Annual and even quarterly Employee reviews are common in a lot of industries, and a staple in large enterprise. I find it surprising when I hear of customers running bars, restaurants and coffee shops not adopting this process; as there is a lot to be gained from it.
You would be surprised the effect a simple catch-up chat can have on your workforce and your business. Let’s look at what you and your employees can gain from it:
1. Reduces churn-rate
Churn rate is high in hospitality, this is a fact. The workforce tends to be young, part-time, students, or temporary staff; infact Half of the European workforce is this industry are under 35, so this results in a lot of professional movement – naturally.
If you meet with your staff and review their experiences in the business, this makes the employee feel valued, and that their opinion is recognised and valued. Almost 50% of workers said that a lack of recognition was a main contributing factor for them handing in their notice and moving on – probably to somewhere that will appreciate them more!
Employee churn is a knowledge-drain. According to The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the restaurant employee turnover rate in 2016 surpassed a whopping 70%. That means for every 10 employees, seven will leave by the end of the year. Re-training staff slows down the flow of the business and overall productivity takes a big hit. And often this involves a domino effect. Everyone’s favourite barista leaves, the rest of the team might start considering it too.
2. Employee satisfaction grows
When someone asks for your feedback, your opinion, and generally how you are doing – it feels good. When your boss does it, it feels even better. Recognition is a huge contributing factor to employee satisfaction, and engagement.
A satisfied employee takes pride in their job, and their workplace. This increases your brand without even knowing it. Your employee has a good opinion of where they work, adding an appeal to your establishment. Would you rather get a coffee in a café where the baristas hate the place? And are living to leave? Or somewhere where the wait-staff has a joke, a smile, and isn’t googling other job openings elsewhere.
Just think.. Naturally, your employees are going to talk about their job, and place of work. What would you want them to say about it? And about you?
3. Productivity increases
How will these meetings increase productivity? Well, that is up to you. Try goal-setting, and discuss career progression with your team. If they have something to aim for, they have something to work towards. Otherwise they may find themselves getting into a rut, working day by day without direction or focus.
Review goals and incentivise, and watch how much it strengthens the team.
4. You will learn something
A discussion/feedback session with your employees will open your eyes to issues on the ground level that you may not have been aware of. You will gain a critical, qualitative insight. Additionally, lending your ear like this builds trust, comfort and rapport with your team.
5. It will save you money.
Look at the above notes and what we have discussed so far; lower churn rates, increased staff productivity, better customer engagement, knowledge of frontline business issues.
These all contribute to your bottom line, and my favourite part of all this is that these annual/bi-annual/quarterly reviews cost nothing – a chat is free. So lend your ear, be prepared for feedback, and build on it with your workforce.
Cheeky plug time – Bizimply notifies managers and admins when a staff member has been in the business for 6 months, and their 1 year anniversary. You can log these reviews on their employee profile, and take note of the goals you are setting (so you can refer back to it for your next review.) Log your notes, upload any relevant documents, and even complete trainings with Bizimply’s HR modules.
Happy reviewing!
