Once lit, the
fuse leads to the firecracker and the firecracker does what firecrackers do!
Looking forward to eating out is one of the pleasures
of life. My parents didn’t take my brother and I out to eat until I was
fourteen and my brother was 12 years old. It was Mother’s Day, and we dined at
the small cafe located in a drugstore in our hometown. I believe the total cost
was less than $7.00 for the four of us.
Lately, looking forward to dining out can be better
than the experience itself. Sometimes the employees can ruin the evening out.
The single dumbest thing employees can do, is to
grumble about their company, boss, another employee, or their job in the
presence of customers. Why do they hang their dirty laundry out for the
customers to see and hear?
For the second time this week (today is Wednesday) I witnessed
disgruntled employees bad mouthing their boss in front of patrons. “I don’t
care if she is my boss….”, “He doesn’t have a clue to what is going on.” “She
needs to shut up and do some of the work herself.” “I’m not getting paid to do
his job.”
Upon hearing this type of negative comments from
disgruntle employees, my meal did not taste as good as it should have. I’m not
ordering a dessert and forget the second cup of coffee. I want out; out of
range of these disgruntled employees.
Sometimes the employee’s comments aren't as appalling
as those listed above but still leave a bad taste in a customer's mouth. As an
example, I recently ask a waitress if the restaurant had wi-fi. The waitress
said, “Yes, but the strength of our signal is so weak that most of the time you
can’t connect.
Why would a company have a service (free wi-fi) but
choose an inferior service provider? Better not to have the “service” than let
the poor wifi service cast a shadow on the meal. Is it also second best?
So, if you own or manage a business, today or tomorrow
would be an excellent time to seize an employee training moment. Gather your
group (calling them a team may be incorrect) and ask for their input on how YOU
can improve their job. Listen to their comments; don’t interrupt. Let them
vent. You may learn that you are part of the problem. Your goal is to discover
the actual problem and get agreement on ways to solve it.
The goal of the employee is to ensure the customer has
an excellent experience. Lead by example.
Get a name tag that says, You Are My Employer! Require your employees to
wear it proudly. After all, the customer writes their pay check.
After thinking about it, I believe I will have dessert
and add a little extra to my tip for MY employee.
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