The right ones can generate as much repeat business as a great menu; the wrong ones can have customers running for the door faster than a health inspector. So here are a few ways to get your staff serving up a storm.
Treat job descriptions like a recipe
Analyse each job in your restaurant and ask yourself if all the ingredients you expect staff to have are essential to the overall flavour of their position, or merely garnish. Does a kitchen hand really need prior experience? Do wait staff need perfect English? Work out what really are the key ingredients for each job's success and discard the rest. Suddenly great prospects that didn't have the unnecessary embellishments will materialise.
Foster latent talent
As they say 'From little things big things grow,' and if you think there's something about that kid washing dishes, there probably is. Take them under your wing; find out what thier aspirations are and where their potential talents might lie. If they're the cheer germ that keeps your kitchen happy, chances are they'll be just as popular with customers with a bit of training and development.
Hire attitude, not just aptitude
Some candidates may lack the key technical prerequisites of a job, yet impress you with their enthusiasm and manner. So give them a try. It's much easier to fix a lack of technical knowhow than it is to right a wrong attitude or lack of people skills.
Promote from within
Who knows your systems and culture best? The people who already work for you. So when you need a new chef or server, hold back on the external hunt until you've examined all your in-house options. Again, if the right attitude is already there, the right skills won't be far behind.
Network with the culinary crowd
Who are the hot graduates coming out of culinary school? What great new talents are looking for a leg up into restaurant management? If you're not mixing with the market movers and shakers, all the right people will go to the wrong places – your competition.
