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Employee Management
Mike’s Monthly Tip: Inversion Dynamic, Lead by Example
Lead By Example — Employee Leadership It’s imperative to lead by example. The way you act in your restaurant will determine how the rest of your crew performs. When you’re upbeat, fast-paced, enthusiastic and positive, it’s natura...
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Employee Management
Mike’s Monthly Tip: Tighten Up or Loosen Up
This month, it’s time to tighten up, or it’s time to loosen up. Think about all the things you are fanatically interested in and even maniacal about. Loosen up on that stuff a little bit. If you’re an absolute stickler for punctuali...
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Employee Management
Mike’s Monthly Tip: Systemized Graciousness
I highly advise copying the systemized practices of the major restaurant players. I DO NOT suggest copying their mass-market food style or lack of personal touch. However, interestingly enough, the big players are now factoring personal touch into th...
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Employee Management
Building Blocks: How to Conduct an Interview
Nick Bogacz, founder and president of Caliente Pizza & Draft House in Pittsburgh You’ve done all the hard work, and finally, job hunters are calling you. Now what? I like to break down the process into a few steps. But, first, if you reca...
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Employee Management
Employee Morale Roundtable Discussion
In today’s labor market, morale needs a boost The refrain since the pandemic began is “We can’t find good help.” We see pizzerias daily shortening hours just so the owners and staff can get a break. While a plethora of factors have worked in ...
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Employee Management
Nurture Young Talent at Your Restaurant
It’s a humbling endeavor to hire people. It’s on par with being a good coach, or teacher, to aspire to be a good boss. After working jobs you might not have liked growing up, with people you didn’t choose and a boss who did things you didn’t ...
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Employee Management
Building Blocks: Strategies to Incentivize Your Staff and Promote Retention
Among the most significant business consequences of the pandemic is an epidemic — a hiring epidemic. While we haven’t been immune to this nationwide problem, we’re weathering it better than other restaurants, so I am frequently asked how we hav...
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Employee Management
Mike’s Monthly Tip: Welcoming New Employees
The Warm Blanket Approach to Welcoming New Employees The hiring problems of the last year have not subsided. I still see businesses hiring the way they always did. Most business owners know it isn’t like it was in 2019 anymore and that there needs ...
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Employee Management
New Ways to Promote Employee Wellness
Employee Wellbeing With minimum wage pressures and increasing concerns about health, it’s easy to see costs escalate, both in the form of higher paychecks and more safety-related gear. Amid the fear or rising expenses, there’s good news: changes ...
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Employee Management
Do Employers Really Know What Workers Want?
Employee Expectations The biggest secret in the pizza industry is not a sauce recipe but a human resources question: what do employees really want? Do employers really know what workers want? While that sounds like the setup for a joke – the punchl...
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Employee Management
Building Blocks: Creating Accountability with Tools and Teachable Moments For Employees
You have a defined management structure, and your leaders have clear job descriptions. Now, you might be asking yourself, “How do I get the most from them?” This is where accountability comes into play. There are some clever sayings on this...
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Employee Management
How Small Operators Can Tap into Benefits Programs
The whirling world of employee benefits John Pask says smart restaurants have long known the importance of offering employees compelling benefits. If employees feel supported and valued, then customer service and employee retention often follow in a ...