Management

The Wife Just Needed Some Chocolate Cake

Restaurant Safety & Security

Closing time is not the time to let your guard down, the guests are gone, you can relax theoretically speaking and it feels like the curtain has dropped on your final scene of the busy evening. It is finally beer thirty.

You are tired need a smoke even though you don’t smoke anymore, the cooks are cutting corners trying to get home, or lolligagging milking the clock.

The second to the last table of guests are leaving and you are only concerned with checking out the waitstaff and setting the openers up for success. No body watching, nobody is paying attention, I sneak in through the front door, right in front of the two young waitresses closing the dessert station, the three cooks cleaning the hotwells of the open kitchen, nobody looks up, nobody sees me? How can this be?

Al Stewart’s “The Year of The Cat” is the perfect background music for my late night  coup, my plan my wife at the last moment needed…. “The Chocolate Cake”. No really this local restaurant has the best chocolate cake. My Concern I was able to infiltrate their night security to achieve my selfish indulgence.

This is a quiet town a low crime state, not the norm for the rest of the country where security guards are needed in some lobbies of some chain restaurants.  After I slipped in the front door after the last guests left, I go to the Hostess stand and see the closing checks and credit card receipts laying on the counter.  I then look for the guy in the tie, the Restaurant Manager.

Restaurant Security Plan

Still this scares me, do not neglect your The Locksley nightclub, bar, and restaurant security handbook” target=”_blank”>restaurant security for the sake of saving a few bucks on labor. ( If you need information on restaurant security try this source…The Locksley nightclub, bar, and restaurant security handbook) for the sake of the time clock. Back in my OG days (Olive Garden) Corporate got, what we thought was a bug up their “butts in seats”.

Corporate hired a new head of security, we received our auto-shipped (Translation;…nobody had a clue it was coming)  security manual, then the training videos and yes meetings the meeting…with the D.O.

It was then we realized that a manager was shot and killed at a Red Lobsters back east. I think it was the prior year, did not matter the impact lasted even 15 years later the habits are in grained.

The interesting part is that the threats did not work, the threats of being fired on the spot if the D.O. walked in the backdoor and no manager was present, the threat of constant performance counselings for back door security issues, were not as effective as the “video”.

Restaurant Security Is More Then Cameras

But the videos, the crime scene, the interviews of the employees, the effect on the community, the actual death of not only a family man a father a husband a tragic event one and that is not discussed much in the news. The effects business, the lively hood, the ability of the other employees to support themselves and their loved ones. I was convinced, I became “uber paranoid” after that.

The video was so effective it also reminded me that random acts of violence  can and will occur anytime to any of us. That bad people live in a good world and will not hesitate to hurt you, just for cash, just for kicks. I know get a job get off your A– , be a man and… never mind.

Restaurant Safety Is More Then Monitoring The TDZ

Please do not sacrifice your safety, or the safety of your restaurant employees, your cash (Check your restaurant insurance policy), your business your life. Restaurant Security Camera’s can give a false sense of security. If you do not have a The Locksley nightclub, bar, and restaurant security handbook” target=”_blank”>restaurant security plan, get one, if you do not know where to start  let Restaurant Proz help you in creating a custom security plan for your restaurant

Be Safe!
Caio

The First Company to Do this Wins

With all of the brains and money sitting around at the top of the corporate

Restaurant Management

restaurant world, you’d think that they would have, as the biggest segment of
America’s restaurant industry, figured this out.
Ask any Top 50 company Vice President- “What is the single most important
position in your organization?”, and you will get one of three wrong answers:

The dashing, maverick company leader who dares to go against conventional
wisdom, braves uncharted waters with their crystal vision while sticking to their old
fashioned values.  (You’re talking to a suck up that still thinks he has a future with
his/her company.)

-The front line, hard working hourly employees, who are the first and last contact
with the almighty customer.  They turn ordinary food staples into grandiose works
of food art, provide five star service in a casual dining atmosphere, and water the
lobby plants with their over-committed, backbreaking sweat.  (You’re talking to
someone who fears for their very own employment, and hopes his employees that
can read will see this and save his sorry ass.)

