When you are scheduling multiple shifts, it is important to have efficient restaurant scheduler software for several salient reasons. In the first place, your employees are one of the biggest expenses you likely have, so having too many of them in a single shift is a waste of money. If you have an extra employee looking for something to do, that is like having two cars and driving one while you leave the other one idling in your driveway all day as it burns up gasoline. On the other hand, being understaffed on a shift is like only having one car that is low on gas. You may have to get out and walk, i.e. do the work yourself, before you get to the end of the day.
Being appropriately staffed for the busy times and slow times in the restaurant business means knowing when the slow times are generally and when the busy times are as well. Your employees need to be prepared to serve customers in the food industry in a reasonable amount of time and with an appropriate vigor, friendliness and high quality customer service. Busy, hassled workers often get worn down and even slowly the faster they try to multitask, and service can degrade quickly. Some potential customers may not even come into an establishment if it appears to be too busy, or if there is a wait time that seems lengthy. And customers who feel like the service is lousy will tell their friends; they may even post it on Facebook. Negative advertising via word of mouth can signal disaster for a fledgling restaurant.
Using a restaurant scheduler online can make a manager’s job much easier by providing the means to schedule more people for times when business is predicted to be more busy, and less for shifts that are usually slower, given the time of day as well as the time of year. You can also schedule certain employees for back-up (with their permission) should someone call in sick or you find you are unexpectedly understaffed, and employees can be prepared for that occasional eventuality.
Keeping a complex schedule that is efficient is fairly easy using a restaurant scheduler program online. Using a variety of variables, you can task to fit specific criteria without having to manipulate date on your own, and see results in seconds. Scheduling according to employee needs, and making changes becomes easy as well, and messaging employees about changes in the schedule is as easy as sending an email or text message, as well as allowing employees to access the schedule online from home.
