Restaurant Managers complain when employees became difficult when the probation period ends. This is a costly problem in the Restaurant and Hospitality Industry.

How does this happen? These solutions will help make managers aware the signs of failure, many which start before the probation period ended.

Hire For Fit First, Skill Second

Hiring a sous chef is comfortable around a professionally designed restaurant is important. But hiring a lone wolf who refuses to cooperate with other staff, or respond to coaching, can sour the team. Leadership IQ of Washington DC reports that 26% of new hires fail because they can’t accept feedback. Being able to listen and change behaviour is a key employability skill.

When skill and experience are taken into account, only 11% of new hires are excused because they lack the necessary technical skills.

Understand The Team

Quantify what makes it work. There are several ways to do this:

1. Regular Group Discussions
2. Personality Tests
3. Aptitude Tests
4. Analyse Your Restaurant’s Organizational Behaviour
5. Pay Close Attention to the hire’s history
6. Create a specific, well defined, job outline – Eliminate ‘group/vague’ jobs.
7. Include controversial aspects in the hire process to measure the new hire’s skills: problem solving, stress management, time management, team working, and communication styles.

Interactive Interview Process

Hire an HR firm to develop interview questions designed to your restaurant and team dynamics.

Work with an HR Consultant to learn behavioural interviewing techniques.

They will teach you some of the most common mistakes:

1. Listen to the candidate carefully during the interview. Many managers spend more time talking, not listening.
2. Include staff in the interview process, make sure they learn how to conduct an interview.
3. Carefully record the candidate’s responses. Give the candidate time to ask questions about your restaurant’s culture, procedures, team members and how you define success.

Open Communication

Stay in regular contact with a new employee. Ask how things are going. Offer support. Make transparency a part of the restaurant’s culture.

Talk to all employees to collect feedback on how the new hire is fitting in, and the team’s feelings. Many fit problems can be solved by clearing up misunderstandings early in the game.

Many conflicts and ‘toxic communication’ can be disarmed merely by listening to people talk. Many situations lose their impact when they say the words out loud.

Move Quickly With A Bad Hire

Watch your new employees for revealing clues that they are heading for trouble:

1. New hires don’t get along with your staff or your customers.
2. They make unreasonable demands.
3. They can’t do the job. Object to certain tasks.
4. They act bored
5. Their conversation is always ‘off the job’
6. They have no long term goals in their lives
7. They complain about other members of the team
8. They gossip or bad mouth people , including those in their private life (Toxic Communication)
9. They have a ‘better way’ to do a task, or they complain that the current methods are delaying them, causing problems, etc. Have the attitude that if people listened to them, then things would improve.
10. They are comfortable with the restaurant design and restaurant equipment. They feel at home, are not awkward.

Retaining these employees can sour the morale of your team. Don’t procrastinate. Terminating an employee after they complete their probationary period is costly and negatively affects the rest of the staff.

New hire turnover rates cost money, sometimes as much as 30% to 150% of the departing employee’s salary. Following these tips will ensure your restaurant operations continue to run smoothly and new employees are integrated into your team and the fundamental aspects of your restaurant design and equipment’s environment\atmosphere.

Author Bio: Alyson N. shares her Human Resources experience online. She writes on Restaurant Management and human resources on several sites, including: denverrestaurantequipment.com

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