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Discuss this article (8 Comments)Put the fun into F&B
by This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it on Friday, 09 October 2009
As I'm sure most of you will have heard, TV chef and culinary legend Keith Floyd passed away last month.
In addition to the fact that Floyd - who was diagnosed with bowel cancer in June - had enjoyed a typically hearty last meal including oysters and champagne, the main fact the media concentrated on was the great legacy he left behind him: his view that food and learning about food could be an enormous amount of fun.
Over the past month, I have chatted to a variety of F&B professionals and the one common issue everyone is talking about relates to finding decent staff, both in front- and back-of-house.
Although this is not the case across the board, it does seem that many Middle East F&B staff today lack the passion and enthusiasm for working in this (admittedly tough) industry.
But why is this? Is it because staff feel they are overworked? Underpaid? Not progressing as they would wish? Or is it because they don't think of F&B as a long-term career, but more of a stepping-stone to a "better" job?
Whatever the reason behind a lackadaisical attitude, if someone works in F&B, they are representing the brand and it is vital they have the right attitude and perform to the best of their abilities on a daily basis.
Personally, I believe the way to succeed here comes back to what Floyd emphasised so heartily in his shows: make sure your F&B staff are having fun and enjoying their roles, as well as learning.
Having decent staff is, of course, partly down to proper recruiting, thorough training and offering career progression opportunities.
But it also comes down to making sure your staff enjoy their roles and feel valued. You may not be able to control the wages or benefits that are given, but you can ensure it is a positive environment in which to work - and this will impact staff retention, service standards and employee satisfaction.
The late Keith Floyd once said that "celebrity cooks are so up their own bottoms that they do not realise that food should be fun".
Celebrity chefs or not, that is precisely the idea you should be propunding to your staff: food should be fun.
With that in mind, have an enjoyable month - and try to make it a good one for your teams too!
Lucy Taylor is the editor of Caterer Middle East.
READERS' COMMENTS
Disclaimer: The views expressed here by our readers are not necessarily shared by ArabianBusiness.com or its employees.
Feedback
Posted by Lucy Taylor, Editor, Caterer Middle East, Dubai on Sunday 18 October 2009 at 10:45 UAE time
Thanks for all the feedback — it's good to see so many people getting so passionate about the standard of employment and service here, particularly as this is a subject that F&B professionals are all-too-often unwilling to speak out about on the record.
Just to clarify, this 'comment' (a piece based solely on personal opinion, not fact!) was intended to underline the importance of treating staff well in the workplace, following on from the magazine's 'How happy are your F&B staff?' survey last month — which is surely no bad thing to wish for any employee!
In it, I aimed to convey that encouraging and motivating staff is an important part of fielding a happy team; although of course it is by no means the only element in building a sucessful workforce.
Many of you have pointed out that a key issue for staff in this region is in fact the wages and benefits they receive, with some saying these are simply not up to scratch here.
This is obviously an important issue that people feel strongly about — so I would urge you, if you have opinions about F&B staff salaries and employment standards that you are willing to share, please write into the letters page at Caterer Middle East, contacting us via email at caterermiddleeast@gmail.com with the subject 'Letters'.
Hopefully, by voicing these issues and shedding light on such matters, we can start to change things for the better. So we welcome your thoughts and suggestions about how the industry can progress more positively!
Posted by Lucy Taylor, Editor, Caterer Middle East, Dubai on Sunday 18 October 2009 at 10:45 UAE time
Thanks for all the feedback — it's good to see so many people getting so passionate about the standard of employment and service here, particularly as this is a subject that F&B professionals are all-too-often unwilling to speak out about on the record.
Just to clarify, this 'comment' (a piece based solely on personal opinion, not fact!) was intended to underline the importance of treating staff well in the workplace, following on from the magazine's 'How happy are your F&B staff?' survey last month — which is surely no bad thing to wish for any employee!
In it, I aimed to convey that encouraging and motivating staff is an important part of fielding a happy team; although of course it is by no means the only element in building a sucessful workforce.
Many of you have pointed out that a key issue for staff in this region is in fact the wages and benefits they receive, with some saying these are simply not up to scratch here.
