ELECTRONIC HOUSE CALL - November 19, 2004

Wow! The Las Vegas Birthday Bash was definitely a monster! I will have to do my recovering this weekend because I am back in Las Vegas again to speak at the Big Apple Bagels convention tomorrow. After that, my schedule for the rest of the year is much slower.

To all who joined us in Las Vegas, thank you for making it a real party. For those who did not ... well, you missed something amazing! We did not record it, but there may still be a way to share some of the insights from those startling two days. Stay tuned.

Stupid Owner Tricks
Here is a recent exchange with a subscriber that illustrates why some restaurants have trouble keeping good workers.

Dear Doc -- I have been reading your newsletter for years and I have a difficult problem, one I have been dealing with for about six months. Can you help guide me through this? I am responsible and want to do the right thing. We have bugs in the restaurant. Lots of them. The employees have been spraying on a weekly basis (actually using bombs) but the owners are just looking the other way. We have explained the problem to them, but it has been an ongoing conversation for six months. They promised that an exterminator would be in last week but nothing happened. If the situation persists, the restaurant will lose business and we will all lose our jobs! What do I do? -- Roach Lady

Dear RL -- I appreciate how frustrating your position is. Alas, people have the right to screw up their businesses any way they want to ... and you have the right not to work for jerks. If the owners will not give you satisfactory working conditions, I am sure there are many other restaurant operators in your area who would welcome you with open arms. Sounds like you would be better off with a new employer anyway!

I applaud your desire to be responsible, but that does not mean you have to endure unsanitary conditions if the owner refuses to act. Doing the right thing also includes doing what is right for you. Six months is enough of your life to waste on something like this. Remember that things always work out for the best ... they just seldom work out the way we thought they would. -- Doc

Dear Doc -- Yes, I do think that you hit the nail on the head. Giving up 20 years for jerks makes me quite sad, to say the least. I am a great manager, coach and employee ... and am now looking for another employer. Think I will try the hospitals in the area. I don't think they have been hit so hard by the economy. I will save this message from you. It helped! Thanks. -- Ex-Roach Lady

A note from the Doc:
Was I being harsh? Probably ... but was I calling the situation wrong? When she leaves, I bet that the owners will just shrug their shoulders and complain that today's workers have no loyalty anymore, in effect blaming her. To me the saddest thing to note here is not that she is thinking of leaving her current employer, but that she is thinking of leaving our industry altogether. How many great workers have we driven off because of our own attitudes?

People do not leave companies, they leave managers. If you have the courage, take a long look in the mirror. Stare at that face and invest a few minutes in painful introspection. Are you guilty of behavior such as she describes? You have to let go of your ego to do this honestly and it often is not a pleasant process. It is, however, a necessary drill.

The good news is that if you discover that you are the problem, you can fix it quickly ... but you have to be willing to take the hard look first. What are you pretending not to know?

Peace of Mind
Effective management requires taking the right actions at the right times for the right reasons ... something you cannot do without accurate cost information. Nowhere is this ability to act quickly more critical for restaurateurs than in decisions concerning food and beverage costs.

You simply cannot afford to wait until your monthly financial statements come out -- often 45 days after the start of the accounting period -- to learn these critical numbers ... and now you don't have to.

I have just finished work on a computer program called Cost Control Compass (C3), a quick and easy tool to help keep your restaurant on the right course. C3 finally gives you a way to know your key cost percentages ... very day ... without an inventory ... and within ½ of 1% of the actual number. Best of all, it takes less than two minutes a day to get this peace of mind.

(The first person to use C3 discovered that he had been running a 55% food cost for over six weeks and did not know it. What was it worth to make that discovery sooner rather than later?)

The program normally sells for $179, but I am extending the special introduction price of $129 until after Thanksgiving. This means that you can save $50 ... but only for another week. After that, it sells for full price. Check it out. I guarantee you will love it or I will refund your money -- no questions, no hassles.

Click here for more information on C3.

Super Summit 2005
Now that the Bash is behind me, I can focus on "The Big One" -- Super Summit 2005. The theme this year is "Creating the Effortless Organization" and will feature human relations consultant Robert Kausen. Robert has been a friend and guru of mine for years and is largely responsible for helping me develop the way of thinking that guides my path today. We will still spend a day with Phyllis Ann Marshall getting behind the scenes at some of the best restaurants in New Orleans, but the main program at Super Summit 2005 will be presented just by Robert and me.

Many of last year's Summit attendees commented that the information was cutting-edge ... and it was coming at them too quickly. There just was not enough time to absorb one set of mind-blowing ideas before the next barrage hit. So this year we are taking a different tack -- two facilitators, two days, one very deep topic ... and enough time to really get into it.

Robert and I will spend two intense days with a small, hand-selected group of operators, and bring them to a new level of understanding. This is not about more management techniques, it is about discovering that you don't need management techniques.

You will see for yourself how easy it is to create an organization that solves most of its own problems itself, that gets more done with less energy, that draws new business like a magnet and that lets you live the life you (and your family) always hoped you could have.

If that sounds impossible, let me remind you that in 1491, most people in the "civilized world" were completely certain that the earth was flat!

We will not be talking about idle theory. You will gain insights that will change your viewpoint forever. It certainly did for me. When I suddenly had my eyes opened to what we will be introducing in New Orleans, I was honestly able to put in half the management hours I had ever applied to a foodservice job in my life. I honestly got twice as much accomplished as I ever had in my life ... and if I had been willing to work less, I probably could have gotten more done! Go figure. If this sounds like your idea of a good time, you have just discovered the reason why you must be at Super Summit 2005.

Because of the nature of the program and the need to keep the group small, attendance will be on an invitation-only basis. By next week, I will let you know how you can apply to be part of Super Summit 2005, March 6-8 in New Orleans.

The Perpetual Question
What did you learn from your staff today?

[ Home ] [ Top ] [ Email Restaurant Doctor ]

© 2004 Restaurant Doctor