How to Build a Loyal Restaurant Crew

When you can successfully foster employee loyalty, it becomes the gift that just keeps on giving. Turnover lessens, employee happiness skyrockets, and you finally get out of the recruiting and onboarding frenzy.

Unfortunately, many restaurant operators are facing an uphill battle. According to a 2019 workplace survey by staffing and recruiting firm, Addison Group, 80 percent of respondents said they would be likely or very likely to begin job searching after just one bad day at work — all this despite 72 percent of those same respondents being happy in their current roles.
But loyalty can be the tether that keeps employees grounded during those inevitable rough patches. Here's how to build your own loyal restaurant crew.

Become a dream creator.

Coming together around hope for a greater future can be an amazing catalyst for deepened connection and loyalty. Your team needs to be able to envision a future for themselves within the framework of the restaurant. If they can't envision it, then you need to help them see the possibilities available to them and craft the path to get them there.

• Help employees establish short- and long-term goals.
• Regularly discuss advancement opportunities with the team.
• Target funds and resources for career path and succession planning.
• Invest in your people by offering personal and professional development training, mentorship and leadership programs, and tuition reimbursement options.
• Encourage employees to share their successes — everything from enrolling in college to paying off their car loan to earning a supervisory role — and celebrate with them.
• Tap into technology. Play excerpts from TEDx talks during meetings and share interesting articles, book reviews, and podcasts to inspire and motivate your crew.

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Carrie Luxem

Restaurant HR Group