Last week, for the first time in two years, I went to a concert – me and 10,000 of my closest friends. Until the pandemic, that’s something I had been regularly doing my whole life. At first, it felt otherworldly and weird. And I have to admit that, at the load-in entrance, when I … Continued
Sure, listen to your family and friends, employees, and co-owners – they love to speak up. Direct, honest communication and encouragement inspires all of us, especially when it comes from people who have nothing but our best interests truly at heart. But nothing equals advice from experienced smart people who just want you to do … Continued
Recently I went to a KFC drive-through. If you know me well, before you fall out of your chair wondering why, know that I wanted to try their new plant-based product. I was curious about it since I’ve been watching that trend and had seen the TV ad – plus, they have a unit next … Continued
One aspect of my work focuses on allowing restaurant owners to leave when they want to – getting their companies to the point where the owner’s hands-on attention isn’t relied on too much. To do this, we supercharge the time they are at work, bringing them to their point of highest use, and have other … Continued
With the COVID crisis on the wane, guests are becoming open-minded about their dining choices again. Reclaiming these lost guests (and having at least 20% revenue to-go and delivery) requires your managers to continually improve. An elite group of independent restaurant company owners – each with enviable companies – talked about this recently at one … Continued
My clients often say to me, “I’m making more money than I ever imagined.” When you’ve reached that level of success, you may feel so much gratitude that self-evaluation becomes hard. Plus, a lot of the people surrounding you may see your life as so great that there’s no need to speak candidly or find … Continued
My clients have numerous considerable competitive advantages – with their guests and employees versus their competition – that show up on the bottom line. One advantage? Their culture. My clients and I make sure their restaurants truly represent their culture to every guest, every time – and that culture governs the way they work with employees, associates, … Continued
Today, we have to live with a lot of odd pairings – such as guidelines we need to follow that might (at first) seem contradictory. An example? The need to be flexible and tolerant with our people (so they stick with us like lifelong fans of a local sports team), yet still be able to … Continued
Last week I spoke to an Operations Director who had beefed up their management roster and had “one on the bench.” A heroic accomplishment in the current labor market! They also lamented that young managers too often have an attitude of, “I am doing you a favor,” as they go through their day. People read … Continued
Welcome to an inflationary time, where cash on hand not put to work becomes a depreciating asset. Back when the pandemic started, my first and most important question to all the operators I helped was: What is cash? At that horrible and scary time, instant clarity told me cash on hand would be the single most … Continued