The Manager’s Office joined The Hospitality Formula Network as the smallest blog. I had tried to avoid discussing issues related to management on tipsfortips. To the extent that I did discuss them the posts were designed to provide greater understanding of how restaurants worked to servers and foodies. After I started the site, I realized […]
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Counting Plates (Part Two)
In part one; we discussed the difficulties faced by managers, servers, and guests resulting from shrinking renewals budgets. I advanced the idea of treating glasses, plates, and tableware as inventory rather than purely as an expense. This allows the cost of these items to be more accurately reflected on your P&L. Breaking a plate is […]
Counting Plates (Part One)
The restaurant industry has its own jargon. It may also have its own language. We have the titles we give positions and then we have the nicknames we use. Every back of the house employee in America has learned to answer to the nickname “ahneeda.” Not familiar with that name? Stop and count how many […]
Watch your cash: Five Scams To Watch For
One of the things I am most excited about with the transition of this blog to a network of blogs is that The Manager’s Office can get a bit more technical. This is a topic I have wanted to write about for a while, but was not comfortable with previously. A blog about increasing tips […]
Hot Schedules Reviewed: Part Two
Hot Schedules is coming. Its rapid growth has it on track to become the dominant scheduling system in restaurants. As a user for several months, I want to provide a frank and unbiased view of the system. These opinions are mine alone and in no way represent the company that I am employed by. They […]
Hot Schedules Reviewed: Part One
A few months ago the restaurant I work at (and who my opinions in no way represent) began using the Hot Schedules program for scheduling. For those of you not familiar with this system, it is a web based system for scheduling employees. It is experiencing incredibly rapid growth and is becoming more commonplace within […]
Set Schedules As A Manager
One of the most time consuming tasks a manager faces during the week is writing the server schedule. Hours can be spent digging up scraps of paper and consulting server availability just to get coverage for a particular shift. This is followed by the inevitable complaints from people who work too little or too much. […]
The Advantages of Set Schedules
Yesterday I discussed the disadvantages of having a set schedule. While I think I managed to make some valid points, it was sort of hollow. The primary reason I am still at my current job is because of my schedule. It took about two and a half years, but I managed to get my ideal […]
The Disadvantages of Set Schedules
Saturday night I spent some time on the patio with one of the newer servers at my restaurant. He is low on seniority, but has spent more years serving than I have. I estimate total the two of us have between three and four decades of serving experience. I am pretty high on seniority at […]
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About The Author
David Hayden was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. He took his first serving job in 1996. Since that time, he has worked for over a dozen different restaurant companies. He has held both hourly and salaried positions at independent and corporate restaurants. He has waited on over 100,000 guests and trained hundreds of servers. He has been named "Best Server in Kansas City" the last three years by the local weekly paper.