Have you noticed a shortage of friendly faces serving your favorite drinks lately? Unfortunately, the beverage service industry, like many others, is facing a staffing shortage. This shortage likely impacts the service you receive at your favorite food and drink spots, causing major headaches for business owners and managers struggling to fill open food and beverage staffing positions.
While no simple solution exists, you can take several steps as a business owner to retain your employees and solve your staffing issues. Below, we explore the world of beverage industry jobs and explore some creative and effective ways to overcome labor shortages in the beverage service industry.
1. Attract New Hires
Are you looking to attract new hires to your food and beverage business but need help figuring out where to start? Here are three key ways to make your business stand out and attract top talent:
Good Pay
Offering good pay is a crucial factor in attracting potential employees, showing that you value their time and skills and are willing to invest in them. Fair compensation can lead to higher job satisfaction and lower turnover rates, resulting in a stable workforce and less time and costs associated with hiring and training new employees.
Perks and Benefits
Businesses can attract new hires by offering perks and benefits that show they care about employee well-being and creating a positive work environment. This makes potential hires feel valued and appreciated, making the business more attractive than competitors.
Examples of benefits include flexible schedules, paid time off, health insurance, retirement plans, and employee discounts. These benefits help attract top talent and create a positive work environment for current employees, leading to higher job satisfaction and lower turnover rates.
Employee Referral Program
An effective employee referral program can save businesses time and money on recruitment and help them find qualified candidates. By leveraging the networks of current employees, businesses can attract higher-quality hires who are a good fit.
To ensure success, offer a meaningful incentive, such as a cash bonus or gift card, and make the program easy to use. By doing so, businesses can tap into the power of employee referrals to attract top talent to their team.
2. Care for Current Employees
In the beverage service industry, your employees are the backbone of your business. That’s why attracting top talent and caring for your current employees is crucial. Here are three key ways to make sure your employees feel valued and appreciated:
Work-Life Balance
Businesses prioritizing work-life balance can retain current employees by offering flexibility in scheduling, such as flexible work hours or a compressed workweek. Another way is by providing ample paid time off, which includes vacation, sick time, and personal days to recharge and take care of personal responsibilities. Further, businesses can set clear expectations around workload and work hours to help reduce stress and burnout and build a more engaged and committed workforce.
Perks
Offering employee perks is a great way for employers to retain their workforce. By providing perks like gym memberships or discounted transportation, employers can increase job satisfaction and employee morale. Moreover, offering employee perks can help improve employee retention and brand loyalty.
Employees who feel valued and satisfied with their jobs are less likely to leave for a competitor and are more likely to speak positively about their workplace, which can attract new talent.
Appreciation
To retain employees, employers must show appreciation. This can be achieved through regular recognition, personalized gestures, employee appreciation programs, and growth opportunities.
By recognizing employees’ hard work and providing them with opportunities for development and growth, businesses can create a positive work environment that fosters employee retention and success.
3. Invest in Beverage Service Technology
With the current challenges in employee staffing in the beverage industry, finding ways to reduce stress on current employees and streamline operations is essential. This is where beverage service technology can be a game-changer. By incorporating technology into your business, you can continue driving profit even without employees.
Here are two key technologies that can help:
QR Codes
QR codes can be used in the beverage service industry to streamline checkout and inform customers about the products they’re ordering.
By scanning the code with their smartphone cameras, customers can access a digital menu and pay for their orders, eliminating the need for physical menus and the extra time it takes to flag down a server. Additionally, the codes can lead to pages with tasting notes and food pairing suggestions, making it easier for customers to make informed choices.
As a result, QR codes can reduce stress on current employees by streamlining the checkout process and reducing the need for physical menus and other materials, saving money on printing costs and reducing waste.
Self-Serve Technology
Self-serve technology is becoming increasingly popular in the beverage service industry, from touchscreens in coffee shops to soda fountains in fast-food restaurants. Customers can make their selections, customize their drinks and pay through credit cards or mobile payment apps without waiting in line or for a barista.
Self-serve technology reduces the need for employees and can improve customer satisfaction by reducing wait times and collecting data on customer preferences. The benefits of self-serve technology help businesses stay competitive and drive profit in the face of a labor shortage.
PourMyBeer Will Help Boost Your Sales During the Staffing Crisis
By incorporating self-pour technology into your business, you’ll be able to overcome the challenges of the staffing crisis, increase efficiency and boost your sales simultaneously.
With self-pour technology, customers can pour their own drinks, freeing up your employees to focus on other essential tasks. Plus, self-pour technology is a fun and interactive experience for customers, which can lead to increased sales and customer satisfaction.
If you need help finding staff to keep your beverage service running smoothly, consider incorporating self-pour technology into your business. PourMyBeer has installed numerous self-pour setups in various industries — and we’re looking forward to starting on yours. Contact us to get started.
