Use 2TouchPOS to Enhance the Employee Experience

Restaurant owners are very busy;  and at 2TouchPOS we get that!
You have to prepare your establishment, acquire inventory, plan for events, daily specials and hire and manage employees, all while overseeing your profits and losses, business ledgers, and paying the bills.  Staffing often gets lost when you’re working to manage the other aspects of your business.


You need your employees to be happy, they have to have that special personality that keeps people coming in and satisfied with what your establishment has to offer.  Well not just satisfied; but your place has to capture the customers’ interest.  It’s your employees that can make that happen.

From the kitchen staff coming up with inventive and creative foods, to the front of the house staff preparing new jokes, learning to juggle the shakers and bottles, to the servers being on their game with all the details of the customer’s order, you need to roll up your sleeves and make sure your staff contribute to YOUR business.  You do this by hiring the RIGHT people to do the job.


Not hiring the “Best People” to work for you can have a negative impact on your business.  So Pay Attention..YOU have to provide training and incentives to ensure that the great people that you hired continue to do the job that you hire them to do very well. And when you do they don’t separate.  We have some suggestions regarding recruitment, training, and managing your staff:


Hire Right! YOU need to hire a few more people than you anticipate that you’ll need.  You’ll find that your employee pool will decrease after a couple of weeks leaving a core group of individuals who are really meant to work in this business.  After you hire them review a complete job description with them and explain how they will be rewarded. Don’t skimp on the hourly pay; you know what the position wage should be you’re a business person! However, tell your employees how they can get bonuses and raises right when you hire them.  You will find that these incentives go a long way to improving your employee’s performance.  A well-defined position description and outcome explanation will provide a path to define the scope of work and your employees will know what to expect.  Restaurant jobs are very rewarding, but let’s face it; it’s hard work and people give up peak “living” hours to do this work. 

Owners need to acknowledge that the hours are tough, and the physical requirements are demanding. Don’t make the job seem easier than it is. Create meaningful ways for employees to grow professionally, no matter how difficult or menial their work seems.

• Introduce new hires at restaurant-wide meetings
• Provide an Orientation Day
• Train for a week and provide a livable wage during that time
• Cross train with a working employee
• Provide a formal review with each employee periodically and offer suggestions for improvement.  See if your employees can tell YOU how they are doing! 

Provide Internal Incentives to Target Sales promoting from within your business ensures that you know someone’s work ethic and performance before making a commitment.  You can target your specials or a menu item that you want to sell.  Tell your employees that if they sell 5 they will get a $20 card.  Have gift cards to give out.  Immediate rewards for a GOAL being met. 2TouchPOS can help you with your targeted menu items and specials placing the night’s incentives right on the speed screen!


TRAIN TRAIN TRAIN!
Training new employees is just as important to the hiring process as interviewing candidates.  Training is not just for the new.  Your seasoned employees need training too.  Humans are continuous learners it is part of who we are.  Training can be simple.  You can just provide a new perspective, roll out a new menu item, discuss what’s going well and where processes could improve.  Use 2TouchPOS data to enhance your shift meetings, which can be adapted to continuously train your staff.  Highlight your training topics using emails and 2TouchPOS messaging.  Employees can get their messages right when they clock in.

Institute a scheduling process that focuses on valuing your staff.  Offer limited schedule flexibility, if you require all staff to work on Friday nights then make sure they do.  Formalize your time off requests.  This demonstrates to your staff that they need to plan ahead just like you do.  It also places value on your shift management processes by adding an additional requirement that further commits staff members to work their shift. Tell your staff what to do if they are sick.  Plan for these instances and if they are supposed to get their own shift replacement; explain well how you expect the process to work.


When it comes to employees and staffing don’t leave anything to chance.  Ask your employees to develop professional goals for their time at work, and allocate extra tasks that help them to grow.  When you offer more responsibility, make sure that you develop an accountability system.  Clearly communicate expectations and formalize one on one meetings to keep staff members on track. Learn to appreciate and value your staff you’ll find that overall you’ll create an exciting and exhilarating customer experience when your staff contribute to the process. Goals can be recorded in your 2TouchPOS system employee area.  Be sure to include hourly wage and overtime information so that the 2TouchPOS system can provide payroll data.


To make sure you get the most out of your Point of Sale software learn as much as you can about what it can do for you!  

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