Old School Ways

Today on FOHBOH I read Jerry Heilpern’s post, To Survive We Must Think Differently, and the reason behind my blog is not to agree or disagree with Jerry. I respect Jerry’s opinion and his professional background and accomplishments. His isn’t the first blog post I have read to tell me that based on the current state of the union that we have to do things differently or we are dead in the water. He says that we will have to get rid of mozzarella sticks and marinara in exchange for trendy dishes and interiors and ambiences are going to have to be new, inventive, and inviting.

This past week in another blog discussion by James Kohn, Today's Rant: Deciding which new technology is right for you, Michael Atkinson stated that, “Doing the basics and just "running a restaurant" isn't enough.” Again my quote here is not to discount Michael’s opinion as his professional resume and accomplishments are at the very least impressive, it is only to challenge what I believe is a current trend in thinking.

Now if you know anything about me, I run a bunch of those “chain” restaurants that are the brunt of “independent” jokes and rhetoric about conveyor belt and microwave delivery systems, but here is my concern that I can’t seem to get my head around.

The Hamburger has been a staple of the restaurant business for quite some time now, followed by French fries, salad, chicken sandwiches, tall draft beer, chicken wings, chicken tenders, and the that ole stand by for kids, Macaroni and Cheese.

Can’t I just focus on delivering those items really well?

If my restaurant is clean, my prices are fair, my service is strong, and I give my guests what they want, can’t I be successful in this challenging environment also?

Even in a tough market Buffalo Wild Wings earnings increased 23% in the fourth quarter and McDonald’s comps grew over 5% and their food, service, and ambience aren’t exactly what I would call trendy or cutting edge?

Go ahead, burst my bubble and tell me that I have to change the way I do business. I think the only thing I have to change is making sure I deliver what the guest expects and value IS a strong position.

Today, isn't value defined by our guests and not by us?

They are Freakin’ Out!

Some of the most important lessons I have learned in leadership, management, and organizational development have come from the people that I work with every day. Just yesterday I was having a conversation with one of my chief “feelers” on the team. (Mind you being a “feeler” is a good thing. If you don’t have one or aren’t one you are leaving a lot of people behind in your team) He told me that combined with the latest company announcement about an internal struggle, my continued demand for higher, faster, quicker results, and the push to put every dollar on the bottom line, as well as perfect delivery for the guest, I may have pushed some overboard.

Initially, I thought, crap this is one of the things I always fear! Did I lose them and they have now labeled me as just another corporate hack or is this just their reaction to another “bar raising” and they will be ok.

High expectation and demand for results
--------------------------------
Can you help me complete my resume?

Note the fine line between these two issues. Here is where the rubber meets the road and you can set yourself apart in your leadership and continue to develop your credibility and long term effectiveness in the eyes of your team.

First - Identify everyone that is spending time on this fine line
Second – Stop what you are doing and go face to face with each one of them
Third – Explain that you know you have pushed them to this level and that they may be struggling to understand or even angry about it
Fourth – Tell them why you are asking for so much and the importance to the overall mission and their long term success and most importantly, you believe in them
Fifth – Ask them where they see the obstacles in overcoming the expectation and actually help them to remove at least one of those obstacles
Sixth – thank them for being honest, thank them for taking on the challenge, and make sure they understand you couldn’t do what you are doing with out them

Engage them and don’t be afraid of their pushback. If your team isn’t pushing back on you, you aren’t pushing forward on them.

Your view may not always be the best…..another leadership road hazard!

This leadership hazard can be best described in the story of the happy beach swimmer. If you are on one of those crowded Southern California beaches with your friend soaking up the rays you have a limited view of things going on around you. The people next to you, the kids playing in the surf….the immediate dangers seem well within your control.

Down the beach a way their sits a lifeguard tower….Now the lifeguard has a much different view of the beach. Not only can they see you, the people next to you, and the kids playing in the surf, they can also see people swimming in the water, surfboards coming in fast, cars coming down the beach. They definitely have a “bigger” picture of the dangers you could be facing. They can even see people nearing danger and be in the water quickly to protect you from strong tides and undertows.

Now look out a little farther in the water up higher and you will see the Beach Patrol helicopter. Think about their view for a minute. They see you, the people next to you, the kids playing in the surf, surfboards, cars, sharks, and boats and their picture gets even “bigger” than you and the lifeguard combined. More advanced warning of impending doom to keep you safe.

