Don’t underestimate the value of having a good team on your side. You don’t become successful by yourself. You have to rely on really good people.
- Alicia Quarles
Restaurant interviews are not the time to be lax in order to ensure that all staff and working persons will be a good addition to your business and become part of a team.
If potential applicants are expected to be prepared to impress, so is the potential employer - a reality that is greatly heightened in today's hiring environment.
A good interview is still one of the top recruiting tools for a restaurant. Show up prepared, and your chances of beating out talent skyrocket. If you plan to wing it, you'll likely miss important moments to persuade prospects on why they should work for you, allowing competitors the opportunity to surge above.
Interviewing is as important as the restaurant's reputation and culture. At that point, you're the face of the firm and the brand, so it's critical that you bring your A game as the interviewer." So, how can you do an effective restaurant interview? Use these suggestions to make the procedure more efficient.
If potential applicants are expected to be prepared to impress, so is the potential employer - a reality that is greatly heightened in today's hiring environment.
A good interview is still one of the top recruiting tools for a restaurant. Show up prepared, and your chances of beating out talent skyrocket. If you plan to wing it, you'll likely miss important moments to persuade prospects on why they should work for you, allowing competitors the opportunity to surge above.
Interviewing is as important as the restaurant's reputation and culture. At that point, you're the face of the firm and the brand, so it's critical that you bring your A game as the interviewer." So, how can you do an effective restaurant interview? Use these suggestions to make the procedure more efficient.
Set aside time to do research in advance.
Waiting until the interview to go over resumes wastes significant time that could be spent digging deeper into a candidate's background. Equally crucial, it demonstrates that you did not conduct the bare minimum of preliminary investigation, indicating a lack of enthusiasm for the candidate.
The most important thing is to be organized and prepared.
Often, the GM will simply print the résumé as the candidate walks in, but you should review it beforehand, take notes, and add any questions you have.
Ask the right questions.
The interview is your opportunity to determine whether the prospective hire is a suitable match for the role. The questions should be suited to the position's requirements. However, you can always start with softball queries, like:
"Why do you want to work here?" : This encourages candidates to open up and become more at ease before moving on to heavier hitters.
Inquire about the type of employment they're looking for and what's important to them. It's critical to understand what inspires people if you want to keep them.
You'll need to ask behavioral questions to get a sense of how a candidate will communicate and/or respond in different settings.
"Can you describe an instance when you resolved a customer service issue?" and "Can you tell me about a time when you clashed with a co-worker and how you resolved it?" are examples of such queries. "What do you value the most in a work environment?" and "What does being a team player mean to you?"
Make sure to ask open-ended questions to get more information from the candidate. Before you make a decision, always ask the candidate if they have any questions for you. To avoid too much turnover, the fit must be mutual.
"Why do you want to work here?" : This encourages candidates to open up and become more at ease before moving on to heavier hitters.
Inquire about the type of employment they're looking for and what's important to them. It's critical to understand what inspires people if you want to keep them.
You'll need to ask behavioral questions to get a sense of how a candidate will communicate and/or respond in different settings.
"Can you describe an instance when you resolved a customer service issue?" and "Can you tell me about a time when you clashed with a co-worker and how you resolved it?" are examples of such queries. "What do you value the most in a work environment?" and "What does being a team player mean to you?"
Make sure to ask open-ended questions to get more information from the candidate. Before you make a decision, always ask the candidate if they have any questions for you. To avoid too much turnover, the fit must be mutual.
Keep the questions consistent from candidate to candidate.
It's customary to change questions from one open position to the next dependent on your objectives for each. However, you do not want to modify the question list for people applying for the same post.
This is very crucial. You won't be able to evaluate and rate the candidates properly if you ask two different sets of questions. Prior to hosting any interview process, make a list of questions and stick to it.
This is very crucial. You won't be able to evaluate and rate the candidates properly if you ask two different sets of questions. Prior to hosting any interview process, make a list of questions and stick to it.
Call attention to your company culture and employee benefits.
A solid workplace culture and benefits package can help your company stand out from the crowd. Regardless of your services, it is vital to be transparent about these concerns so that the candidate may ensure the position is a good fit for their lifestyle demands and preferences.
You want to describe the working environment at your restaurant. How your team functions and responds.
Consider some of the industry's larger brands. Examine how the complete package is laid out, which includes your compensation, tips, and what they may expect in terms of benefits, such as whether the restaurant pays for your clothing and gives you a discount on slip-resistant shoes….
Again, providing a clear image of salary and the work environment will aid in preventing turnover, which is both costly and unsustainable.
Consider what additional selling elements you can highlight. Is there room for advancement within the company? Do you provide any kind of training? Do you have a bonus system? Do employees receive a set amount of free off-shift meals per month? These subtle and huge features highlight what distinguishes your establishment.
Consider some of the industry's larger brands. Examine how the complete package is laid out, which includes your compensation, tips, and what they may expect in terms of benefits, such as whether the restaurant pays for your clothing and gives you a discount on slip-resistant shoes….
Again, providing a clear image of salary and the work environment will aid in preventing turnover, which is both costly and unsustainable.
Consider what additional selling elements you can highlight. Is there room for advancement within the company? Do you provide any kind of training? Do you have a bonus system? Do employees receive a set amount of free off-shift meals per month? These subtle and huge features highlight what distinguishes your establishment.
