10 Effective Methods For Training Restaurant Employees

1. Start with Orientation

“Looking for employees for your new restaurant business? Hiring the people with lots of experience is the best way to go, of course! They can take on the job easily and comfortably, considering this might not be new to them at all!”

That just may be the quickest judgment any restaurant employer and owner can make when starting out. While it is not entirely false, as one’s working experience may serve to be an advantage, this shouldn’t be the sole basis of an employee’s efficiency and performance in the workplace.

A proper orientation program is the perfect first step in restaurant employee training. This is where employees are introduced to the workspace and to other colleagues/supervisors. It is a great start to make themselves familiar with important information about the business, including the restaurant’s practices, goals, history and philosophy among others.

Always bear in mind that one restaurant is indeed different from another, despite being in the same industry. This does not only refer to a company’s goals and objectives, but also its composition and services as well.

So, whether an employee is experienced or not, restaurant managers should see to it that their workers are offered the best restaurant training possible to fit their unique business’ ways and culture. It is through this that the business can successfully keep up with other competitors in the industry.

2. Create and Upgrade Your Training Plan

Maintaining the great image of your business is a few of the ways you can ensure your success in becoming a renowned brand and training new staff members regularly is an important part in doing so. So, by creating a reliable training plan, one can prove that the establishment’s performance and services are beyond excellent among other things.

With employee orientation being a done deal, the training plan you should work to achieve will include the different working departments in your business, from the bar, dining, kitchen, hosting, serving and the like.

By also reaching out to your experienced employees, you can improve the ways you train the new staff and make things easier in the workplace. The restaurant manager can also assign the experienced staff to supervise and watch over the newcomers belonging in different departments at the same time.

They are to guide and teach the essential business practices, focusing on hosting, greeting and waiting on customers, bartending, food preparation, serving, dishwashing and cashier among others.

Training templates are always available online, but can also be put together by experienced employees and their key superiors just as well together. Keep it a reminder that creating and updating the training plan whenever necessary can keep things going well in your business.

3. Guidance and observation

Practicing employee orientation and providing basic instructions is actually just the beginning in training your restaurant staff. Guiding and observing each and every employee on the job, from the kitchen rookies to the head department pros, is your top duty as a restaurant manager.

The experienced members are usually the ones tasked to supervise new staff members. They are expected to watch and learn from the other to keep a healthy work environment at the same time.

Now, how is this a top priority in restaurant management exactly? Well, you would want to make sure that the newer staff members are performing well and practicing what have been said and done by their supervisors.

This may include the perceptions and attitudes they must observe when providing services to customers and other business manners they must follow in accordance with the training manual.

If you are not able to pair a new employee with an experienced worker due to the lack of men available, placing a number of new staff under one supervisor may be the best way to go. It will not only save time and energy, but it will also keep employee management and an easy and desirable part of staff training.

4. External Training

Taking on different methods to better train your staff is an effective way to help your business build a great name and bring success to your brand. However, as the industry is slowly expanding and competition is getting tougher, sticking with basic training manuals and friendly employee pair-ups may feel less than enough to achieve the outcome you ultimately desire as a restaurant manager.

Turning to smart external training can be considered as the best solution for this. By partnering up with a trusted external training company, you are able to allow your staff members to learn better business techniques and develop their skill sets to a much greater scale.

These training methods can be taught and learned on-site or through online class sessions.

This step of staff training may seem to be nothing but expensive, it will prove to be a notable investment you should consider to benefit your business in the long run. Most especially if you are short on time and wish to develop the desired set of restaurant staff, this is definitely the next great step to take.

5. Implement Upskilling

Following our discussion about external training, that method of training is best combined with the practice of upskilling. Upskilling is where restaurant employees are taught additional skills, aside from the one they already learned and mastered.

This is a way to ensure smart business management and efficient service provision to customers, thanks to the broader set of skills and talents the said employee has developed. For starters, the employee who has never stepped close the bar section is taught of the ways of bartending as part of the implementation of upskilling in your restaurant.