So to avoid this leadership hazard in your business you need only to know that your view of the business hazards aren’t only what you can see but what those around and above you can see as well. In most cases just recognizing who has a better view of the business and accepting help can be a very successful leadership tactic.

If you are a server, in most cases, your view is limited to the scope of your tables.
If you are a department manager, your view is that of your shift or team
If you are a General Manager, you can see the whole business across all departments
If you are an Owner an even bigger perspective
If you are a Multi-Unit operator or Consultant you have numerous businesses to see and your view grows even larger
If you are a CEO, you see sometimes 100’s of operations giving you a clear view of different operating styles, results, and approaches.

If you are looking to avoid the dangers of the beach, sometimes you just have to find the highest vantage point. Don’t be afraid to look up and ask those above you what they see. Better safe than sorry!

Shake that Coke machine!

Maybe you are there, maybe you have been there, maybe you are on your way there but when I was much younger, a food server, married, wife going to school, not much money, I had to go to the Laundromat weekly. I saved all my quarters from my tips to do my wash. As I narrowed down the load of clothes that had to be done I would have a couple of quarters left over and in the back corner of the room sat a Coke machine. The thought of a cold can of Coke just seem to hit the spot.

I walk up, drop my two quarters in, push the big red button and wait for the sound of the tumbling can through the mechanism and the loud thud of the can hitting the delivery chute. I can already picture myself tapping the top of the can lightly to settle the bubbles so when I open it there is no spray of sticky soda everywhere.

But instead, nothing…..no coke, no coins in the return slot, no out of that selection pick something else…just nothing. I am pissed to say the least.

Over at the desk I see the young operator with his legs propped up on the desk in his laundry supervisory posture. You probably already know where this is going.

“Hey man, your coke machine ate my money!”

“Sorry dude, we don’t own those machines. There is a number on the front of the machine you can call to report the money you lost, but good luck with that.”

I head back over to that Coke machine even more pissed, ready to take out my anger on that inanimate bad boy. I shake that machine, rocking it back and forth; waiting for it to dislodge my 50 cent can of pleasure! Nothing…I shove my hand around the flap hoping to get my fingers around the can that I own. Again, nothing, more anger….I am in a bad mood, ready to light up whoever comes in contact with me.

This ever happen to you?

-Ever had a guest come to your restaurant and pay you money for their meal and you didn’t deliver exactly what they ordered?
-Ever had a server or manager act indifferent towards a guest when they missed a few of the service steps?
>-Have you ever fallen short of handling a guest situation 100% because you were tired, just not in the game that day?

Well, you are the Coke machine, I am your guest, you took my 50 cents, and I want what I want and I want it now. Get ready for the next step; I am fixing to SHAKE you till I get my Coke or worse, until I get my money back.

It’s a tough economy, less money to go around, and the money I spend with you may be all I have. Don’t make me mad, just let me pay you, and give me my Coke. I did pay for it!

Nobody cares about my future!

What do you do if you have a boss that isn’t engaging your strengths, recognizing your true value, giving you the direction you need to move forward, or in general being the true leader that you would be if you were doing his job? Yeah, ok. I wish I had a nickel for every time someone got caught in the trap of not taking responsibility for their own career advancement. Waiting for your boss to figure it out and create an environment conducive to your future?

”So, how's that working for you?”

If your answer to the above question is “Not so well” then do something different.
- Recognize that the only person who will get you anywhere is you. Stop being a victim to your own lack of success.
- Get engaged and do something about it. Stop complaining that the boss isn’t doing their job.

So, what's your area of responsibility in your current position? Is it service, hiring, training, food quality, food or beverage costs, cleanliness? Surely, you've been assigned a specific area of responsibility.

Is your area of responsibility performing at its optimum level? Is it an example of how your department should be executing?

If your answer is yes – then go help another department or area. Engage that leader and help them get to an exceptional level of execution. Do it to help, not to prove wrong. Assist, bust your butt, do whatever you can to get someone else winning the way you are and expect nothing in return. Get them promoted! The more people waving your flag saying how great you are, the better.

If your answer is no – well, there's your problem! If you can’t get your own area right, why would you expect your boss to do anything different? Get a coach, find a mentor, read, research, engage your team, and do whatever it takes to get your team pumping out the results that are expected.

Initiative is one of the most important qualities I look for in an exceptional leader. You have to be able to engage yourself first before you can expect someone else to engage you. I would much rather try to get a horse to slow down then keep kicking it to run!

