Ed Solomon tries to Serve 'Em Right

Nation's Restaurant News, Oct 30, 2000 by Dina Berta

Ed Solomon spent 42 years running McGarvey's, a 400-seat restaurant on the Vermilion River, 37 miles west of Cleveland, which did more than $2 million in annual sales. Solomon sold the restaurant 10 years ago and hung up his operator's hat in exchange for the hat of author, consultant and trainer. He wrote Serve 'Em Right in 1971 and continues to update the training manual every two years. He also conducts seminars on training and sales through his Lorain, Ohio-based Professional Hospitality Center. Dubbed the "Grandfather of Training," the 74-year-old shared some of his views on training in today's tight labor market.

You advocate role playing and a "practice makes perfect" approach to training. Why is that a better method than shadowing another server?

Whoever said practice makes perfect was wrong. Perfect practice makes perfect. Someone walks in the door, you hire them and turn them over to a trainer for three days or they trail another server for three days where they can pick up the wrong habits or attitude. People are not being trained on how to be professional servers.

Managers should give them the menu, sit down at a table and say how do you take the order? They should teach them how to be a professional server and how to do suggestive selling.

In today's understaffed restaurants, who has time to sit down with employees and let them practice?

We did our training in four days, three to five hours a day. They also had the book to study, which has questions at the end of every two or three chapters. They could read that on their own time.

What methods did you use to find employees that would still work today?

The best source for new employees is old employees. Give your present employees a bonus for bringing in people that have potential. Give a $25 or $50 bonus if the person stays 30 days. Most of your turnover is within the first 30 days.

If you are a good employee, you're not going to recommend anyone who is a bad employee just for the money. It reflects on you, it makes you look bad.

One thing I've started for clients is a card I designed to give to their employees. I never did it when I ran my restaurant. But when they go into Kmart or wherever and people are making $7 or $8 an hour, they can give someone a card that says "Opportunity Knocks. Would you like to earn $10 an hour being a professional server?"

What role does training have in retaining workers?

The better trained, the more money they make, the happier they will be on the job. One of the main reasons people leave and go to another job is they figure they will make more money. But if they are making good money and are happy, they won't leave. My turnover wasn't over 25 percent.

The No.1 thing people want out of a job is recognition. They want appreciation for services rendered. When people do a great job, give them a pat on the back and tell them thank you. They need that personal recognition.