So, if your bartender is ill and misses work, the other employee trained in bartending can easily cover for him or her. Thanks to upskilling, the restaurant manager is saved from the hassle of looking for a part time bartender for the day.

Upskilling does not only help the restaurant managers but also the employees themselves as well. Being taught of a skill that is new to them will make them feel like they are progressing effectively in the workplace. It is also best to accompany upskilling with a generous bonus or raise in salary.

6. Train your Staff to Use the Latest Technology

It is common knowledge that the quick development of technology plays a big role, not only in personal use but also in use for business establishments and such. In a restaurant setting, touch screen Point of Sale systems were the newest and greatest addition to such establishments one point in time.

Fast forward to today, we have gone past that system and have moved on to much better things. Customers can browse restaurant menus and place orders via smart mobile apps. With a touch, food and drinks are delivered right at the doorstep of their homes or offices anytime.

The kitchen staff is also able to use this technology for a quicker and flawless flow of business transactions. Apart from dishwashing and busing, technology is present and helps the business more than you think you know.

Teaching your staff to make use of all the latest technology and the smartest of gadgets for business in your restaurants is a major advantage. This is because it helps to improve how your business interacts and delivers a convenient and enjoyable service to the customers.

7. Recognize your Top Employees

After the completion of restaurant training to your new staff members, you need to take the step of recognizing your top employees for their efforts and hard work along the way. This will motivate your employees to aim for the best at all times, therefore increasing productivity and efficiency in the workplace.

One of the methods to reward top employees is by conducting an “Employee of the Month” program. It may seem like it does not do much, but simple recognitions of all the work they have done is enough to boost your workers’ performance knowing they are valued by the company. To make these programs more rewarding, a generous inclusion of awards or cash bonuses can also be implemented.

These recognition programs can also be done at weekly/monthly staff meetings and even on the restaurant’s social media pages. Regardless of how they are conducted, restaurant managers should implement and take part in these programs since valued employees will continue to do a great work and therefore resulting to a better run in business.

8. Perform Employee Evaluation

A performance review is an important practice done preferably on a regular basis. This is a way to help keep track of an employee’s progress on the job over time. Their job performance records can also be used to evaluate an employee’s strengths and weaknesses, so restaurant managers can determine if one is truly appropriate for a particular job.

These employee evaluations can be conducted in one way or another. After hosting and serving the meal, you can request customers to leave their feedback about the food or the service provided by the employee. Theses comments can be made through the use of gadgets provided by the restaurant.

Supervisors can also be asked to observe and evaluate themselves an employee’s work and dedication, which can either be reported daily, weekly or monthly depending on the program schedule earlier discussed. From these data and records, you can create a performance review of each employee.

9. Implement Team Building Exercises

By the time your employees are familiar and integrated within the business team, it is just the perfect opportunity to motivate and support your employees further. You can do so by starting team building exercises and letting them enjoy socializing with one another outside the restaurant from time to time.

Integrating different, fun team building exercises to your training plan for employees is just as important as the other methods mentioned. It is because while your employees can socialize outside the workspace once in a while, this is an open chance for them to understand and learn from each other at the same time.

During team building programs, employees can take part in team dinners, competitions, parties, retreats and the likes. It is during these times they can build better relationships, therefore being able to work together and be on the same page most of the time. This makes way for better team work, a more comfortable work environment and have more work done in a desirable manner.

10. Keep Employee Records

Although it may seem quite trivial, keeping employee records is actually very important. While it is true that staff members does come and go as time goes by, the practice of keeping these records as a restaurant manager or owner is recommended.

You can not only learn more about your employee, but you can also take note of their particular strengths and weaknesses in the work environment. The files you might want to make should include resumes, training progress records and brief notes detailing the employee while he/she was in service.

It is recommended to make and keep these employee records in modern software as well. Through this, they can be accessed efficiently whenever needed.

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