The restaurant business is an engaging and fulfilling venture, and with the right approach, lucrative, too. Though it is especially rewarding for those with a passion for food, even the most successful restaurateurs will tell you there are no guarantees in this industry. Good management is the foundation for any enterprise, and running a fast-food restaurant is no exception. If you’re planning to get into the business, you’re in the right place. We’ve put together a guide with all the information you need to get started.
Fast Food Restaurant Management Tips
Like with other businesses, a fast food manager is responsible for the overall operations of the eatery. Similarly, good management principles on how to become a manager at a fast food restaurant are drawn from general business management practices that include:
Effective Management of Finances
The restaurant business has a comparatively low-profit margin to other industries, meaning there is almost no room for error. Running a fast food restaurant that is efficient should involve constantly monitoring of cash flow, having a budget, and keeping money aside for unforeseen circumstances. A good manager should also continually explore new ways to expand sales and cut costs.
Improvement and Innovation
Running a good business should not be your standard—set the bar higher! Every manager should strive to be the number one fast food business in the area. This is done by constantly exploring ways to keep the business up to date, nimble, and future-proof. This involves staying abreast of dining trends, economic trends, competitor activities, and more.
Managing Staff
Good staff leadership includes setting high performance standards, clear expectations, and accountability among the restaurant employees. You should also keep everyone motivated and focused.
Customer Prioritization
Customer service and satisfaction should be the end goal for every restaurant. Establish a culture of not only collecting but also acting on customer feedback.
Plan Ahead
Good inventory planning involves more than just making sure the kitchen is fully stocked. It should also include back-up strategies for the unexpected such as having backup suppliers and extra inventory for busy days. A successful fast casual restaurant manager has a thorough knowledge of the business and department processes, allowing them to make effective day-to-day decisions.
Restaurant Chain Management
The management levels in a restaurant typically involve:
General Manager
The big boss. A general manager (GM) is responsible for the restaurant’s business decisions. They are also responsible for the overall operations of one or more restaurants in the chain. Established fast food chains usually have one GM per location.
Assistant Manager
A restaurant could have one or more assistant managers. The assistant manager's job essentially is to make the general manager's job easier. They should also be ready to fill any role at any time.
Kitchen Manager
This role is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the kitchen. He oversees the ordering of food, manages food costs, oversees food preparation, and hires kitchen staff.
Floor Manager
Also known as the dining room manager or the front of the house (FOH) manager. These managers oversee the FOH service staff to ensure smooth operations and good customer service. There are different variations to the above management styles, and running a fast food restaurant involves finding a style that works best for your business.
How Make Successful Hires
Your staff can make or break your restaurant, thus you should make sure you hire good employees. The first step is to consider all the roles that you will need to hire within your fast food restaurant. From there, you can develop a comprehensive job description that outlines the role, as well as guides you on the experience for which you are hiring.Your job description should explicitly detail the job’s duties and responsibilities, as well as any special skills and credentials required. Typically, only management positions require experience in the fast food industry. Other roles, such as waitstaff, are entry-level. The next step is to establish a pay scale. A quick online search will provide the industry average for the positions, but keep in mind that better qualified and more experienced workers come at a higher rate. Offering better-than-average pay will also get you higher-caliber staff. Once you have everything outlined, post the job to relevant job boards. It’s likely many are searching for how to get a fast food job quick, so attracting interest should not be a problem.
Technology for Quicker Service
As a restaurant owner, one of the best things you can do is invest in technology. Making your fast food business more efficient and saving costs is one of your top priorities. Innovating helps you achieve that and more. Tools such as point of sale (POS) equipment can streamline your business activities. They do this by automating otherwise labor-intensive processes such as processing transactions and tracking inventory, in addition to managing staff members and providing analytics. In addition to a POS system, other software and hardware innovations that a restaurant can take advantage of includes our payment devices, kitchen display systems, and more. With these tools, your staff will have time for what’s important, such as focusing on how to be a better assistant manager, for instance.
How Do Fast Food Restaurants Make Money?
A restaurant business makes money by selling food and drinks to customers, but it is not as straightforward as that. To “make money” is to make a profit, which means start-up and ongoing costs should be less than the total sales. Start-up and ongoing costs include:
Deposit and rent for the premises
Set up and renovation costs
Cooking equipment
Food
Insurance
Marketing
When setting up the menu and pricing, a fast food restaurant owner should consider the above costs.
Start Running a Fast Food Restaurant
With this guide, you have a clearer path to running a fast food restaurant. Starting a restaurant can be intimidating, but with the right team and tools, like our restaurant POS system, you’ll be set for success. Revel Systems understands the unique needs of the fast food business and have built our software to greatly simplify management tasks and trim costs. Contact us to learn more about our services and how we can help your business thrive.
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