A funny thing happened on the way to the maybe-going-to-be-a-recession: Our business stabilized. My clients focus on growth again, the smell of fresh paint and carpet glue is in the air and new staffs learn in training classes. With calm soft openings being as current as a vintage concert T-shirt, guests are lining up for … Continued
Multi-unit restaurant company owners face two current compounding realities: a shortage of management talent and the need to grow multi-unit talent for the future. You must know how to excel when fighting both of these challenges. If you watched Ted Lasso last week, you learned a lot about “Total Football” – a fluid system in which any … Continued
You’d think that – when I start working with successful multi-unit restaurant companies looking to improve – matching their strengths with what they need would be easy. But experience tells me that thinking differently, along with new approaches, not old ones, make for successful growth. Just like the people who establish a concept are not … Continued
Once, at a client’s weekly operations meeting, I waited and waited to hear someone speak the word “guest.” I heard about production, maintenance, organization, policies, personnel, money, and training. Surely, one of the 10 experienced managers at this mature, legacy-brand, high-volume unit would talk about something they had done for a guest, something they had … Continued
Take a look back all the way back to the beginning of the year. With the first quarter just ending, my best clients take stock of what they’ve achieved. Then, they adjust to ensure they have a great 2023 – no matter how they started the year. Did you exceed plan? Did you fail to … Continued
Where do you go for advice on building confidence, concepts, loyalty, professionalism, and taking smart risks? You go back to high school. The Texas ProStart High School Competition Recently, as part of a team of 25 restaurant industry leaders, I continued my streak of judging critical thinking skills at the annual Texas ProStart statewide competition … Continued
When the company you own remains the only one you where you have ever served in a leadership position, it can be like going to the same vacation spot every year and having no idea what the rest of the world looks like. You remain uninformed. Much of the work I do with my clients … Continued
Chains beat independents on a cycle of refreshing their concepts, décor packages, signage, logos, menu design, and offerings. Unfortunately, independents who ought to go big tend to go small. The consequences? Results that are obviously insufficient. Don’t let the chains beat you. Investing in upgrades activates your guests, enticing them to visit your dining room … Continued
For a large part of their days, restaurant owners try to figure out ways to give hourlies and managers more flexible lives. That’s just part of the world now: offering flexible scheduling for hourlies and groundbreaking benefit packages for managers. When you do this quality people want to work with you, and feel happy to … Continued
I have new clients in the startup phase complaining that not all their new managers are getting the job done. I also have longtime clients worried their best people may leave for that hot new brand. The best strategy for both these clients is the same: Keep the good people you already have. There is … Continued