Working in the Hospitality Industry

1
Introduction

• 1.1-1.3

2
Working in the Hospitality Industry

• Working in the foodservice industry you have
  daily contact with guest and often receive
  immediate feedback about the quality of food and
  service.
• Must enjoy serving other people.
• Enjoy working with food, be efficient, flexible,
  able to work as a team
• Remain calm under pressure.

3
Commitment to Serve

• It is your job to serve other people.
• SMILE!! ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
• Customers expect servers to be friendly
• Serving people is not always easy
• Busy
• Customers being rude
• Not enough help

4
Tips for Working in the Hospitality Industry

• Always greet customers
• SMILE
• Look people in the eye when you speak to them.
• Fulfill guests requirements pleasantly
• Always say thank-you
• Work as a TEAM (one of the most important
  guidelines youll practice every day)
• Page 6-7

5
Workplace Guidelines

• Attendance
• Teamwork
• Promptness
• Positive Attitude
• Dependability
• Ask questions
• Fairness and honesty
• Page 8

6
Career Opportunities in Food Service

• Career Professional or work in a particular
  field, such as food service, that you choose for
  yourself.
• Career ladder series of jobs through which a
  person can advance to further their career
• Jobs in the foodservice industry are divided into
  two categories
• Front-of-the-house Employees serve guests
  directly
• Back-of-the-house Employees work outside the
  public space.

7
Entry-Level Jobs

• Entry-level job one that requires little or no
  previous experience.
• Busperson
• Dishwasher
• Host/Hostess
• Server
• Counter servers
• Assistant cook
• Page 10-12

8
Foodservice Careers

• Foodservice Management Running of a foodservice
  operation
• Restaurant Manager runs both back/front-of-house
  
• Assistant Manager Helping the manager oversee
  all aspect of operation
• Executive chef Oversees entire kitchen
• Chef and Cooks Assists executive chef
  responsibilities/overall food preparation
• Home economists Degrees in food and nutrition
  and are employed by schools, country or regional
  health services, where they educate.
• Communication writers People with strong
  communication skills needed to write books,
  magazine articles, and brochures providing
  consumers write information about food and
  related materials. Can help with training
  materials

9
Where do they work?

• Determine the following positions are either
  front-of-the-house or back-of-the-house.
• - host/hostess - bar staff
• - bookkeeper - menu planner
• - chef - purchaser
• - assistant manager - busperson
• - storeroom clerk - wait staff
• - dishwasher - cashier
• - dietitian - pastry chef
• - manager - line cook
• Make two columns front-of-the-house and
  back-of-the-house and determine where each of the
  positions fit, turn in before the end of the
  period.

10
Cover Letter

• Cover letter brief letter in which you
  introduce your-self to the employer.
• Highlights your strengths and confirms your
  interest
• Explain your qualifications
• Keep it BRIEF
• TIPS
• Grab the readers attention
• Get the readers interest
• Tell the reader what you want
• Say you look forward to an interview
• Follow up with a phone call (page 22)
• Networking contacting people who can give you
  information about job openings. (page 22-23

11
Chapter 1

• 1.1- 1.2

12
Serving Customers

• Steps to providing friendly, helpful service
• Greet customers with a smile and make eye
  contact.
• Fulfill customers requests pleasantly, without
  appearing irritated or annoyed.
• Thank customers sincerely and express pleasure in
  helping them.
• Be cooperative when coworkers ask for assistance.
• Timing in food service is important to successful
  customer service for food and dropping the
  check.
• Customers should never be rushed
• Page 56-57

13
Timely service involves

• Serving customers at their own pace.
• Being aware of whether customers are in a hurry
  or want to linger.
• Greeting customers when they arrive.
• Seating customer promptly.
• Serving a course within five minutes after
  preceding one is finished.
• Presenting the check after the meal has been
  finished and there is nothing more that the guest
  desires.
• Never rushing customers who arrive just before
  closing time.

14
Making a Good First Impression

• Dress appropriately
• Practice good hygiene
• Wear clean, wrinkle-free uniforms or clothing
  that is in good condition.
• Maintain clean hair, held back or up
• Have clean hands and nails
• Do not wear strong fragrances.
• Do not drink, eat, smoke, or chew gum in front of
  customer.
• Page 57-58

15
Customers with Special Needs

• Older customers
• Customers with disabilities
• Families with children
• Customers on special diets
• Customers with food allergies
• Page 59-60

16
Exceeding Customers Expectations

• Focus completely on customer
• Showing a sense of urgency
• ALL customers question, requests, and complaints
  should be responded or resolved immediately.
• Saying hello and goodbye to every customer you
  come in contact with.
• Employees should try to anticipate customers
  needs and accommodations, before being asked
• Question If you see a customer which is
  not your responsibility out of water, do you help
  them? (TEAMWORK)
• Page 58

17
Communication with Customers

• Avoid inappropriate topics with guest slang
  phrases
• Speak courteously and in full sentence
• Describe menu items in appetizing terms and
  recommend items you like
• Dont speak too quickly
• Listen
• Use positive nonverbal communication

