Are your employees satisfied?
Authored by Tracy Yandow
When asked the above question many restaurant employees answer vaguely. “Well, I come to work and get paid for it – if that’s what you mean.”
It is funny, in the restaurant business is seems that many employees view their jobs as inconsequential – low on the food chain. Many come to work, do their job, and go home. They don’t seem to view their job as a career as many people do in other industries.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that restaurant workers don’t enjoy their jobs – many choose the restaurant industry for the flexibility of work hours, the ability to be out from behind a desk, etc.
Unfortunately employees can get stuck in the monotony of the job and start just going through the motions each day – and over time this can turn into boredom at the job that can result in “just OK” customer service to poor customer service, to an unsatisfied work arrangement.
I’ve seen this firsthand. I was asked to do a seminar to “re-charge” a restaurant’s employees. Their sales were OK, but the owner felt that her employees, most had been there for years, had just got into a rut.
I ended up doing an “Enhanced Selling Techniques” seminar with her wait staff. Right off the bat it was easy to see that they were in a routine that they were comfortable with and had no motivation to do anything else. Hopefully through the couple hours they spent with us, they learned how giving more will allow them to receive more.
They left with smiles on their faces, so it couldn’t have been that bad.
How do you know if your employees are truly satisfied? You need to ask the right questions. The areas that seem to have the most dissatisfaction within a job are: keeping employees informed, simple problem solving, communication and recognition.
So, try a simple questionnaire asking pointed questions like – Do you feel you are informed of new procedures on a timely basis? Do you feel recognized for your accomplishments? Do you feel management listens to you?
And lastly, once you compile the results, it is important to meet with your employees, go through it, and work together on how to improve those areas that need improvement.
This will take time and patience, but the rewards will be worth it!
Tracy Yandow, President and Chief Instructional Designer
www.manualsolution.com
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Tracy Yandow is the founder and chief instructional designer for The Manual Solution, a professional documentation writing, instructional design service and partner in product. The Manual Solution provides a wide range of documentation and operational solutions to companies across the nation. Find out more at www.manualsolution.com.
