I suspect we are entering January 2025 with a slightly different mindset than usual. The cost pressures we’re facing in April mean we need an approach that differs from the norm. We need to be braver, more determined and more laser-focused than we ever have before.
Whether we are trying to trade our way out of the cost headwinds or manage costs more effectively, we all know we have three months to deliver a significant level of business improvement if we are to even maintain our profitability. And even if we are going to raise prices, with relatively weak consumer sentiment, price changes must be executed with real skill and precision.
Of course, the natural approach is to try a combination of all these strategies: raise prices as much as possible, put significant effort into growing sales, and drive some level of productivity improvement. I want to focus the remainder of this article on the productivity improvements we could achieve.
As always, the opportunity in January is to focus on a change in habits. Having just been through all my January rotas, the real question I was asking myself was how much I want to encourage habit change, and how much I want to impose habit change on the business. We all find this debate exceptionally difficult. As operations managers, we know we aren’t in the business often enough to ensure compliance if we simply impose changes. We also understand that service levels could suffer if we do not win hearts and minds by clearly explaining how the changes can be implemented effectively.
But equally, if we simply encourage and cajole, we might not achieve much, as our ideas could be rejected, ignored, or, most frustrating of all, the team may agree but fail to follow through. More on that later.
Our Focus in January
So, what are the specifics I am focusing on this January? First is the number required in the kitchen on a quiet Monday. The team like two, and we are better with one. Who is right? How do we design a quiet Monday to enable us to operate with one chef? Should we compromise and have two at lunchtime and one in the evening? How much we take this forward is of course the result of that eternal tussle between head office ignorance and site-level intransigence.
Second is front of house closing. Here, we must have several debates. What is a safe number of staff to close the business? What do we do if a couple of guests are still drinking? What tasks are acceptable to do before the guest leaves? And then of course, what are the closing tasks themselves? All create a level of complexity that means the solution isn’t easy, but there are precious hours to be saved if we can do this right.
And what about breaks? The team often prefers to not have breaks during the day, but straight shifts are not beneficial for either us or them. This is a good opportunity to revisit break schedules and adjust rotas so that everyone in the business gets their break at the right time.
There are also a few days when our standard staff rota is a bit too generous. We have always faced a challenge on Fridays, where we feel we need a larger team than the metrics suggest. As a result, the team ends up with a fixed shift allocation on Fridays, causing the rota to exceed the actual requirement. January is the time to reset and reassess this.
Service and Reputation
But another key aspect of January is that it is a time to focus on service. Teams can sometimes reduce staffing on the busiest shifts, which can negatively impact both service and our reputation. This Christmas, we have delivered the best service in our history, and it would be a shame to undermine that by cutting staff on the busier shifts in January. We still need to add more on Sundays!
So, as always, there is plenty to be done. But changing habits is valuable work. Finding the right balance between imposing change and encouraging the team is challenging. As a business, we are increasingly called upon to help with this, but there is no reason you cannot tackle it yourself if you make the time. And the money saved now brings us a step closer to offsetting the impacts of the NI and minimum wage increases in April. It is time to take action!