Foodservice Updates

Foodservice Updates is designed to help foodservice operators keep on top of all the industry news and provides tips for keeping business running smooth. We endeavor to provide the latest tips and solutions to keep you in the know.

Adjust your approach to hiring

While the leisure and hospitality sector added 67,000 jobs in the latest report from the Labor Department, indicating the ongoing rebound of the sector, the demand for restaurant food is continuing to stretch labor. In other words, it’s more important than ever for the people restaurants do successfully hire to stick around. Have you adapted your recruitment and retainment approaches to fit the current candidate’s market? Focus on finding the right fit from the start. In a recent report from QSR Magazine, the head of client success at Harver, a recruitment partner for McDonald’s and Chili’s, shared that it helps to identify the key skills you need from a person by giving them situational judgment tests. These include a series of scenarios that relate to the role and ask a candidate how they would respond. Much like considering the experience of a guest, streamline the application process and remove obstacles that could get in the way of their understanding the role accurately. Be crystal clear about the requirements of a job by avoiding jargon and providing examples of the kinds of situations a team member is likely to have to manage on the job. Think about your business as a launching pad for hires – what opportunities do you offer to help people develop new skills that help them progress in your business or can transfer to other industries? Where are there opportunities for you to offer flexibility? Finally, while your perks and benefits may get a person in the door, they won’t earn their loyalty if there isn’t a strong workplace culture in place. Focus on building and sustaining a close, supportive team.

Don’t leave loyalty-building opportunities on the table

As inflation continues to weigh on the economy and consumers’ level of comfort in making discretionary purchases, there is that much more pressure on restaurant operators to make the experience of restaurant meals worth the expense. But doing so doesn’t have to be about expending significant additional effort. It can be about using your technology to drive an easier, more engaging, more personalized experience with your brand – one that will tip the scales in your favor when a guest is wavering about whether and where to order a meal. Your loyalty program is a key tool in this effort, but operators shouldn’t simply lean on a cookie-cutter program – particularly at a time when it’s increasingly common for tech stacks to integrate plug-and-play options to help operators gain a competitive advantage through building loyalty. Looking at the information you have collected about your customer base, what offers drive them to purchase repeatedly from you? As a recent report from Pymnts.com indicated, brands are currently looking to differentiate themselves with such features as in-app concerts, gamified rewards, and meal subscription services that allow users to earn back money with each purchase. Others are partnering with complementary brands to build engagement and ramp up the potential rewards on offer. To maximize your opportunities for continuously capturing the interest of loyal guests, ensure that at every step of a transaction, you’re weaving in your business brand language, making sure users’ experience is consistent regardless of how they are ordering from you, and that you’re collecting data that helps you monitor guest responses and making adjustments based on what you’re learning.

How to Maximize Your Menu with Less

If you feel like you need another set of hands in your kitchen, not only are you not alone, but Tyson Foodservice has a variety of ways to give them to you. With a full portfolio of ready-made products that exist to help streamline your menu and make back-of-house life a little easier, you can consider us your own personal prep squad.

From fully customizable to ready to heat and serve, our ingredient chicken and steak products deliver labor and time savings, better yield, and less waste. Additionally, these products are incredibly versatile for usage in applications across the board—from popular favorites to trendy flavor profiles. Click to see how easily these come to life in simple, and incredibly tasty, recipes.

How to Maximize Your Menu with Less