Get it Fixed - Why getting things sorted quickly is so important

A very good manager I worked with a long time ago taught me this. If something is wrong or broken, fix it immediately. If something needs to happen to make the work of your staff all that easier, do it as soon as possible. If you need a new piece of equipment that will improve the quality of your product and your efficiency, buy it now. (within reason of course).

It seems like common sense, and it is, but in the rush of hospitality and within the pressures of business, it is easy to just let things slide. The thing is, as the owner, if you don’t fix it, or buy it, or do it, then no-one will. And then your standards start to fall. And the respect you should have from your staff starts to slip.

I read somewhere once a very good method for this is to have a little pocket notebook that you write down everything in as soon as you see or hear about it, so then you can get it done.

I just use my iPhone notes section. For example one of our superstars asked me today, ‘can we please have a separate set of tongs to be able to get the butter circles we cut from the Lescure butter rolls onto the plates that we use for banana bread or toast’. Brilliant idea.

So I type that into my notes,  I have a section called ‘Remember’ which often has 20 or 30 points in it. Then when I get to sit down I write it in my ‘to do list’ in my diary. The key point then is of course to action it, as soon as possible.

But what if you don’t action it, or forget about it, it’s so easy to forget. Not only this one point, but any of the million and one brilliant ideas/improvements/DIY jobs/equipment requests your staff hit you with continuously.