Moriarty

If any of you watched the RD Jr as Sherlock Holmes, you probably remember the diorama in "Game of Shadows". Making connections to what would seem like unrelated occurrences only to discover how large the web really was. And at the center, Moriarty. 

I started this blog to discuss my isms of restaurant management. It has sat idol for the last few months as I started to embark on a new idea 2 terms for all elected officials. I wrote exclusively, albeit badly, in the other blog. The problem being, I have too many thoughts bouncing around and the ideas, opinions really, just need to be voiced somehow.  So here you are reading more drivel that I have thrown together without so much as doing any research.  For this, I thank you. 

How I would like to use this blog is a bit different. What I post here will actually explain the title. If you ever listen to SaltyTalkRadio, you'll know that I make some crazy leaps and connections when I can join in long enough. A good example was Friday's show and we spoke about Radon in a 3rd floor condo in Venice Florida. My far reaching point was that only a year ago, a Mosaic gypsum stack had a sinkhole and radioactive water leaked into the aquifer not far from Venice and could've conceivably caused the radioactive reaction in this condo that should've been safe at the time of building it. Not a big leap but a leap just the same.

But Moriarty? What I'd like to do is this: as I see different stories and headlines that I feel are connected in some way, put them in the blog and try to make a connection. This is not to prove or disprove a conspiracy theory but after a few short posts, you'll get a feel for where going.

Let's look at the last couple days...

I found this story interesting about the vibration wave sent out from the coast of Africa. When the story made headlines, it was a curious item but not connected to anything in my mind.

http://www.azeritimes.com/science/a-low-rumble-off-the-coast-of-africa-was-felt-right-around-the-earth-and-no-one-knows-what-it-means-insider/

But then this story popped up about mass strandings of pilot whales in NewZealand. The bell ringing made it all the way to Hawaii the experts say.

https://www.npr.org/2018/11/30/672263152/dozens-of-pilot-whales-die-in-new-zealands-3rd-mass-stranding-in-a-week

But what if the vibrations went farther? Maybe as far as Alaska 

https://www.cbsnews.com/live-news/earthquakes-in-alaska-today-anchorage-cook-inlet-wasilla-usgs-today-2018-11-30-live-updates/

It's not that big of leap, at least not to me. 3 different stories or events that could very well be connected.  This is how my brain works. Join me in connecting the dots and who knows where it might lead. Maybe we'll find Moriarty. 

Bedtime

I knew this post was coming. I felt it for the last couple months. I have shared all the "isms" that make me, well, me. I don't want to do a play by play as I fix this last one. I want you to envision Shane riding off in the sunset, not knowing if he actually rides on or as some theorize,  his end comes at sunset.
I don't know if I will wake after my bedtime and have "cookies and milk" or a late night snack, that depends on how well I sleep.
I do know that I've given you as much as I can as to what I feel is important in the restaurant industry and I hope a small piece of me lingers in your mind as to how we should view our jobs and treat our employees.
A quick thanks to the 1000s that have read this blog from dozens of countries(which I never understood). If questions need answered, as with my staff, the door is always open.
I won't stop blogging but the future will have a different topic.
My goal when I started this was to change the way we do business. My new goal is to change the world. Stick around, it might be fun.
Thanks,
Andy

Exodus

We opened this restaurant on June 5th. I think the phone call from my former employer came the day after. I don't normally kiss and tell but I think its important to give a brief summary before tomorrow's orientation with new employees.
A member of management was happy in their job. Word filtered down to me and I gave him the site to apply. Simple. He quit and came to work with me. The fact that I had to defend myself against a company that no longer wanted to use my skills was curious.
As managers, our job is to create an environment that allows our employees to be successful. I believe in this style. Success isn't always based on performance inside the four walls but has more to do with how they feel the direction of their life is going. Some are career oriented,  some grounded in family and time off.
Work is a vehicle that should allow them to grow in the areas they feel are important to them and how they measure success. I know I have altruistic views of business but I truly believe that this is the way it should be. Employers should be concerned with the lives of those who help the company be successful. I try to live this.
With the last few posts, I have had the same theme: managers ARE the company.
And tomorrow, orientation starts for 3 former employees of mine that want to be apart of this management style again. To be around an employer that cares about them.
I won't turn good people away.

Ford

The title will have haters. I know this, expect it, even welcome the comments in advance.