-The loyal, value-conscious customer, who, despite ever escalating strong
competition, still believes in our concept, our product and our friendly service.
“They’re the ones signing our paychecks!”  (You’re talking to someone who’s
already talking to a recruiter.)

These people have reworded the same old drivel for decades, and repeat it so much
to each other that they’ve actually come to believe this crap.

The Answer

The managers.  The real operators, the ones really running the show.
You’d think they’d have guessed better – the managers are the only ones left in the
chain of command (unless some idiot said the home office staff – I guarantee he’s
sleeping with one of them).

Why would they not give this credit where it’s due?  Could be they’d have a nasty
rash of pay raise requests, but that’s not the real reason.  They would have to break
down and listen to them.  This would be the most distasteful, repulsive object of
horror that they could ever imagine.  It would throw the whole system out of whack!
How can you micro-manage them if you’ve admitted they know more about things
like :

-the products
-the menus
-the recipes
-the employees
-the local market
-what guests like/dislike
-the guests themselves
-what prices work
-what policies work
-what actually is possible

In fact, their perspective of the entire company is probably most accurate, and
uniquely positioned to view the organization from the most central view, from the
middle of the “Platinum Triangle”.  You know, that cramped place, evenly in
between the Guest, the Employee and the Company.  (More on that in another
writing – Wayyyyy too important for this rant.)

If the managers were “important”, then they would undoubtedly question the
established “authority”.  You know, those people between the unit manager and the
President, that need to constantly justify their jobs by “making a difference”.  They
don’t have many ways to do that unless they can truly motivate others to do their
bidding.  This cannot be done if those you command have been recognized as
knowing more than you do.  Why, you’d have to actually break down and spend
time in the field, getting dirty and having to deal with problems like belligerent
guests, employee absenteeism, “motivating teenagers 101”, facial jewelry,
landscaping, equipment repair for the technically disabled, health inspectors with an
attitude, payroll issues, influenza outbreaks, road construction out front, 500 item
inventories, charitable donations, interviewing, computer glitches, vomit in the
restroom, hair in the mashed potatoes, out of date milk, training outlines, next
week’s schedule, plumbing leaks, empty toner cartridges, Sarbanes/Oxley
record keeping, vacations, produce orders, personal problems, light bulb checks,
carpet cleaners, glassware inventories, employee theft, numerous “awareness tools”,
a hostess with cramps and a Fire Marshall with a bug up his ass.

Did I mention that there’s a mess in the restroom?  OK, sorry.

Who wouldn’t want to have that much fun?   All of them.   The sheer thought of
exposing themselves to this “torture” for more than a few hours at a time is the seed
of their nightmares.

Imagine a company where unit operations managers were – gasp! – revered and
respected?  Actually brought into the decision making process, represented at menu
meetings, consulted on marketing plans and gave their input on policy decisions?
What if they were publicly exalted and respected by EVERY member of the
hierarchy in restaurant organizations?  What if Vice Presidents, Directors of
Operations and Area Supervisors called them “Sir, or Madam”, or Mr. or Ms.?
What if, with necessary consultation of the legal department, managers decisions on
employee matters were the final word?  Imagine that the industry’s very best
prospects were all of a sudden opting to be Unit General Managers at this company

Imagine

Restaurant Managers

I Had to terminate some employees today. Woo Hoo! You got that right, I have been doing this for over 25

Restaurant Leadership

years. You just know when you walk into a new restaurant as a Consultant, Coach, GM, Manager that some moron is going to test your mettle. How do you handle it will determine the culture, the environment the direction the operation is going to take. Are you the Draconian Prick of an owner like Hells Kitchen ranting and raving all over the place or the cool cucumber, Clint Eastwood Dirty Harry type that goes in calmly and says go ahead and make my day!

I prefer the Clint Eastwood style cool calm resolved stick to the point and let the problem employee pull the trigger. Why? It can be incredibly satisfying to have the pain in the neck employee (cancers is what we refer to them as) eat a slice of humble pie and finally realize that hey they are a pain in the ass and no-body is there to cover their back. I will be back to finish this after the termination.

