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Efficient and Effective Independent Restaurant Onboarding Practices

While many operators bemoan the current shortage of qualified staff, they set up their businesses for failure by short-changing onboarding. Onboarding is the process of integrating a new employee into an organization. It makes new hires feel welcome, establishes expectations, and helps assure that new employees will be properly trained to perform their jobs.

In a soft restaurant labor market, proper onboarding of new hires is as important as ever.

The competition for talent begins in the recruitment and hiring process, but something independent operators may not realize is that competition continues through the onboarding process. If a new hire encounters a roadblock in onboarding, they may not make it to day one. If they don't feel adequately trained and comfortable with the culture of the business, they could be gone within a week.

Mark Moeller, restaurant consultant and owner of The Recipe of Success, believes that onboarding provides new hires with important clues about the working environment they'll enter. The majority of onboarding tasks are done electronically these days, which creates an opportunity for glitches.

For instance, Moeller says that often there are difficulties getting direct deposits set up. An employee who can't get their direct deposit set up online and hasn't gotten an answer from the hiring manager may rightly wonder about when and how they'll be paid. With so many other options on the table, many decide to bail on the new role. "People have this perception if this system can't work, what else is broken in the restaurant?" he says.

Onboarding can be broken down into four phases. First is pre-onboarding or preboarding, which begins when they accept the offer and continues through to the first day. This is a make-it-or-break-it time for first impressions. A new hire doesn't yet know what to expect. If there's a miscommunication, challenge or problem, the new employee may develop a misconception about the concept that can prove challenging correct.

"I've had several clients who have an issue with people trying to do the onboarding paperwork and can't get it done, so they don't show up for the first day of work," Moeller says. Sometimes, the new hire will call the manager who interviewed them and leave a voicemail. If they don't get a call back to resolve the issue, they'll no-show to their first scheduled shift. "Without that personal touch setting a connection right from the beginning, we're going to have issues moving forward," Moeller says, explaining what the new hires are likely thinking.

Moeller has plenty of experience helping his clients troubleshoot issues like first-day no-shows. Typically, an operator will approach him, confused about why a new hire decided not to show up. He'll dig deeper by asking questions and eventually discover that the employee made an attempt at clarification, for instance, by calling the manager, but the phone call went unreturned.

"It's all about open communication. You make people feel valued," Moeller says. Not communicating with new hires during the onboarding process demonstrates a lack of caring and value. Onboarding often tends to be an afterthought for busy operators. When it's considered, it tends to be from the perspective of training a new employee in the workplace culture, policies and duties of the role for which they've been hired.

Given the shortage of available labor, a better way to go about onboarding might be to consider the ways to optimize it for your concept and those candidates you've decided to hire. Onboarding that is efficient and effective can not only set a new hire up for success within your concept, it can reduce turnover and increase employee satisfaction.

There are ways to keep communication open and build that sense of trust and value within the process. Doing so makes the onboarding process more effective because employees who arrive on their first day with positive feelings about the concept and their new manager will be more likely to commit to their role. Over time, this means a more committed and cohesive staff and less turnover.

"What people miss is the period between when somebody says yes and the day they start," says Lissa Bowen, chief people and culture officer at Full Course restaurant and development group. Like Moeller, she's encountered many incidents of new hires not showing up to the first day of work. "To me, that presents an opportunity to solve something." For example, someone can test the paperwork submission process to make sure that it's easy to send everything online and create a one-page walkthrough that's emailed to new hires.

Effective Onboarding Begins During Recruitment

Effective onboarding begins during recruitment, says Bowen, who estimates that 20 to 25 percent of restaurant employees leave during their first week. At present, she says, 16 percent of all employees leave in their first week. To reduce these numbers, "we have to approach how we hire people and bring them in in a different way."

To Bowen, this means being transparent throughout the recruitment process. When a job posting clearly communicates the salary, schedule and hours, the right people will apply. "Those are basic things somebody should know by reading the job description," says Bowen, yet all too often this information is left off a job ad.

Since job candidates have choices these days, recruiting isn't just about screening the candidate for the role, it's about selling the concept to the candidate. "If you don't have hiring managers that understand they have to make the job attractive during the interview process, they're missing that opportunity," says Bowen.

Noting the large percentage of restaurant employees that left the industry in the wake of the pandemic, Bowen thinks the same strategy applies to wooing back talented labor. "Many people who left the industry said they would come back if things were different," she says. Operators can actually learn from the feedback, implement changes, and win back some of the skilled talent that left the industry.

Bowen names career paths as one example of where operators can create change. Even if employees don't envision staying in the restaurant career forever, they want to be able to grow with a role, and a career path isn't always transparent. Bowen names other things employees who left the industry want, none of which should surprise regular readers: "Paid time off and benefits, good culture, and to be respected by their managers."

The Four Phases of Onboarding

Onboarding can be broken down into four phases. First is pre-onboarding or preboarding, which begins when they accept the offer and continues through to the first day. This is a make-it-or-break-it time for first impressions. A new hire doesn't yet know what to expect. If there's a miscommunication, challenge or problem, the new employee may develop a misconception about the concept that can prove challenging to correct.

