Restaurant workers have intensified in recent times as service work in the industry has come to be recognized as important and essential. But recent times have been a challenge. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics this year highlights the growing problem of job vacancies in the hospitality sector, which is currently 250% higher than in the pre-pandemic era. Other job shortfalls across a spectrum of concepts have followed similar trend lines due to various factors, including illness and worker burnout.
This is a complicated set of problems without a silver bullet to address the whole problem. However, this situation helps provide a basis for discussing how restaurant technology can ease the burden on workers and help retain their talent. It shows how investing in new solutions to empower workers is a worthwhile goal, not just for them, but for the entire industry, by putting the tools they need to help them do their best work.
Enabling restaurant workers to become even better at what they do
People want to be good at their jobs. They want to achieve their goals and gain a sense of accomplishment from what they are doing. To do that, they need the right tools. An investment in advanced restaurant POS that provides a dynamic nexus for operations allows workers at each station along the line (order taking, preparation, fulfillment) to focus on their own efficiencies. By doing so, they are less likely to worry about missing or incorrect information down the road.
Retaining the talent of restaurant workers and reinforcing the value of their work means implementing the right technology to ease their load and meet expectations. Investing in integrated platforms that connect the dots for workers promotes greater trust, better work, less waste, and ultimately better returns for the location and brand. Success in meeting these important goals is about making sure efficient work and the person doing it are supported. When people are supported, they are more likely to continue doing what they are doing.
reinforcement not replacement
Streamlining costs is a critical goal in any industry, particularly for restaurants and foodservice that have thin margins. Advanced restaurant point of sale systems help to do that by making processes more intuitive and efficient by automating some of the steps for order placement, resulting in fewer errors and less waste. But implementing solutions and automating processes is not about replacing specialized and qualified work. It’s about empowering it.
Guest-facing, low-touch ways to order via QR code menu access or kiosks mean it’s easier to keep track of the nuances of custom orders. With that in place, teams can focus on faster fulfillment. Guest-driven automated technology integrated with the restaurant POS manages order accuracy while the worker manages increased throughput. This often equates to higher average order sizes and less waste. In the end, everyone is happier. Guests receive exactly what they ordered. It feels great to the worker to participate in making that happen without the stress of managing the entire process from start to finish for each order.
Balance between human talent and technology
The restaurant and food service industry is built on the essential elements of human connection. Food and drink are important aspects of culture, which is why the industry exists. Restaurants are often the place where communities come together, even in times of disruption and perhaps especially then. When guests visit places, restaurant staff provide an environment for that human connection, even if technology has created ways to diversify how guests can get what they want while enjoying that environment.
Recent times have shown how important this is: that restaurants are not just sources of goods and services. They also provide a sense of familiarity and comfort. So another part that advanced restaurant technology plays is enhancing that, making sure functionality is always geared towards human fulfillment. That includes skilled workers who are the face of the guest experience. An investment in the right technology is an investment in valuable employees and their specialized talents. It is no exaggeration to see how all of this is also an investment in the future of the industry itself.
The path to greater resiliency in the restaurant and food service industry
The importance of adaptation has been a key point in the last two years. When planning technology roadmaps to serve an evolving vision of where an organization needs to go, resiliency is a vital principle. So is establishing the right partnerships with experts who understand the challenges facing the industry.