And don’t get me wrong, I am not telling you to go it alone…..if you don’t have the answers, ask for help and keep asking until you find someone willing to help. If people keep telling you no when you ask for help, you are asking the wrong people.

You haven’t asked me yet.

You might as well quit!

So you are the Manager, General Manager, Area Director or Multi-Unit Supervisor in the restaurant industry. When questioned about what your job description may be the answers that I hear most often are….

-Protect the image and standards
-Deliver a great product to every guest, every day
-Ensure the financial success and long term viability of the business

Similar to the canned responses that you might hear when you ask a police officer why he or she does what they do, “to protect and serve”. I hate that answer.

However when you ask these same people what they love about their jobs they will tell you….

-Teaching the employees and managers how to be successful
-The interaction with the guests and providing them with a great experience
-The pace, atmosphere, energy, and competition

So the difference between their job description and what they love to do are not aligned. The one thing that I do know is that if you aren’t doing something you love, it becomes mundane, repetitive, and well hell you end up not doing it very well. So you might as well quit. I know someone famous said if you find a job that you love it will never seem like work! So how do you combat the gap between the job and what you love? Well align them!

What exactly is it you are teaching that creates your love for the job?-The standards, specs, and service expectations!
When you are engaged with the guest, what actually are you doing?-You are validating that the overall value and experience are being delivered by your people because the standards, specs, and expectations are being met!
Why do you love the pace, atmosphere, energy, and competition so much?-Because you get a chance to deliver the standards, specs, and service expectations better than anyone else!

So, if you find yourself bored with the day to day operations like, follow up, order taking, line checks, and repetitive processes that happen everyday in the restaurant business either quit and go do something else you love or realize that those processes are exactly what make this job so great. Be the basics of the business and the restaurant business is alive and in living color!

Funny thing happened on my way to work

So I am headed to one of my restaurants and I am reflecting on why I can’t seem to make the headway fast enough to make this the best operation in the industry. I think to myself, “Self, you have been doing the same thing you always do in these situations and it works, what is happening here?”

Being the introspective fellow I am I mull it over and over and over. Can’t find it in that big ole noggin of mine. Then the revelation comes, I’ll just ask. So one by one I talk to the managers, the hourlies, and heck anyone I can pose with the question, “What am I doing wrong here?” Slowly but surely I begin to hear the same notion…”Andy, we are doing our best too and that isn’t good enough!”

Uh oh….I don’t know what to do, they don’t know what to do…now we are in big trouble. So all my vast years of mentoring, coaching, debate, and thought provoking leadership leads me to this, “I better start at the beginning and see where I went wrong.”

Question: Do we have enough food coming in to the building?
Answer: We have been struggling with that issue. Our orders don’t seem consistent and we have to shop locally to keep up with what we are short on.
Diagnosis: No one knows the ordering system process and I hadn’t bothered to check and make sure they knew how to order, I assumed

Question: Do we know how to make the food that matches the recipes and the pictures?
Answer: Well Andy we are making it just like the last guy showed us, right?
Diagnosis: Food Quality has eroded over time with the lack of follow up and training and I was silently approving of the plates I saw every time I visited, I assumed they were going over this

Question: Do we have enough people and do they know how to serve the guest?
Answer: We have the most tenured staff writing our schedules and they do a pretty good job of getting people in here and we really don’t get that many guest complaints
Diagnosis: Trouble here, the inmates are running the asylum and the standard of guest service is being measured by how many people are upset versus how many are happy. I assumed everyone knew what to do with the guest.

I have fallen into the leadership trap of ASSUMPTION. I assumed that the institutional knowledge that existed would keep the business running strong. I assumed that the management knew exactly what to do and were just performing poorly. I assumed that everyone knew exactly how important the guest was and took care of them with high expectations.

Yeah, Yeah, I know, assuming makes an “ass” out of “u” and “me”

Cure: Back to the Basics of what we serve, who we serve, and who serves it. Bring your team together, honestly communicate where you as the leader went wrong, and start over.

People don’t wake up and think to themselves, “Boy I am going to do a really crappy job today” they just get led that way. Learn from my mistake. There are only three kinds of people in the world:

Don’t know – teach them (this is most of them!)
Don’t care – move on, nothing to see here!
Can’t do – move on but even in my experience in the business, I can count the people that belong in this category on one hand….