Bowen thinks it's natural that most onboarding is done online. Over the last three years, the percentage of restaurant workers ages 16-19 has grown while those in other age ranges has shrunk. Generational shifts mean a majority of restaurant employees expect communication to be digital-first. "Knowing your audience is a big part of retention and keeping somebody engaged," she says.

While Bowen may recommend digital-first, she strongly encourages operators to balance technology with a personal touch. "Wouldn't it be cool if you could get a picture with a text of the person who was going to be training you, or your uniform and cool swag with a note that says we're excited about you coming to orientation on Monday? What if you had your schedule before you started?" she muses, listing off "super simple" ways to make a new hire feel welcomed before they arrive on day one.

Picking up the example of a direct deposit form, one simple touchpoint at this stage of the process is to make sure a new hire has been able to complete all of the required paperwork with no difficulty. Another is to follow up on voicemails, text messages, or emails received before their first shift to reduce the likelihood of no-shows. To go above and beyond with that sense of connection, consider sending a welcome email or video that lets them know what to expect and officially welcomes them to the team.

Bowen says managers will pull someone out of training early to meet an urgent staffing need. She encourages managers "to have that courage" to stick with training, because it has a long-range benefit for the organization.

The next phase is orientation and welcome, which translates to roughly the first week on the job. The first day is the time when a new hire is the most excited about a job, Bowen points out. "People are nervous, but it's a good nervousness because they know they're going to learn something new. I think we miss that opportunity to really engage with people when they're at their most enthusiastic, so we can continue to have that level of enthusiasm because they feel like they're connected to something that's bigger than them," she says.

Bowen recalls the first-day routine at a restaurant corporate office where she worked: when a new employee got off the elevator, everybody was clapping. Most people loved the warm reception, she says. In contrast, Bowen mentions what many industry employees find on their first day: they arrive at the front door and it's locked. No one is expecting them. They go around the back and have to ask around to find out the manager.

Bowen imagines what it might look like to warmly welcome a new hire to a concept. Maybe they're given a tour and introduced to everybody. Maybe the manager gives a personal welcome and asks get-to-know-you questions. Maybe they're offered the chance to taste menu items at a pre-shift.

Bowen believes that many operators miss the chance to make day one engaging because they're busy. However, "if you don't take the time to properly onboard and engage, you are always going to be short staffed," she warns. In the first week, it's important to get new hires started on the right foot while reinforcing that sense of welcome that began in preboarding. In Moeller's experience, orientation is often an afterthought, to the detriment of morale.

"If the orientation is overlooked, that means the employee handbook is overlooked. The handbook is critical to orientation as well as setting the tone for the employee's future with the company because it tells you all the things you can do and can't do," Moeller says.

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For example, Moeller says it's hard to tell whether a new hire has read the employee handbook. Even if they skimmed it, "there is no reinforcement on what is really critical." A new hire might show up to work wearing jewelry, even though the handbook prohibits this. If the manager lets it fly, veteran employees may become frustrated that the rules are not evenly enforced.

"It leads to turnover and disciplinary issues because you have to give verbal warnings and written warnings," Moeller continues. In a worst-case scenario, there may be legal consequences when handbook information on things like bullying or harassment weren't conveyed and down the road, there's occasion for a complaint.

Orientation isn't just an opportunity to show the new hire how it's done, it connects to workplace culture and cohesion. When this phase of onboarding is done with care, there are positive benefits for everything from morale to employee productivity.

Touch points to focus on here include an orientation that reflects the values and organizational culture of a concept, discussion of the workplace policies that most impact their role, such as attendance and time off, and as- signing a trainer who'll get them up to speed on the role. It may also make sense to assign a workplace buddy. This is a less formal relationship than the trainer-trainee, and can provide the new employee with a friendly face who can answer questions or point them in the right direction.

Role Play

Role-specific training is the third phase of onboarding. If a new hire isn't trained well from the get-go, they may not understand what it ultimately takes to be successful in the role. They may not do things the 'right' way because they were never shown how, or their training needed reinforcement that got overlooked due to high volume. Over time, weak training creates inconsistencies that impact the customer experience and the sense of togetherness that creates a strong team.

"Everybody should have a structured training process for each position," Bowen says when asked for recommendations on efficient onboarding systems. Operators will know how long it takes to learn the roles, so they can standardize a program. Role-specific checklists can help by creating a repeatable template that all trainers can use when showing a new employee the ropes.

From there, it comes down to selecting strong trainers, who tend to be those who love teaching and sharing information, even if they're not the best within their role. Bowen recommends providing trainers with a communication platform, be it a sit-down meeting with the general manager or a trainer's log where they can talk about what the new hire still needs to learn and what they've got down.

