Team Dynamics in a Fine Dining Restaurant
Learning Team C:
Ed
Katy
John
Matt
Royce

Gen/200
June 26, 2013
James Bailey

Team Dynamics in a Fine Dining Restaurant
In any dine-in restaurant, three teams of staff work seamlessly together to create a great dining experience for the guest. Each one of these teams has a very important role. If one of the teams fails to deliver, more pressure will be put on all of the other teams. Failure could result in a miserable guest experience. Repeated poor guest experiences can result in the restaurant gaining a bad reputation in the community. Since all restaurants vary, fine dining restaurants basically consist of three teams of staff: Management, front of the house, and back of the house. Like most teams, each staff has their own primary area of responsibility, but also supports the rest of the other staff.
Manager
General Manager
The general manager is responsible for the daily operations of the restaurant (Food Service Mangers, 2012) and manages both the front of the house and the back of the house (Parpal, 2012). He or she works with several assistant manager and bookkeeper to process employee wages and payroll, property taxes of the establishment, the balancing of receipts, and budgets every transaction by the restaurant. The bookkeeper and assistant manager complete financial tasks, but it is ultimately the general managers’ job to verify the accuracy of business information, and that the paperwork is kept in a secure location. There are many different duties a general manager must complete, including the hiring, managing, supervising, disciplinary actions, and even the firing of employees. Hiring skilled, reliable, and trustworthy employees is essential for the restaurant to be successful. There are several areas of the restaurant that the general manager checks daily to ensure employees follow proper procedures such as safety protocols, training, and planning in the event of a natural disaster or fire. The safety manager verifies compliances to state and federal regulations, and company policies. There are several areas of the restaurant that requires a team of managers to assist in the success of the company.
Front House Manager
On the management team there is the front house manager, whom works with the hostess, servers, bussers, and most importantly, the customer. The main goal is to ensure the customers have an enjoyable dining experience.The front of the house is the first impression a customer gets from the restaurant. The cleanliness of the establishment, appearance of employees’ uniforms, and condition of the restaurant setting must be impeccable. Every aspect of the front house side requires a focus on customer service. Managers stress the importance of excellent customer service to create success of the restaurant. Verifying customers seating time is prompt and orders are correct. The manager must possess effective communication skills, be able to motivate and lead staff, and to multitask under stressful environments. In the event of a party, the manager must make sure there is a seamless transition and that the standards are met for guest and accommodation for seating. Even without a reservation, the restaurant manager strives to keep customers returning by combining tables to accommodate larger groups. In the event of a complaint filed by a customer, the manager must investigate the situation; evaluate the issue; and provide solutions for the benefit of the customer, employee, and restaurant, making sure to give constructive feedback to the employee. The front house manager is in charge of employees’ work schedule then distributes the hours among employees. Posting this schedule well in advance allows employees to make arrangements to meet the scheduled hours. There must be an open communication between the front and the back of the house.
Kitchen Manager
The kitchen manager, also known as the executive chef (Decker,2012) supervises the kitchen staff.