without having to handle all the employee matters yourself. Plus, having an HR manager can help with short-staffed issues.
- Brew buzz around your business.
One trick to crafting a brand that stands out is starting from within. Start by creating a unique culture and providing the benefits that employees crave. Then, keep the momentum going by consistently promoting your restaurant, and highlighting what makes it special on social media.
In this article, we also sat down with a few of our Partners to get the inside scoop. Check out all 4 employee retention strategies in detail, here.
4. Improve your luck with 7shifts.
Do you need an easier way to manage your team? As we alluded to earlier, the scheduling software program 7shifts can help you create schedules, build, publish, and fill shifts on the go.
Our full article talks about the importance of embracing team management and communication tools to keep your employees content. Here’s a quick taste of what it’s all about:
• Cost-reducing analytics.
• Employee engagement tools.
- Task management, tips and more.
- Access to scheduling, time-clocking, and communication tools.
Bonus: There’s also an exciting offer for our Partners. Check out the sweet deal and the full article here.
By following these tips and implementing the strategies we’ve highlighted, you’ll be on your way to levelling up your team’s morale, all while creating a hotspot that everyone wants to be a part of.
