It is said that roughly 72.9% of restaurant employees leave their jobs within the first year. Why is that? We can speculate, but the most obvious reason could be linked to money and appreciation, or lack thereof. Often jobs in the restaurant industry don’t pay well, and there may not be a clear career path which makes the worker feel like there is no room to grow into a higher ranking, higher paying position. Conflict with employers and other employees also contribute to a high turnover rate. Another contributing factor is that restaurant workers are often young people or those with minimal education that are using this type of work as a stepping stone to other opportunities. Since keeping employees longterm in this industry can’t be easily resolved, one thing we can do is try to create an efficient way to train and onboard new hires to save the company time and money. Let’s talk about some ways this can be done.

Centralized Training Videos

Having a platform with centralized training videos makes it easy for new staff members to be brought up to speed quickly. Here, you can communicate processes, onboarding procedures, and any other types of information that is used to onboard a new hire. A central viewing platform is helpful for the new team member to take in the information individually, and learn visually (an added bonus!) The information library stores the videos that are related to their job function. It is also easy to update the videos at any given time, across all of your locations.

Standardized Procedures

Setting clear guidelines on operational procedures is vital when training your staff. They will be the first contact that a customer has with your business. It is crucial that every staff member whether within one location or across multiple, is on the same page, and that they know the vision of the company and that they share the values of your organization. Your staff must be able to follow a clear, established protocol to create a consistent experience in all of your restaurants.

Digitized Recipe Cards

Using digital recipe cards makes it easy for staff (new hires or veteran staff members) to learn and retain information. Updates are easily made digitally, versus having to toss out and reprint an entire recipe binder once it becomes obsolete. Staff will be able to easily view how dishes are prepared, ensuring they are made the same way across your locations. Using a platform that enables them to view the recipe cards directly at the prep station also helps empower them and simplifies the process, providing training right where the work needs to happen.

Automation can be highly useful in easing the burden of employee turnover. It provides an efficient and standard way to train new hires, making the investment in onboarding much less. It also creates a straightforward way to perform the daily tasks required by your day to day staff in the foodservice industry.

What are some ways your restaurant is managing employee turnover?