One of the toughest jobs one can have is in a restaurant. The constant attention to detail, the adherence to quality and dealing with the steady influx of diners is enough stress out anyone – from the front of the house to the kitchen. But even in a high stress environment like a restaurant efforts should be made to make employees happy and motivated.
If you’re the owner of a restaurant and you need ideas on how to motivate your employees, follow these tips:
• A compliment can go a long way. Always pay compliments to your restaurant employees. They need that ego boost especially on days when everything is so hectic and everything is just happening on such a dizzyingly fast pace. Also, you should return the courteousness that your employees show you. One of the biggest mistakes of ‘bosses’ is not giving back the respect that is given to them by their employees. Simply returning the greetings of employees is already a step in the right direction and it’s not even hard to do.
• Make open forums a part of the work environment. Start open forums regularly so you’ll know what your employees are thinking and be made aware of any problems that may be cropping up and need your attention. An open forum can be hard to start because, as a boss, you need to be impartial and fair and this is not something that your employees will see immediately. They’ll be hesitant to really voice out their opinions. But if you show them that you’re fair then they’ll open up more in subsequent forums. To start the ball rolling, start the open forum with simple problems first and then gradually go to the more sensitive topics.
• Give your employees a taste of authority by assigning them with tasks that they will have to manage. This will give them a sense of importance and make them feel that you trust them enough to give them important tasks. Make sure the tasks are not too difficult though, you wouldn’t want to overwhelm them with a task that they have to do on top of their already busy work schedules.
• Cut them some slack. Working in a restaurant is the very definition of tedium. It can really get to anyone, even the most enthusiastic employees. To combat this, try to give them some freedom as long as it is within the rules and policies you’ve set for the restaurant. For example, you can relax on the dress code by allowing them to wear whatever undershirt they want.
Image from flickr.com