Turns out the entire staff thought they were invaluable. Ever heard of a coup well this is what just was attempted. Think I am kidding, these women thought they could pocket money, steal product and force the owner to sell the business to the employees. Dis-honest you betcha. Cruel you had better believe it. Why you say should someone who allowed their business to get that out of hand deserves this to happen. Maybe? Still does not make it right. No employee is “invaluable” no body should ever, ever, ever, EVER!!!!! Let employees hold them hostage in their own business or as a manager.

They Are Gone!

Restaurant Employees

You need to know your responsibility in the lively hood of a business. Lets review

Your responsibility starts with

Being Honest

Being on Time

Working in the Business as if it were your own

Having a sense of urgency as restaurant employee!

Being responsible for your behavior, if your boss sucks fire him and move on. This does not give you the right to steal.

Grow up take responsibility for your actions and live your life with integrity, This country has gotten used to pointing the finger and acting like we are on the Jerry Springer Show instead of doing what is right. Grow up get a set of jueves and do what is right. Maybe, Just Maybe Washington and our “leaders” I use the term lightly will follow suite. Just a thought

Work Smarter. Take Control of Your Workload.
Personal time management skills are essential skills for effective people.

Restautant Owner

• Time Management
• Beating Procrastination
• Effective Scheduling
• Resources and Books to read
The heart of time management is an important shift in focus to:
Concentrate on results, not on being busy
Many people spend their days in a frenzy of activity, but achieve very little, (I call this putting out Fires) because they’re not concentrating their effort on the things that matter the most. Basically if you have to put the same “fire” out more then 3 times you have a hole in your internal business structure / systems
Great Book on understanding and important verses urgent is
“First Things First” By Steven Covey and Roger Merrill.
The 80:20 Rule
This is neatly summed up in the Pareto Principle, or the ‘80:20 Rule’. This says that typically 80% of unfocussed effort generates only 20% of results. This means that the remaining 80% of results are achieved with only 20% of the effort. While the ratio is not always 80:20, this broad pattern of a small proportion of activity generating non-scalar returns recurs so frequently that it is the norm in many situations. This brings up the Book the “Four Hour Work Week” By Tim Ferriss. The basic premise is to focus on the 3 most critical tasks that need to be accomplished for the day Do them first and everything else is gravy (my Words)
Beating Procrastination
Manage Your Time. Get the Important Done.
The key to controlling and combating this destructive behavior is to recognize when you start procrastinating, I use the term selective procrastination and actually apply it to my stop doing list, but lets understand why it happens (even to the best of us), by understanding the basis for procrastination we can take active steps to better manage our time and outcomes.
Why do we Procrastinate?
In a nutshell, you procrastinate when you put off things that you should be focusing on right now, usually in favor of doing something that is more enjoyable (pain vs pleasure) or that you’re more comfortable doing. (Learning new things that we have ever done before sends our brain into a fight of flight mode thus creating a feeling of discomfort towards pressing forward with our projects)
Procrastinators work as many hours in the day as other people (and often work longer hours) but they invest their time in the wrong tasks. Sometimes this is simply because they don’t understand the difference between urgent tasks and important tasks, and jump straight into getting on with urgent tasks that aren’t actually important.
They may feel that they’re doing the right thing by reacting fast. To the urgent
1. Or they may not even think about their approach and simply be driven by the person whose demands are loudest.
2. Another common cause of procrastination is feeling overwhelmed by the task. You may not know where to begin.
3. Or you may doubt that you have the skills or resources you think you need. So you seek comfort in doing tasks you know you’re capable of completing.
Other causes of procrastination might include:
• Waiting for the “right” mood or the “right” time to tackle the important task at hand
• A fear of failure or success (yup that tricky brain)
• Poor organizational skills (planning)
• Perfectionism (”I don’t have the right skills or resources to do this perfectly now, so I won’t do it at all.”)
(All of these reasons come down to not planning)
Overcoming Procrastination:
Whatever the reason behind procrastination, it is important to know what your brain is doing, recognized and create a strategy to deal with and overcome it before your project is derailed.
Step 1: Recognize that you’re Procrastinating
You know when you’re procrastinating!