Avoid overselling the position.
Honesty is essential whether discussing your workplace culture or the facts of your employment.
It's not a bad idea, for example, to inform folks, 'Hey, we're a busy restaurant, during the lunch rush you might be asked to do XYZ, and if it's winter, you might be working next to this window and it might be cold.' Uncertain expectations are how individuals are lost.
When you make promises you can’t keep and hide realities of the job, again you’re destined for retention challenges.
When you make promises you can’t keep and hide realities of the job, again you’re destined for retention challenges.
Be prepared to make an offer on the spot.
When you find a suitable candidate, you may also wish to act quickly! Be available and ready to schedule deeper phases of the interview process before the candidate leaves. Don't be afraid to say, 'Hey, this interview went really well, and I'd like to set you up for the next step right now.'
If they’re a good fit and after they leave your restaurant and someone else calls them, they will at the very least know when they can anticipate to meet with you again, and it will be more difficult to decline your potential opportunity.
Candidates seeking hourly positions may be well prepared and willing to get on-board on the spot. They are hunting for work - therefore you want to make sure you have a good hire before they leave. Hourly employees expect a speedy answer and wish to get started straight away. They have an expectation that they'll start working inside that eatery within a few days.
Candidates seeking hourly positions may be well prepared and willing to get on-board on the spot. They are hunting for work - therefore you want to make sure you have a good hire before they leave. Hourly employees expect a speedy answer and wish to get started straight away. They have an expectation that they'll start working inside that eatery within a few days.
Create a universal interview guide and train managers on how to interview.
How to effectively interview is rarely common knowledge. It’s a skillset that needs to be learned, and creating an interview guide is integral to that training process.
“If you just say, ‘Hey, let’s do this interview.’, not only might you miss questions you should be asking, but there might be questions that you shouldn’t be asking, and aside from potentially hiring the wrong person, that could be detrimental to your brand.
Liking someone for a position is not the same as ensuring that person is the right fit for the work requirement. An interview guide details how leaders should conduct interviews in a consistent and helpful manner. It will need to include a basic interview framework, a list of questions, and key selling points to communicate about the restaurant and/or brand.
Once completed, plan a review session with all members of the leadership team. You should also practice potential interview scenarios. Then, prepare the team for how the guidance may differ depending on the role you're attempting to fill.
Every time you have a new job interview going on, make sure to update the guide. This involves including the job description at the top, identifying the hiring goals, and modifying the question list as needed. Share copies with the leadership team prior to interview times to get everyone rolling on the same page. Shadowing and observing them, followed by feedback, is an important element of this training process.
“If you just say, ‘Hey, let’s do this interview.’, not only might you miss questions you should be asking, but there might be questions that you shouldn’t be asking, and aside from potentially hiring the wrong person, that could be detrimental to your brand.
Liking someone for a position is not the same as ensuring that person is the right fit for the work requirement. An interview guide details how leaders should conduct interviews in a consistent and helpful manner. It will need to include a basic interview framework, a list of questions, and key selling points to communicate about the restaurant and/or brand.
Once completed, plan a review session with all members of the leadership team. You should also practice potential interview scenarios. Then, prepare the team for how the guidance may differ depending on the role you're attempting to fill.
Every time you have a new job interview going on, make sure to update the guide. This involves including the job description at the top, identifying the hiring goals, and modifying the question list as needed. Share copies with the leadership team prior to interview times to get everyone rolling on the same page. Shadowing and observing them, followed by feedback, is an important element of this training process.
Suggest a working interview, especially for BOH or non-hourly employees:
Kitchen Internship is a period of time when a chef works in another chef's kitchen to learn new techniques, and can last for as little as a few nights to a few months.
If the interview went well, schedule a start-off similar process with the potential employee right away. This is a terrific approach to assess if the candidate's personality is a good fit for the restaurant, and it's appealing to candidates since they get a taste of who they might be working for. Incorporating a new-team-member-internship into your interview process will most likely appear different than when a chef or culinary student contacts a restaurant and wants this stage of their career.
This method appears to be more of a two-way stage-setting platform as part of an interview, and you may only have a night or two to determine whether the candidate passes or fails.
These should be compensated stints, with time constraints agreed upon in advance. You don't want to waste the candidate's time and quite frankly, your time in also valuable too. Depending on the role and your objectives, doing a working interview for paid front-of-house and managerial positions might also be beneficial.
We do hope this article helps – a lot! Good, reliable working staff in your restaurant are imperative.
Kitchen Internship is a period of time when a chef works in another chef's kitchen to learn new techniques, and can last for as little as a few nights to a few months.
If the interview went well, schedule a start-off similar process with the potential employee right away. This is a terrific approach to assess if the candidate's personality is a good fit for the restaurant, and it's appealing to candidates since they get a taste of who they might be working for. Incorporating a new-team-member-internship into your interview process will most likely appear different than when a chef or culinary student contacts a restaurant and wants this stage of their career.
This method appears to be more of a two-way stage-setting platform as part of an interview, and you may only have a night or two to determine whether the candidate passes or fails.
These should be compensated stints, with time constraints agreed upon in advance. You don't want to waste the candidate's time and quite frankly, your time in also valuable too. Depending on the role and your objectives, doing a working interview for paid front-of-house and managerial positions might also be beneficial.
We do hope this article helps – a lot! Good, reliable working staff in your restaurant are imperative.