Incentives

What is the biggest motivator for your crew? 

Do they come into work just to get their hours or tips and leave? Or do they come in because they like what they do and genuinely want to do a good job? Even better, do they come in hoping to truly delight their guests if they're Front of House, or deliver delicious and beautifully presented food to their guests if they're Heart of House. 

In a perfect world, we would only hire the creme de la creme who's primary objective would be to make the day of every person they came in contact with. But even I can't say that I feel that way 100% of the time, try as I might.

So the crew is there to make money? There's no crime in that. But the challenge is then on us. For one, we must foster an environment where good isn't good enough. Challenge the crew to achieve excellence. Inspire them. Show them tough love. Demand results. For two, we must find ways to motivate them. Incentives. Contests. Prizes.

But these two aspects are, without a doubt, mutually exclusive. If you don't foster that environment of excellence, the incentives become a perpetual cycle and the only way you achieve that excellence is during a contest.

Don't let that discourage you from having fun and motivating your crew with a fun activity. Ever. These games are a fun way to break up the monotony. We all get sucked into the everyday routine. The important thing is to communicate the purpose of the contest. "This is the reward, but here is the result - you should already be doing these things. The purpose of this is to reward you for a job well done and have fun while we're doing it. We still expect this level of commitment even after the contest has ended."

So what kind of contests have you seen in the restaurant?

There's the classic sales games - Tic Tac Toe, Bingo, The Perfect Check. 

There's the Guest Satisfaction awards - Name mentioned on a survey wins something good.

There's the Teamwork prizes - Participation in running food or helping others is rewarded.

There's the Just Because days - Potluck dinner or sweets brought in just for fun.

I hope to highlight many of the fun things we're doing to motivate and inspire our crew in other posts on the blog, where I can go into more detail. I'd love to hear your feedback. What was your favorite contest? What gets you excited to come into work? What ideas do you have for motivating and inspiring your crew? Please share.