This is obviously an important issue that people feel strongly about — so I would urge you, if you have opinions about F&B staff salaries and employment standards that you are willing to share, please write into the letters page at Caterer Middle East, contacting us via email at caterermiddleeast@gmail.com with the subject 'Letters'.
Hopefully, by voicing these issues and shedding light on such matters, we can start to change things for the better. So we welcome your thoughts and suggestions about how the industry can progress more positively!
caterer magazine
Posted by giles, dubai, uae on Monday 12 October 2009 at 08:17 UAE time
firstly i think using keith floyd as a basis for this article is ridiculous. many better examples of passionate f&b staff.
as for having passion for your job, then yes of course, for those of us with the privilege to choose to work in this field, a positive attitude and a great team spirit are certainly motivational tools.
but here in dubai staff would rather earn 100 dhs more than be elected employee of the month or whatever other "fun" thing that you may have had in mind.
also remember that in many other countries, the owner of the restaurant actually is from the business and understands the industry and probably worked in the place . here owning restaurants is like everything else in dubai... a very expensive game of stamp-collecting ("you've got starbucks ??? well i just bought caribou ....").
i also agree with the other comments that much of the problems here come from public perception of the job : in new york, paris or london, industry professionals work years to get good waiting jobs and can easily earn $100,000 + per year. here? you'll be lucky to take home $6000.
i would seem that for somebody who works in the industry you seem sadly misinformed about the reality here in dubai.
Posted by giles, dubai, uae on Monday 12 October 2009 at 08:17 UAE time
firstly i think using keith floyd as a basis for this article is ridiculous. many better examples of passionate f&b staff.
as for having passion for your job, then yes of course, for those of us with the privilege to choose to work in this field, a positive attitude and a great team spirit are certainly motivational tools.
but here in dubai staff would rather earn 100 dhs more than be elected employee of the month or whatever other "fun" thing that you may have had in mind.
also remember that in many other countries, the owner of the restaurant actually is from the business and understands the industry and probably worked in the place . here owning restaurants is like everything else in dubai... a very expensive game of stamp-collecting ("you've got starbucks ??? well i just bought caribou ....").
i also agree with the other comments that much of the problems here come from public perception of the job : in new york, paris or london, industry professionals work years to get good waiting jobs and can easily earn $100,000 + per year. here? you'll be lucky to take home $6000.
i would seem that for somebody who works in the industry you seem sadly misinformed about the reality here in dubai.
Theory vs. Reality
Posted by Anonymous, Dubai on Sunday 11 October 2009 at 14:19 UAE time
Lucy, you sound like you live in a theoretical world but this is not Dubai.
I agree with most of the comments. I too have operated restaurants for many years throughout the Gulf. It is easy to say we should create a "fun" working atmosphere in the restaurant and that is one of the areas I can control. Sure, I can be the nice guy, offer pats on the back, etc. but let's discuss the other areas of employees lives that are not within my control, but instead the control of some anal Finance Manager or Company Owner:
-The staff spend 2-3 hours a day in traffic because they live in Ajman. With more than 1 restaurant in Dubai employees load up the bus as early as 7am for an 11am shift because the bus drops off employees in different areas of Dubai.
-The company does not pay overtime and because the restaurants are understaffed everyone works too many hours.
-We "force" employees to take breaks during slow times because this is a company policy but the employees cannot go anywhere on the their break because that would costs them money. Basically they just sit outside in the heat waiting to clock back in.
-The accommodation is a pit, a real dump. Besides that how would you like to share a bathroom with 4 other people.
-Sleeping is a challenge because employees have to wake up by 6:30am but the night crew arrives back at 1 or 2am, making noise. The early risers may try to be quiet but they are disturbing the crew that went to bed late. Sleeping 6 hours continuously is not possible!
-Hand washing your employee uniform because the staff accommodation washing machine is broken is not "fun". Why is the machine broken? Because the home office will not repair it.
