Why the struggle

Many things can cause a rift between your FOH and BOH staff.

When a customer complains, someone’s to blame and employees begin to point fingers. This is especially the case during your rush when etiquette and/or procedures seem to be thrown out the window. This causes mistakes, service bottlenecks, long ticket times, unsafe conditions, and overall dissent from those trying to do the right thing. No matter what, it’s a breakdown in your restaurant’s teamwork that causes a trickle-down effect: if the customer is unhappy the staff will be, too.

(Service Staff pre-operation briefing Photo taken by the instructor)

Sometimes, especially with newer team members, people are simply not aware of the troubles they’re burdening the other departments with. Servers who don’t break down their dishes when delivering to the dish pit cause the Plongeur unwanted (and nasty) extra work. Line cooks, expos, or sous chefs who send out unfinished, unattractive, or wrong plates cause servers an undue earful and embarrassment.

Because of the perceived separation and lack of communication, team members may not even be aware they’re causing a problem until it’s too late.

Why teamwork between departments is important

Two words: Customer Service.

In a restaurant, bar or hotel, no matter the concept or price-point, the one thing that sets you apart from the others will be your quality of service. If every cylinder of your business is not firing on point at all times, the guest will notice…and they won’t hesitate to let you (and the world) know.

If your team is humming along like a well-oiled machine, you may not always hear about it, but you’ll certainly notice your growing bank account.

How to promote teamwork between FOH and BOH

First, don’t make a distinction between the two at all. Tear down that figurative (or literal) wall between the kitchen and dining area by educating your staff on the flow of a customer’s order. From the moment a customer sets foot in the establishment every single employee affects that customer’s experience, whether directly or indirectly.

Regarding training, an extremely beneficial tactic is to cross-train your employees in the FOH and BOH. After working a week in the dish pit, servers will never forget to break down their dirty plates again. And kitchen staff will get to see first hand how their efforts in the back are received by guests, whether positively or negatively. No chef likes to face an unhappy guest or hear a bad review of their dish, all while having to keep their composure. One week of that and the kitchen team will empathize with the FOH.

Source: https://sirvo.com/management/importance-of-teamwork-restaurant-industry/ retrieved April 19, 2021