ELECTRONIC HOUSE CALL - April 15, 2005

I feel like I have been living inside a pinball machine for a couple of weeks. From March 28 to April 9, I logged over 16,000 air miles, dealt with a death in the family and got jumped by that nasty bug (flu? super cold?) that seems to be laying everyone low right now. By last Saturday, I was totally wrung out.

Fortunately, a little schedule juggling got me an extra two days at home this week and thanks to a miracle drug I discovered in Canada, I am finally beating the bug. If you ever run across an over-the-counter remedy called Cold FX, grab it! It is jumping off the shelves in Canada but I think you can order it on the Internet. In any event, I went from feeling like pond scum to almost human about half an hour after I took three of these little beauties!

Since none of us really have the time to be sick, you would do well to protect your health until this particular critter has passed by. Good luck.

BIG DOINGS IN THE BIG EASY
After months of planning, it is finally time for the first session of Super Summit 2005. Margene and I head for New Orleans today for a few days of R&R before everything gets rolling.

On Sunday, 40 of us will spend the day with Phyllis Ann Marshall going behind the scenes on some of the hottest restaurant concepts, old and new, in New Orleans.

On Monday and Tuesday it falls to Robert Kausen and me to introduce a few key principles and create an environment where the attendees will learn from their own insights and realizations. This "inside out" learning process means that the lessons they learn will be personal, permanent ... and painless.

Of course, the Summit does not all happen in the classroom. Sunday lunch is at the famous Galatoire's (100 years old this year) and Sunday night we feast at Marisol. On Monday night it is cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, six courses and four wines at Ralph Brennan's newest eatery, Ralph's on the Park. (Work, work, work!) I am so looking forward to this week!

BEYOND COMPLAINTS
People don't want bad food for free!

A couple of years ago, I remember having lunch at a restaurant in California. I arrived with my client at nearly 2pm, well after the lunch rush had passed and our first impression of the place looked promising. The interior was attractive and the manager was in evidence. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there. The manager was talking to a table just behind the greeter station when we arrived, but it took him at least two minutes to make eye contact with us and another minute to tear himself away to seat us. Lost points but I could live with it.

While we were standing there waiting, we got to look at a little promotional display that was front and center. With a large "head shot" photo, it informed us that the manager's name was Gordon, that he had previously been in the theater, and that he would sing a song at your table if you asked. (According to my client, he would also do this even if you didn't ask and it was often annoying.) This sign was next to a jar stuffed with dollar bills labeled "Tips for Gordon." More lost points ... but I was still OK.

Finally, Gordon took us to a table, told us of the specials and left. We had a project to discuss anyway but after about ten minutes, we noticed that nobody had come to the table so we asked for a waitress. (Understand that there were a total of four parties in the place at the time.) A few minutes later the waitress arrived to take our drink order. It took awhile to get them (I guess ice water and iced tea are a little hard to handle.) More lost points but I could still live with it.

Somewhere in there, she took our order for a small pizza and a plate of ravioli and we continued our conversation. It must have been 20 minutes or so later when she came to the table to tell us that the order was still not ready and she couldn't understand what the delay could be. (Hey, THAT was helpful information!) A few minutes after that, she arrived with the meals saying that the manager was not going to charge us for them. The right approach in totally the wrong way.

The pizza was cold and the ravioli was overcooked -- inexcusable at this stage of the game! What I could NOT live with was that nobody ever gave us the impression that it mattered to them what sort of experience we were having. It seemed like the thinking was, "OK, we screwed up. Here is your free food. Next!" We did not want bad food for free.

I think most folks understand that things don't always go right. They will usually cut you some slack if they get that you sincerely WANT it to be right and that it matters to you when it isn't. In this case, the manager didn't want to face us himself so he sent the waitress over with the message and she was obviously uncomfortable with it. Nobody even said, "Oh I am so sorry that you had this problem." They only succeeded in giving away food, assuring that we would never be back and giving us a terrific horror story to tell our friends.

As my favorite swamp philosopher Pogo puts it, "We have met the enemy and he is us!

THE APRIL SURVEY
It's a new month ... and a new survey question. One of the major concerns that surfaced in the January survey was staff training, so this month we explore that area in more detail.

Please take a few minutes to fill us in on the current state of your training and how you expect it to evolve in the next year. Add your thoughts to the April survey.

CREATING THE EFFORTLESS ORGANIZATION
This weekend, 44 of your peers will discover how to become more effective, more profitable, eliminate their struggle, regain the balance in their lives and put the fun back in their work.

Of course, after the first day's session, I also suspect that lots of new mental connections will be snapping into place for them. Don't let that prospect worry you -- the process is painless. When you are willing to let go of your old thinking, your new understanding will slip around you like a new skin. The important thing is that the shifts will be triggered by their own insights.

Super Summit 2005 will help you develop a new frame of reference ... from your own insights, not from someone else's "good ideas." This will awaken your natural "people skills" which will lead to a calm mastery of the human factor in your work - even when you are faced with totally new situations, demanding guests, difficult staff, or just your own natural human ups and downs.

Best of all, this will all happen in a way that will enhance the productivity and morale of your staff, improve the well-being of your guests and put more money on your bottom line. In short, you will be able to get more done with less work in a manner that will seem effortless ... and restore balance to your life in the process! That is the simple -- and powerful -- promise of Super Summit 2005.

If this sounds like your idea of a good time, you owe it to yourself (and your family) to find out what Robert Kausen and I have planned for 44 more select people on June 6-7 in New Orleans. This is the last program of this sort that we have planned. Don't miss it. Submit your application today.

THE PERPETUAL QUESTION
What did you learn from your staff today?

I sat down with my best bartender today because he was very upset. I learned that my GM is not listening to the employees. I think that my management team is more worried about paper work than they are about our customers. -- Scott Reutner, Matties Bar & Grill, Elko, NV

A Note from the Doc:
Scott will be part of the June Super Summit. I suspect that as his own perspective changes, his entire organization will shift with him ... even if they don't know exactly why.

Over time, you may come to understand that my perpetual question is really a lot deeper than it may sound. As Scott's comment suggests, you may come to understand that improving your listening skills may be the most valuable management talent you can develop. ... and you may not. It all depends on how serious you are about finding out what you and your company are really capable of becoming.

I will continue to collect your answers to this important question. Just click on the link below for a short coaching session on listening and a chance to contribute your answer for the common good.

What did YOU learn from YOUR staff today?

[ Home ] [ Top ] [ Email Restaurant Doctor ]

© 2005 Restaurant Doctor