Introduction

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 you’ll 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 reader’s attention • Get the reader’s 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 • Don’t speak too quickly • Listen • Use positive nonverbal communication

18. Enforcing Rules and Policies • ALL EMPLOYEES must understand an operation’s 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 • Identify the mistake in the following paragraph: • 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. • How would you help a parent with three small children who are not cooperating. • How would you help an older woman who can not see the menu? • List the eight guidelines for effective communication with customers?

20. The Manager’s 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 operation’s 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 don’t 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 • It’s 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 operation’s 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 isn’t ready in 20 minutes of less it’s free. Page 69-71

30. Questions • Customers opinions are formed by? • 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? • Explain the difference between front-of-the-house employees and back-of-the-house employees? • Explain the difference between short-term goals and long-term goals?