Measuring productivity helps you determine how successfully your restaurant is working and whether you need to introduce changes to benefit your overall output. Read more to find out how you can improve your restaurant's productivity this year.
Why measuring productivity is so important
The benefits of measuring productivity in your restaurant
How to improve productivity and increase revenue
Why measuring productivity is so important
Measuring productivity is the responsibility of every business owner and manager. These results help give you a clear indication if the restaurant is working productively and providing a profit.
How to measure productivity:
To get a productivity value, you have to work out the efficiency of your restaurant's production.
This basic calculation is used by businesses to determine how productive they are.
When you're measuring the productivity of a restaurant, you need to identify your restaurant's expenses, these can be:
- Rent and bills (electric, gas, etc)
- Labour costs
- Ingredients
- Kitchen maintenance
- Cutlery replacement
- Laundry costs (cleaning table sheets, etc)
Look at receipts and invoices to help calculate costs. Work out labour costs by calculating how many hours each of your staff members work every week/month.
Then calculate your output by working out how much your restaurant made. Your output should be higher than your input, as this will show your restaurant is working productively and providing a profit. If your output is lower, then you need to make improvements.
You can have a closer look at how efficiently your restaurant is working by focusing on each input and calculating which areas are providing a greater output.
The benefits of measuring productivity in your restaurant
There are many benefits to measuring productivity but the main two are:
1. You can clearly see how well your restaurant is performing
It can be difficult to easily assess whether a restaurant is surpassing expectations. There are many cases where restaurant owners think their restaurant is working well but fail to realise there is a small drain that is damaging their profit margins.
2. You can determine where improvements can be made
Once you see how productive your restaurant is, you can then focus on how to improve overall productivity. You can see which areas are causing the greatest expense to the business and then put strategies in place to reduce the amount spent or consider another way of increasing revenue.
How to improve productivity and increase revenue
By measuring your productivity, you can then determine which is the best approach to improve your restaurant's production.
Here are some ways you can improve productivity...
Reduce food waste
Check with chefs to find out how much food is thrown away. One of the biggest costs for restaurants is food waste. A lot of food is thrown away even when it's still fresh. Have meetings with your chefs to find out if any particular ingredients are regularly thrown in the bin, if there are any then perhaps you should consider removing some meals from the menu if they're not popular.
Avoid over staffing on quiet days
Some restaurant managers like to ensure they have plenty of staff available on every single lunch and dinner service. However, if you know lunch service on Tuesdays and Thursdays is usually very quiet, there is no need to have lots of waiters in the restaurant. Having too many staff available on quieter days will be costing more than you take and your restaurant won't be running efficiently.
Focus on side orders and desserts
Side orders, drinks and desserts can help bring in a healthy profit to a restaurant. Encourage waiters to invite customers to look at the drinks and desserts menu. Create a relaxing environment for your diners as they will likely stay longer and order more. Did you know playing music can greatly benefit dining experience?
Impress customers by dressing smart for work
When managing a restaurant, you have to be an example for your team. It's important you dress smartly as you will be interacting with customers. Slip-resistant manager shoes are the best choice for active managers.
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