Why Staff Training Gets Neglected in Restaurants

Staff Training
One of the major factors is staff retention which is a sign of staff respect and value that ensures their loyalty, high turnover rate and low attrition which also boosts profitability.

By Sakshi singh , Contributory Author

26 Jul 2022 | 20 min read

A report published in 2019 indicated that 51 percent of restaurant operators said staffing is a top challenge, with another 35 percent admitting that training staff can be challenging. Devoting sufficient resources to devise an effective training method for restaurant staff is important yet many fail to address this concern. While hiring and staff crunch have always been the centre of the debate, training essentials have somehow taken the back seat.

One cannot neglect the fact that the restaurant employees are the point of contact between the company and the customers. There should be no compromises when equipping waiters and restaurant staff with the tools necessary to do their job properly. Understanding the concern relating to the current scenario, the coronavirus pandemic resulted in lockdown pan India. This resulted in the hospitality industry taking a severe hit and NRAI estimated over seven million people who were dependent on the food & beverage industry have already lost their jobs.

What leads to the ignorance of training

Explaining the domino effect, Rajan Bahadur, CEO of Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council commented that the majority of restaurants barring the ones in hotels are leased properties in prime locations and malls where the restaurants ended up paying hefty rentals with no income. “The situation still is full of uncertainty. The pandemic still persists in different countries, and companies, as well as customers, have become very cautious in spending. The result is cost-cutting in all the departments of the industry. These restaurants work on about 15 percent EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) margins," he added 

The result of cost-cutting directly impacts hiring and cutting training costs as well. Even the customers are spending on essentials and eating out has declined. The industry is yet to recover the losses suffered during lockdowns and reach profitability of pre-Covid levels.

F&B Industry is a dynamic business with an ever-changing, highly demanding industry and extremely competitive industry. After the pandemic, many owners feel it was time and cost-consuming to provide basic training essentials. “Today what we are learning may not be valuable five years from now and there is a need for constant training to cope with changing times and trends. To fulfil the demand especially during and after the pandemic there was more demand with less workforce, so employers also find it difficult to provide basic training to their employees,” Dr Chef Balendra Singh, director of Institute of Bakery and Culinary Arts (IBCA) shared.

Training became the victim of cost cutting post pandemic

The industry undergoes the transformation and shifts toward automatisation, digitalisation and technological advancement, employers feel it as an extra burden on their pocket, so they try to save time and cost by overlooking the basic training essentials.

However, training in F&B plays an important role in providing the services and differentiating one restaurant from another. Staff play an important role in any organization whether it's big or small, poorly trained staff can be disastrous for the restaurant's reputation, as well as customer relationships. “Providing better training in the F&B industry increases their knowledge about food safety, improves the Taste and flavor of the food, and reduces food safety risk.  It makes employees aware about hygiene, cleaning techniques, storage and effectively implementing food safety norms,” Chef Singh added.

Trained staff brings in profitability

Speeding up training and minimizing the costs can be an efficient way of budgeting and cost-cutting considering the employee turnover rate, dropouts and other factors, but it is definitely something an F&B brand must reconsider before skipping

Sharad Madan, co-founder of Khubani shared that a properly trained staff is the primary fuel behind the success of his brand and can simply not be overlooked if one wants success and is here to stay for long. “Not only has proper training helped us in streamlining our operations but it has also paved a path to our profitability and brand establishment. From staff retention and having their loyalty to delivering our patrons the best experience they deserve; we have always considered it pivotal,” he added. 

Training is a great way to create accountability, ownership and a sense of responsibility amongst all staff. This can reduce an imbalance in work between employees, which can lead to issues between workers. When each employee is adequately trained in his or her responsibilities, they are less likely to rely on others unnecessarily. This can lead to greater respect and peer relations among employees. Cross-training also helps to build a dedicated team of all-rounders, who will be ready to take up any tasks in times of emergency.

Training should be treated like an investment

“Training Employees in the F&B industry is a valuable investment in the health and longevity of the restaurant. Not only is it a sure way to guarantee a good product but also the best way to enhance customer experience. Training enhances employee service and skills, covers quality standards brings a positive attitude and approachability, gives room to work under pressure like busy days, hours and weekends, enhances communication skills and gives much-needed importance to attention to every detail,” Naresh Madan, co-founder of Imperfecto commented. 

Vikrant Batra, co-founder of Cafe Delhi Heights shared that some of the reasons for overlooking this integral training process could be first, a paucity of well-trained staff with no relevant mindset or lack of prior experience. 

“Secondly, the F&B industry is a highly cost-sensitive and low-margin yielding space, therefore making training another high cost to be borne by the business. Lastly, owing to the highest attrition rate, owing to the fierce market competition or the right mindset of employees. These could be the reasons for such training to be missed. The power of excellent training is the investment a restaurant must make as it is directly connected to quality customer experience and success of the brand,” Batra added. 

Factors defined through better training

One of the major factors is staff retention which is a sign of staff respect and value that ensures their loyalty, high turnover rate and low attrition which also boosts profitability. A staff that has in-depth knowledge about the menu helps in upselling and delivering top-notch customer service which retains them, and makes them feel at and home and visit again. A well-trained workforce also helps in maintaining health and safety standards maintaining quality food, cleanliness, health codes and excellent quality. Investing in such training from time to time is the best way to keep up the brand’s name and its relationships with its customers.

A report published in 2019 indicated that 51 percent of restaurant operators said staffing is a top challenge, with another 35 percent admitting that training staff can be challenging. Devoting sufficient resources to devise an effective training method for restaurant staff is important yet many fail to address this concern. While hiring and staff crunch have always been the centre of the debate, training essentials have somehow taken the back seat.

One cannot neglect the fact that the restaurant employees are the point of contact between the company and the customers. There should be no compromises when equipping waiters and restaurant staff with the tools necessary to do their job properly. Understanding the concern relating to the current scenario, the coronavirus pandemic resulted in lockdown pan India. This resulted in the hospitality industry taking a severe hit and NRAI estimated over seven million people who were dependent on the food & beverage industry have already lost their jobs.

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