A restuarant is a machine. And anyone who tuned in on SaltyTalkRadio knows I love to use the phrase 8 cylinder.  Normally, I am joking about the size of a word that the host, Mark Salter is using but the amount of cylinders is as important as to how we got there.
Henry Ford(I may be telling this story in the stylings of CNN and not have ALL or ANY of the facts correct. Fair warning) walked into the engineering dept at Ford and said to his team "I want an 8 cylinder engine. And left. A year later he came back. No 8 cylinder engine. He repeated his demand without instruction. And eventually, yes we know the rest of the story of the V-8 engine. It is the standard of power in the automotive industry . And we accepted it as just that.
In restaurants we did the same thing. A standard was created, a benchmark (love the new clichic lines) and we all accepted it. No need to improve what's perfect. Right?
But the engine is not THE machine. It's a component of it. The power of it yes but not all of it.
A brand is the engine. Franchise, corporate doesn't matter. It may be about strength or speed we just accept that it is about power. In a car comparison, a restaurant is the model.
The sculpting of the body, aerodynamics, the bite of the rubber, yawl, center of gravity. Design.
Many models have come and gone. Some of our favorites have lost favor in our hearts. Why did this, how could this happen? Its was never about power, is was always about handling.

The Bench, continued

Dave Hunt once said to me, if you accept the paycheck each week, then you accept the rules and regulations of the company. Fair enough. I actually turned in my notice to him using the same words, that I no longer accepted the paycheck.
I was no longer loyal to the company.
The bench is about loyalty. Trying to decide how to word it is why I couldn't finish in one sitting.
Loyalty to a nondescript company is hard to define. The words I wanted to use in the first half seemed altruistic, unreal. But it's not the company that I am loyal to, it's me and what how i see things should be that gets my commitment and dedication.
Building a bench is no different than parenting. We all know the song
"Teach, your children well".
We as parents are willing to invest the time in our kids to help them grow to the point that they, hopefully, they can grow on their own.
In business it's a little different.
Managers can be replaced. Train a younger person to take your place could end your career. In today's world, probably.
Good managers build (watch the change in wording) build a family. One that will continue to grow on their own, start a new life away from their parents based on the idea of loyalty.
Companies can not grow without loyalty and do not deserve it unless they are willing to grow as a family. When the bench is left empty and no time is invested in future opportunities, then you are sitting on the wrong bench.

The Bench

Football season is almost upon us again. High school, college and of course, the NFL. Do many amazing sports stories have come out of this one sport. I promise not to be political as the tone of the country is divided with the sport. For the record, Kurt Warner took the Cardinals to the Superbowl in the last game I watched start to finish. 

Regardless, the game, the team, and all aspects of the sport are synonymous with my chosen career, restaurants. 

So let's get to the bench.

Who did Brett Farve replace? Started with a Y and only diehard cheeseheads remember.  And Brady? Similarly, New England fans will know, his name is on the tip of my tongue. And Peyton, who took his place? 

In our business, we don't spend the big bucks to build a bench. The GM will be here for many years and in many cases, this is true. But not always. And definitely not in today's society. We are free agents by nature and quality managers are in short supply. It is only our loyalty or benefits package that keep us from jumping ship in Indy and heading to Denver. 

So what can a company do if Aaron Rodgers is not waiting in the wings? Or we don't have the resources to "buy" the next quarterback?

Build a bench. 

Our process starts with interviews and knowing what answers you want to hear.

Oversee all aspects of training. Train your trainers, teach and coach them, even empower them to make decisions that will benefit the restaurant. 

Invest your time into your people. Everyone is at a different place in their lives and some will grow more quickly than others. Keep an open mind and let some of the newest ones surprise you.

Here is the tough part. Teach someone to replace you. 

Why?

Tune in next time for the answer...

Conundrum

Subtitled: HR Nightmare
I told you a few weeks ago that I was with a new company that embraced the social media platform. Share, like, emoji, means more activity for your location. More activity equals more views equals more, more, more. Sound theory on paper, in a digital world.
Tonight I was scrolling through my Facebook alerts and came to "people I should know". Most of mine have links to wineries in the area or growers of a particular grape that I enjoy ;)
Tonight, however, a current employee came into the feed. 4 mutual friends. 4.
Deep breath, a cigarette and an a little bit of an overpour of wine before I continue.
Still here? This post will require some comments, hopefully a full discussion with some back and forth. I'm ready...
Hypothetically we have Joe. Joe is a hugger. He hugs everyone. Then one day, for some unexplained reason, he didn't hug someone that he was working with. And just the one person. Discrimination, of one, harassment of all others? I don't know but it's not about Joe. It's about me and 4 mutual friends.
I said this is a new frontier a few weeks back but today I found myself in a conundrum. If i embrace the social media aspect and go for likes, shares, etc., then have I put myself in an HR nightmare? I can send a request that the employee may feel forced to accept which is wrong or not send the request which is the equivalent to Joe not hugging. Still wrong.
Will the future of business be decided by how we snub or accept co-workers on social media?
Asking