These days, concepts may be using digital learning (or "eLearning") to demonstrate techniques. While video content is great for creating consistency – everyone watching the video learns the same technique in the same way, reducing error – it's still important to have that human touch. "At the end of the first week, check in with how training went and where we can do better," suggests Moeller. Check-ins are an opportunity to find out how effective training is and adjust as necessary, not a time to reprimand a new hire who isn't yet up to speed.

Moeller encourages operators to make the check-in "all about them and less about us," and says that do- ing so reveals opportunities to reinforce things that may have been missed during the initial training. "It's about us learning about our own processes and making sure the employee is happy and learning the way they should be learning," he emphasizes.

Bowen says managers will pull someone out of training early to meet an urgent staffing need. She encourages managers "to have that courage" to stick with training, because it has a long-range benefit for the organization.

Moeller thinks that many operators have gotten away from formal touch points in the hiring process, such as a 30, 60, or 90-day review. He encourages these short meetings on a weekly basis during a new hire's first month on the job. Even a five-minute meeting is an opportunity to "let people know we care and we are invested in their growth and their evolution within the company," he says. With a younger employee demographic, Bowen suggests it may make sense to use text message surveys for 30, 60, and 90-day check-ins.

The final phase of onboarding is a successful transition into this role. At this point, an employee should be able to work independently following a concept's protocol. They should understand expectations for productivity, behavior and role-specific tasks.

Bowen says the hard costs of losing an hourly employee are around $1,500, including uniform, training hours, and recruiting. She encourages operators also to "think about the soft costs: the mistakes they make that alienate other employees and alienate your guests. Soft costs are incalculable as far as morale, losing a great guest, or losing the repeat guest that didn't have a good experience."

With a better onboarding experience, you can avoid negative outcomes like this. You'll retain more staff and need to hire less often. Bowen suggests that a more efficient and effective restaurant onboarding process can also have a far larger impact.

A Moral Obligation

According to the National Restaurant Association, one in three Americans have their first job at a restaurant. Half of all Americans say they've worked in the restaurant industry at some point. Given these figures, the impact of a poor onboarding experience in a restaurant job can stay with an employee throughout their career, even if they never take another job in restaurants.

"We have a moral obligation to teach our managers how to train people," Bowen says. When onboarding at your restaurant is a positive and welcoming experience, you can help make an employee's first impression of work a positive one.

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TYING IT ALL TOGETHER WITH THE 'FOUR CS'

Training professionals typically organize onboarding content into four categories, and each start with a C, so we can refer to these are the Four Cs- of onboarding.

Clarification refers to ensuring employees understand their new role in the restaurant, and to understand their job duties and responsibility. Often, this comes from a job description, and the job description is a perfect place to start. For example, consider the duty to arrive on time for a shift. What does it mean to arrive on time for a shift? Without clear expectations, if you asked five employees, you might provide five different answers. Clarification means making sure that you and the new employee have a shared understanding of the responsibilities and expectations of the employee.
So, in the case of arriving on time, the employee needs to understand that arriving on time for a shift is one of their responsibilities and that it means they are ready to work, when the shift begins, in the proper attire, and with nothing more than what is needed to perform the job and clock in.

Compliance refers to teaching new employees about the basic legal and policy-related rules and regulations. The most basic onboarding programs address compliance. This includes rules and policies regarding harassment in the workplace, discipline policies, tip reporting, serving alcohol, sanitation and so on. If it's a policy of the restaurant, you want to take the time to train the employee on the onboarding process.

Culture is a broad category that includes providing employees with a sense of restaurant norms, both formal and informal, spoken and unspoken. Does the employee feel like a valued member of the team from day one? Are they met with hospitality or hostility from managers and staff? If you assign a manager to onboard a new employee and that manager is swamped with other assignments, he or she might view their onboarding tasks as a hurdle. If they view onboarding as a necessary evil in their day, the new employee might sense that hostility. That could have a chilling effect on the employee's experience, not just for the day, but for their career at your restaurant.
Ask yourself if your new hire might feel as though the restaurant is investing in them. Do they feel that they are prepared to succeed, or set-up to fail? Culture is communicated in everything you, and other managers and staff, do and say about everything.
Your culture is also communicated by the preparedness and professionalism of your recruiting, hiring, and training systems. Culture is a vital part of what an onboarding program trains, even if it's unspoken.

Connection refers to professional relationships that new employees must establish. This includes learning who does what, and who knows what, in the restaurant. It refers to understanding the responsibilities and roles of the entire restaurant team.
Helping new hires foster relationships with fellow staff also supports the ongoing learning that is vital to the success of new employees. Knowing who to ask and establishing a sense of psychological safety is an important part of the onboarding process.
Psychological safety refers to feeling able to take interpersonal risks. Simply put, it means feeling as though you can ask questions without being ridiculed or made fun of.
Psychological safety means feeling accepted and respected. It's a critical element of high-functioning teams, and it is especially critical for new team members or new employees.
Because restaurants are in the business of hospitality and creating guest experiences, they have an advantage. A new employee, like a new guest, is driven by first impressions. Both have only one first experience and the restaurant must make it special.