18
Enforcing Rules and Policies

• ALL EMPLOYEES must understand an operations
  rules and policies and know when to apply them.
• Rules created for safety and legal reasons should
  be enforced ALWAYS!
• Dress code
• Comping not charging for a menu item
• Management still have the responsibility of
  establishing clear, but flexible guidelines for
  these situations.
• Page 61

19
Questions

1. Identify the mistake in the following paragraph
2. A female server is waiting on a customer. She is
   wearing dirty, sloppy uniform, has long hair that
   is worn down, and is blowing a bubble with her
   gum.
3. How would you help a parent with three small
   children who are not cooperating.
4. How would you help an older woman who can not see
   the menu?
5. List the eight guidelines for effective
   communication with customers?

20
The Managers Role in Customer Service

• Section 1.2

21
Service Encounters

• Customers get an overall impression of a
  foodservice operation from its employeers.
• Service Encounter contacts with an operations
  workers
• Front-of-the-house workers primarily deal with
  customers
• Internal customers Employees and co-workers who
  depend on each other for a good job. Ex.
  Back-of-the-house workers

22
Impact of Dissatisfied Customers

• Most guests who are dissatisfied never return.
• Only 4 of dissatisfied guests will complain-but
  those who complain will come back if their
  problems are solved.
• Unhappy customers will tell an average of 10
  people about their bad experience.
• More than 80 of customers who never return are
  unhappy with the indifferent or poor attitude of
  employees.
• Page 65-66

23
Problem

• Nine customers each spending 5.50 four times a
  month, have experienced slow service at La
  Quadoba. How much will the establishment lose
  over the next five years if the customers dont
  return.
• 5.50 4 22.00 month
• 22.00 9 198 month
• 198 12 2,376 year
• 2.376 5 11,880 over a five year period

24
Customer Service

• Its important to remember that it costs five
  times more to advertise and attract new guest,
  than it does to keep current ones coming back.
• Word-of-mouth advertising is FREE!!
• Opinions customers share with their friends and
  acquaintances about the establishment, are
  positive ones.
• The Happy Customer Effect 
• Customer opinions are formed by SERVING
  ENCOUNTERS - experiences with customers.
• We are going to show the dollar effect of Happy
  Customers
• Give Homework (page 66)

25
Planning For Customer Service

• Managers of excellent customer service must
  establish goals, design and implement systems to
  meet them, and maintain service excellence/
• Service plan organized, systematic method of
  handling customer service.
• Developing a service plan
• Identify problems and their causes
• Set goals
• Consider available resources
• Develop policies and procedures
• Obtain feedback and monitor results.
• Page 66-67

26
Setting Goals and Considering Resources

• THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF ALL BUISNESSES IS TO MAKE A
  PROFIT!!
• Profit Dollar amount left when revenues are
  greater than costs.
• Short-term goals Usually cover periods of one
  day, one week, one month, several months, or one
  year.
• Long-term goals Cover two to five years, or
  longer.
• Mission Statement describes an operations
  philosophy of doing business.

27
Mission Statement Examples

• Our mission is to offer the highest form of
  service and hospitality and to provide the
  freshest, best-prepared Italian food in a
  family-style, mid-priced setting.
• Our mission is to attract and keep customers by
  offering friendly and courteous service, a
  variety of high-quality foods, and affordable
  prices in a quick-service environment.
• Our mission is to provide patrons with helpful,
  friendly, and prompt service, as well as the most
  appealing and nutritious meal choices possible,
  in a comfortable atmosphere for a reasonable
  price. (pg. 67-68)
• Managers use the mission statement to help them
  plan and manage daily operations.

28
Implementing Plans and Monitoring Results

• Once a plan for improving customer satisfaction
  is designed, it must be put into action!
• To help implement plans and achieve goals, these
  steps should be followed
• Identify in detail exactly what must be done and
  who will be responsible.
• Communicate information to employees and train
  them properly.
• Develop a tool for monitoring employees
  performance.
• Monitor the entire plan continuously over the
  long term.
• Comment Cards quick surveys that customers
  complete telling how satisfied they were with the
  food and service.
• Page 68-69

29
Cont. Improving Customer Service

• Mystery shoppers hired by an operation to visit
  and report on their experiences and impressions
  of a particular foodservice operation
• Surveys
• Focus groups consist of customers that meet
  together regularly to talk with managers on how
  services can improve.
• Employee feedback
• Service guarantees guarantee of customer
  satisfaction (last steep in the customer service
  planning process)
• Ex. If your lunch isnt ready in 20 minutes of
  less its free.
• Page 69-71

30
Questions

1. Customers opinions are formed by?
2. Colette's Café serves 1,800 guests per week, and
   the average check is 7.50 per guest. If the
   establishment increases its customer count by 4,
   by how much will the annual sales increase?
3. Explain the difference between front-of-the-house
   employees and back-of-the-house employees?
4. Explain the difference between short-term goals
   and long-term goals?