As business continues, your staff will eventually begin to rely and find comfort towards each other. Working towards an understanding that they are a team and must therefore be open and communicate.

This is the first building blog in ensuring your team is trusted and can mend situations amongst one another when you’re not around. The foundation of friendship is critical- because someone needs to pick up the slack if a job goes wrong, if there is no stock left or a server is under intense stress from a customer. Hospitality is about communication and working together, so be sure to manage and make ‘trust’ a priority, because systems can only be put in place in accordance with the staff themselves. So, in order to steer clear of falling off those rickety tracks, we want to put forward a few rostering tips to manage your staffs well being within your business.

ROSTERING TIPS:

In every business sector, rostering can be a nightmare, especially if your staff are generally particular with their set hours. In the beginning, you just play it by ear, listening to whether your kitchen hand wants to work days or nights or if your server needs to go to school in the evening and prefers full-time day hours- it all depends! However, whilst listening to these preferences, note down if it can all be worked within a full service regime, if not, choose your staff wisely. These times should be specified within the interviewing process, but if they happen to change drastically mid-way, then you must find a healthy solution by communicating openly in a group discussion.

First, each staff member must specify which hours they wish to work, and if they need certain days off, that can be noted. Instead of demanding which days they prefer to work, they can speak to each other and see whether another staff member would like to swap shifts on a longer term basis. Also, take into consideration that days off should be granted, especially if they are told beforehand- or else your staff will begin to head off somewhere else where their needs are met.

As begin tackling the weekly roster, remember that busy shifts need the most efficient staff. All staff should understand the way in which your business works during days, nights, weekends and week days, not their own day or night time schedule. At times, experienced staff appear to stick to day shifts, because if gives them ease and more tips, but that should not be a frequent occurrence, they need to understand the systems within each service- because days and nights have a completely different vibe and result. In light of this, you know which days give the best tips, so share the chance around fairly, avoiding any sense of preference towards staff members. Some shifts may be easier than others, but those that require extra work usually pay in a more favourable way, so let your staff handle it and see whether they can work to those standards.

Also, switch online, so that your staff can check their roster without phoning in the venue. You can pop in all shifts with the click of a few buttons and send off to each individual email at a set time and day every week. To let your staff know if there is a delay, text them beforehand or if they need to change a shift on the roster, allow them to request a shift swap on the online document for you to approve. This provides ease and flexibility towards your staffs management, as they don’t have to wait until they enter the venue and can communicate with flexibility.

 All in all, efficiency and flexibility is a key factor that must be included in your rostering system. Staffs schedules remain a powerful way to attract and keep them within your business, letting them know that their thoughts and preferences are heard and acknowledged.