Some useful indicators which will help you pull yourself up as soon as you start procrastinating include:
• Filling your day with unimportant non urgent (employ selective procrastination) from your To Do List; (delegate)
• Reading an e-mail or request that you’ve noted in your notebook or on your To Do List more than once. Schedule email time 2-3 times a day with a very strict timeline to address these. This will force you to only work on the important.
• Sitting down to start a high-priority task, and almost immediately going off to make a cup of coffee or check your e-mails; (been there done that)
• Leaving an item on your To Do list for a long time, (wrong use of selective procrastination) even though you know it’s important;
• Saying “Yes” to unimportant tasks that others ask you to do, and filling your time with these instead of getting on with the important tasks already on your list.
Step 2: WHY Do You Procrastinate
Common causes of procrastination were discussed in detail above, but they can often be reduced to two main reasons:
• You find the task unpleasant; or
• You find the task overwhelming
(Redundant but important)
Step 3: Just Do It
If you are putting something off because you just don’t want to do it, and you really can’t delegate the work to someone else, you need to find ways of motivating yourself to get moving. Get over it!!!
• Make up your own rewards.
• Ask someone else to check up on you. Peer pressure works (the 12 step program)
• Identify the unpleasant consequences of NOT doing the task.
• Shame yourself into getting going? (It is what you are getting paid for)
• Break the project into a set of smaller, more manageable tasks.
• Start with some quick, small tasks if you can, even if these aren’t the logical first actions.
(This creates a momentum that will carry over to the rest of the project. Before you know it you will be totally engrossed in its completion)
Action Planning!!
Plan Your Work. Work Your Plan.
An Action Plan is a simple list of all of the tasks that you need to carry out to achieve an objective. It differs from a To Do List, in that it focuses on the achievement of a single goal. Employ the SCHEMES method to identify all of your needs to reach your objective
• Space
• Cash
• Helpers / People
• Equipment
• Materials
• Expertise
• Systems
Scheduling is the process by which you look at the time available to you, and plan how you will use it to achieve the goals you have identified. By using a schedule properly, you can:
• Understand what you can realistically achieve with your time;
• Plan to make the best use of the time available;
• Leave enough time for things you absolutely must do; (Big Rocks)
• Preserve contingency time to handle ‘the unexpected’; and
• Minimize stress by avoiding over-commitment to others.
To draw up an action plan, simply list the tasks that you need to carry out to achieve your goal, in the order that you need to complete them. Then work backwards to create a action plan schedule. Sounds simple?
I start at the end and work backwards by month, break down by week, then by day and then by hour.
A well thought-through schedule allows you to manage your project/work, while still leaving you time to do the things that are important to you.
How to Use this as a Tool:
Scheduling your plan is best done on a regular basis, for example at the start of every week. Go through the following steps in preparing your schedule:
1. Identify the time you want have to work on your project
2. Block in the actions That absolutely must happen ( cannot build my site until I create an organized layout and design)
3. Review your To Do List, and schedule in only high-priority, urgent activities, based upon you action plan
4. Next, block in appropriate contingency time
5. leave space in your schedule gives your the flexibility to rearrange and react effectively to urgent issues.
6. What you now have left is your “discretionary time”: the time available to deliver your priorities and achieve your goals.
By the time you reach step 6, you may find that you have little or no discretionary time available. If this is the case, then revisit the assumptions you used in the first five steps. Question whether things are absolutely necessary, whether they can be delegated, or whether they can be done in an abbreviated way..
Plan Your Work: Work Your Plan
Key points:
The heart of time management is an important shift in focus to:Concentrate on results, not on being busy
Whatever the reason behind procrastination, it is important to know what your brain is doing, recognized and create a strategy to deal with and overcome it before your project is derailed.
Scheduling is the process by which you plan your use of time. By scheduling effectively, you can reduce stress and maximize your effectiveness.
Action Planning is a list of steps to reach an objective or goal
Before you can schedule efficiently, you need an effective scheduling system. This can be a diary, calendar, paper-based organizer, PDA or a software package like MS Outlook. The best solution depends entirely on your circumstances.

