December 15, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

I was talking with my wife the other day and, and as always, found her insights and wisdom very worthwhile. She has been a life coach for 15-plus years and has an ability to see the real issues, not just those on the surface. She really caught my attention with the comment, “What you practice, you get good at.” 

At first, I thought what she was saying was just a variation on the phrase, “Practice makes perfect.” However, she went on to explain that her phrase is a two-way street, leading not just to positive results, but to negative consequences as well.  

Let me give a few examples. If you practice letting your crew provide service that is just OK, you will get very good at having them continue to provide “just OK” service.  Likewise, if you practice touching the tables (guests) with a lack of inte...Read More

December 2, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

(This is the 5th post in a series on the five critical areas where managers go awry.)

The fifth and final management performance issue deals with managers not caring about anything beyond their own specific areas of responsibility. These people make sure their own worlds operate smoothly, without sufficient regard to the bigger picture.

Think of the unit manager that does not promote people when they are ready because the manager does not want to disrupt the existing team. Or the manager that ignores performance issues and then transfers the person to let the next manager deal with it.

Of course, this kind of thinking can be found at all levels of organizations. It’s not uncommon to see programs developed in one group that do not fully consider the impact on a related group, and vice versa. (We used to joke that “marketing and o...Read More

November 20, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

(This is the 4th post in a series on the five critical areas where managers go awry.)

Some managers, both unit level and above, can have difficulty in achieving stated goals and objectives. The organization’s response is often to make a personnel change. But before drawing the conclusion that the manager needs to be “off the bus,” it might be wise to understand underlying issues that may be at work.

It’s common for managers—especially new managers promoted from shift leader—to deal with ‘what is urgent’ instead of ‘what is important.’ The end result is that the manager behaves more like a “utility” crewperson than a manager. It can be quite enlightening to look at time and activity analyses and see the reality of how little time some unit managers spend interacting with guests versus ...Read More
Industries: Management Issues, Operations

November 3, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

(This is the 3rd post in a series on the five critical areas where managers go awry.)

Avoiding change is human and very understandable, but dangerous - even for a brand. We spend a great deal of time planning how to implement changes, but we rarely plan for resistance.

Unit-level resistance to change is more common, but it’s the corporate-level resistance that is the most harmful. It could be a line cook who doesn’t see the need to do things differently, or a CEO trying to “ride out” a final few years until retirement. Sometimes symptoms are easy to identify: a manager who complains that it won’t work (“We tried that 12 years ago ... ”), or even sabotage. However, the most damaging form of resistance is silent and nearly invisible.

Many years ago, when microwaves were new and very expensive, I worke...Read More
Industries: Management Issues, Operations

October 27, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (4)

(This is the second post on of the five critical areas where managers go awry.)

All too often, corporate management assumes that a successful unit-level manager is a good leader. Unfortunately, that isn’t necessarily true. Many unit-level managers “run good numbers” but do not have the skill needed to be effective in more-senior positions. If you are seeing missed goals, team members who feel disengaged and frustrated, or high turnover, poor leadership skills may be at the root of the problem.

Don’t get me wrong. My point is not to be critical of the skills of unit-level managers, because they are extremely important to any foodservice organization. I simply want to point out that different skill sets are necessary for success at the unit, regional, and corporate levels.

Leaders must be able to direct and motivate ...Read More