How to Find and Hire Great Restaurant Employees

Restaurant work is a passion. Dining is an art. Working in the industry, with long, late hours, high stress, and unpredictable pay can make it hard to hold onto or even find great employees.

With the pandemic and the Great Resignation, times are harder for restaurant managers looking to replenish their staff in 2022. Another problem is that every other restaurant in the world is doing the same thing.

Smart restaurant managers are looking for ways of getting ahead of the curve to fill their staff with the best of the best. Finding great employees can be extremely difficult, and it is especially hard when restaurant working has become more dangerous than ever before due to the pandemic.

Here are our best tips to attract great talent to your restaurant.

Attract Interest with Employee Incentives

There are various ways to include incentive programs in your management style. Offering incentives will draw higher talent levels to work in a place where they are treated well. They will also be curious about what else you might have to offer.

There are a number of ways to offer incentives. Examples include a prize for highest sales every month, staff meals, dental or extended medical plans, ergonomic policies, and products; the list of possibilities goes on and on.

At the end of the day, employee satisfaction means they are motivated to do a better job and go the extra mile, which means customers are happy.

Hire Talent and Personality

Sometimes it pays to hire even when the restaurant does not have an opening. When you meet an incredible talent or a dazzling personality, make room for them. We know that restaurants see employees come and go. Amazing talent does not come along often, and they are worth grabbing and holding onto.

Current Employees Can Be Recruiters

It helps to ask your staff if they have anyone in mind for openings that come up. In most cities, restaurant industry people get to know one another and will keep an eye out for openings for their friends.

These people are also adults, and they know which of their friends they would want to be with and which they would not, so it is safe to trust employees’ recommendations. They know they will have to work together as a team, rely on each other, and pick up after each other – the last thing they would want is someone who won’t do the work.

Vet Every Candidate

Managers should ensure they hire the person they believe they are by asking for referrals and recommendations. Those referrals should also be called on and verified.

The hiring process should be built up to include a screening process, so both the candidate and the hirer are clear on expectations. Questions managers should consider can include:

· Are you available nights and weekends?

· Are late nights a problem?

· What about late nights followed by a breakfast shift?

· Why do you want to work here?

· How much money are you expecting to bring home?

Some questions can be uncomfortable to ask, but expectations must be laid out clearly from the outset so that the reality blindsides neither party.

Give Every Employee the Tools for Success

Sometimes your best employees won’t come to you as a great talent. Employees will be drawn to your restaurant when they know there is a great training program.

Clear, comprehensive training sets the bar for expectations and allows staff and management to start off on a good foot together. So often, communication breakdowns can transpire at the workplace and clarity is lost, and tempers flare.

When all parties have a clear understanding of everyone and what is expected of them, it can mitigate a lot of strife.

Not providing staff with the best tools to do a good job is also a sure way to burn out staff, cause strife between employees and scare away prospective talent.

The right tools can involve a tip-sharing app component to your POS system, so employees do not need to wait around at the end of a shift for tips. It also makes life easier for tracking payrolls and sales reports. Having the best tools on hand is a huge incentive that will draw talented candidates looking to be a part of the team.

Treat your staff well with the Tiphaus app to provide financial transparency, simplify payroll, and report with 100% accuracy.