Lucy, I suggest you take your theoretical self and go do some hard core investigating of the leading F&B companies in Dubai who represent many of the U.S. brands. You will be SHOCKED at what you find regarding working hours, non payment of overtime, staff accommodation issues, the hours spent in traffic, money deductions from salaries for nonsense like "repairs of staff washing machines", etc. Then maybe you can write an article that says something beyond theoretical rubbish!
Posted by Anonymous, Dubai on Sunday 11 October 2009 at 14:19 UAE time
Lucy, you sound like you live in a theoretical world but this is not Dubai.
I agree with most of the comments. I too have operated restaurants for many years throughout the Gulf. It is easy to say we should create a "fun" working atmosphere in the restaurant and that is one of the areas I can control. Sure, I can be the nice guy, offer pats on the back, etc. but let's discuss the other areas of employees lives that are not within my control, but instead the control of some anal Finance Manager or Company Owner:
-The staff spend 2-3 hours a day in traffic because they live in Ajman. With more than 1 restaurant in Dubai employees load up the bus as early as 7am for an 11am shift because the bus drops off employees in different areas of Dubai.
-The company does not pay overtime and because the restaurants are understaffed everyone works too many hours.
-We "force" employees to take breaks during slow times because this is a company policy but the employees cannot go anywhere on the their break because that would costs them money. Basically they just sit outside in the heat waiting to clock back in.
-The accommodation is a pit, a real dump. Besides that how would you like to share a bathroom with 4 other people.
-Sleeping is a challenge because employees have to wake up by 6:30am but the night crew arrives back at 1 or 2am, making noise. The early risers may try to be quiet but they are disturbing the crew that went to bed late. Sleeping 6 hours continuously is not possible!
-Hand washing your employee uniform because the staff accommodation washing machine is broken is not "fun". Why is the machine broken? Because the home office will not repair it.
Lucy, I suggest you take your theoretical self and go do some hard core investigating of the leading F&B companies in Dubai who represent many of the U.S. brands. You will be SHOCKED at what you find regarding working hours, non payment of overtime, staff accommodation issues, the hours spent in traffic, money deductions from salaries for nonsense like "repairs of staff washing machines", etc. Then maybe you can write an article that says something beyond theoretical rubbish!
Give me a break
Posted by Johnny on Sunday 11 October 2009 at 13:27 UAE time
Lucy - what nonsense!! Are you serious when you say you can't control the wage but as long as the environment is positive, you will retain staff? Have you ever worked in a restaurant in Dubai? Forget London or whatever other country you're from. It's not the same here as you can definately see. I agree with all the previous posters - you are totally out of your depth for making inane comments about a subject you should really know more about if you're an editor.
Staff are motivated by money....simply because they don't make enough. If you make enough money then you can talk about other things but if you're barely surviving on the pittance the restaurants pay, then no kidding you're not going to be happy. Simple basic logic which you're missing. The staff here have to live here and are sending as much money home to help their families. What about the waiting staff back in London or the US or Oz? They are making money to support themselves - forget supporting anyone else.
You need to be a waitress at any restaurant in the Middle East - take your pick. And then work 6 day weeks on a 10-12 hour shift. Then go back in a bus to your shared compound. And then do it again. And at the end of the week, send back about 40% of your money. And then live.
Posted by Johnny on Sunday 11 October 2009 at 13:27 UAE time
Lucy - what nonsense!! Are you serious when you say you can't control the wage but as long as the environment is positive, you will retain staff? Have you ever worked in a restaurant in Dubai? Forget London or whatever other country you're from. It's not the same here as you can definately see. I agree with all the previous posters - you are totally out of your depth for making inane comments about a subject you should really know more about if you're an editor.
Staff are motivated by money....simply because they don't make enough. If you make enough money then you can talk about other things but if you're barely surviving on the pittance the restaurants pay, then no kidding you're not going to be happy. Simple basic logic which you're missing. The staff here have to live here and are sending as much money home to help their families. What about the waiting staff back in London or the US or Oz? They are making money to support themselves - forget supporting anyone else.
You need to be a waitress at any restaurant in the Middle East - take your pick. And then work 6 day weeks on a 10-12 hour shift. Then go back in a bus to your shared compound. And then do it again. And at the end of the week, send back about 40% of your money. And then live.
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