A recent article in a local business magazine was discussing the youngest generation of workers to enter the workforce. They entitled it “Generation Gimme” How to Work With the Entitlement Generation. You got that right? The best and most important part of the article is this quote

The Laissez-faire attitude is common because this particular generation typically hasn’t had anything to worry about or work for. If they want something – be it a toy or a job – they get it. A lot has to do with parenting style…

Don’t get me wrong the article also offers some insight from the management point and some advice for the younger generation on the expectations in the real world, including some insight as to what a business owner is looking for these days. It is not much different from what we look for for the past uh.. forever. That is

“…they will hire some one with the ability to work hard and take pride in their work over experience anyday”

This article however finishes with a condescending attitude to us older folk (anyone over 30, ok 40?) the feel is we are supposed to parent the new employees. Now I do not have a problem with insight to new attitudes skills etc however this type of article becoming more and more common and I am getting concerned with this mentality. So I have my own advice to business managers and employees

Managers

I do call bullshit on the entitlement generation, we have already been pinned down by the political correcters in society for fear of offending somebody racially, genderally, disabilitied, ( yes I am pissed and I am making up my own words today) now we are being told to be afraid to manage our employees. I call BULLSH*T OH SORRY! this is inappropriate management. Ok Stupid Management, I cannot get away from this, I see it everyday in every industry and now as the same politicians that create the housing and banking mess Yes the ones that said loosen the lending guidelines so every American can afford get into a home are now the ones responsible for finding out what went wrong! Anybody check to see how much each one of these idiots recieved in campaign contributions? Well here is some light to the subject Senator Chris Dodd head of the “Banking Committee” over $4 mil from the investment banking industry including Fannie and Freddie.

WILL SOMEBODY GROW A SET OF BALLS AND DO WHAT IS RIGHT!!!!!!!!

What does this have to do with the Article I read well nothing and everything. It is called Business 101 You are responsible for the creation, advertising then delivering your brand to your customers. It is your business! You have the vision, the capital, took the risk invested Blood Sweat and Tears into starting and growing your Restaurant. You run your operation the way you feel best. If you want to be a draconian prick of an owner then deal with the high employee turnover, if you want to be a complete 98 pound weakling and be friends with every employee and worry about being liked. Then deal with them running your business into the ground. If you Choose to learn leadership skills and runn your business based upon having the best people in the best positions, train the heck out of them, employ effective leadership and management skills then you will be successful. You choose, But do not buy into this passive acceptance of changing your leadership style, and delivering your brand to fit the narcistic needs of the younger generation.

Employees

Now in this article the author did dispense some great advice to the new young employee’s.

1. Turn off the WIIFM (Whats in it For Me) radio station
2. Hurry up and Wait (your turn) Credibility is earned
3. Manage your career Paying your dues means extra time and energy (nobody owes you anything)
4. High Maintenance means see ya
5. Pride ( in your Work not ego)

Now I know that this does not apply to all of you, If you do not know which ones apply to you then you probably are on the wrong side of the PTO (Planned Turn Over) list. that means the bottom 5

Where does your power come from? many  restaurant managers have no idea or have not been taught basic leadership skills. Case in point, My wife and I are currently working with a group where the owner is more intent on being a friend to her staff then holding them accountable Manager Mistake number .

In the 2007 article the Dead Zone in Entrepreneur Magazine Author Goeff Williams  lists several reasons for owners getting in their own way. They are Micromanaging, Spending in the wrong places, Chasing after every customer, Being on top of your books, Personality Conflict

Now why is this important. Well this client has completely given up her power. How do you do that you wonder? It is the lack of accountability within  business. This Client has complete lost control of her business and has allowed the inmates to take over the asylum. I am sorry but this is you business and you need to enforce some position power here and there. It is great to build your power base from the personal power, however when an employee test this (which they will). She needs to real them in ASAP. Sometimes it is like a dog marking your territory, yes this is your territory.

Remember Be friendly not friends, to many lines get skewed when this line is crossed. Giving your power to your employees is a huge manager mistake. If you don’t mind your own business who will? Oh by the way the employees are embezzling from her. Some times you need to grab the puppy by the scruff of the neck and toss them out side.