Short-term scheduling is the process of matching resources efficiently to meet customer needs and reduce costs. The technique is applied in every industry to allocate machines, employees, equipment and any other resource to tasks in a way that there is efficiency. In a fast food service restaurant, short-term scheduling of staff can be done. Managers can assign employees to jobs and tasks in a way that organizational and legal regulations, workers’ skills and preferences, business demands and customer demands are accounted. A restaurant can enjoy a lot of benefits of proper staff scheduling such as reduction in running costs, increase productivity and improved customer service.
Short-term scheduling of staff can also lower turnover in large restaurants. Restaurants have a high employee turnover rate (Nadiri & Tanova, 2010). Most of the people only accept restaurant jobs as they wait for jobs in other sectors. Most of them cite too much work as one of the reasons for leaving. Such a problem can be avoided by scheduling because it ensures each employee is assigned a task for a reasonable number of hours. On the other hand, employees that complain about not getting enough hours during off seasons can be catered for through scheduling. Customer satisfaction is one of the benefits of staff scheduling. When customers are satisfied by services offered, they tend to remain with the firm which in turn leads to high performances (Mobley, 1977). It is unlikely to see workers resigning from a performing firm since the revenue can quickly trickle down to them. Harsh working conditions lead to dissatisfaction among employees who in turn can increase the rate of employee turnover. When workers are assigned duties, they are comfortable with they become more satisfied and hence get the motivation to continue working for the restaurant. Scheduling also is one way of creating fairness in the workplace. When employees feel that work is shared equally among them, then they tend to stay for long in the firm.
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When coming up with schedules, a lot of factors are considered and with different weights. One consideration that should carry significant importance is the seniority of an employee. When choosing, for example, one employee from two to be put on the night shift where other factors are constant, the senior one should get the upper hand. Considering seniority is one way of rewarding employees that devote a significant amount of their working years in the company which in turn reduces turnover. Also, when new employees see that the senior once are rewarded, they also will have a motivation to stay for long. In many occasions, the seniors have a perfect knowledge of the organization’s values and traditions. They are, therefore, given a preference when assigning duties so that they can be given the more sensitive responsibilities. When assigning tasks, new employees are typically mixed with at least one senior to offer leadership and assistance. It is because the seniors have high levels of proficiency as compared to the new employees. They understand the routine chores well and know even the unwritten laws of the firm.
Short-term scheduling has an impact on the productivity of a firm in various ways. Without a proper schedule, the confusion comes in the workplace such that some employees are overworked while others are underutilized. Both situations affect the productivity of a firm. Tired workers are associated with poor customer service and poor performance which translates to lower productivity (Fong & Kleiner, 2004). On the other hand, underutilized workers reduce productivity because the firm incurs a higher cost of paying workers who do not deliver results for it. When workers remain idle, it means that the expected results in a particular period will be unattainable. In a restaurant, when scheduling is done wrongly, and servers exceed the number of customers, the business is likely to lose a market share. One aim of scheduling is to assign employees duties in line with their capabilities. Productivity improves when every worker is in a position to perform a function that he/she does well.
Scheduling in a restaurant is a vital exercise that needs to be managed appropriately. In fact, a workforce management software can be utilized when assigning duties to workers because doing it manually can produce undesired effects. A lot of factors are under consideration when designing the technique. These factors include seniority, employee abilities and preferences, skills and knowledge. Organizations that apply an efficient staff schedule enjoy advantages such as increased productivity, employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction and increase in revenues. It is also prudent to realize that when scheduling staff, every need of a worker cannot be met. The exercise should take place in such a way that the optimal output of all the employees actualizes. Fairness should also prevail when assigning duties. For example, it is not fair to designate an individual to the night shift for so long just because he/she is new to the firm. Whereas some factors make more employees receive preference, rotations also need to be done.
References
Nadiri, H., & Tanova, C. (2010). An investigation of the role of justice in turnover intentions, job satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behavior in the hospitality industry. International journal of hospitality management, 29(1), 33-41.
Mobley, W. H. (1977). Intermediate linkages in the relationship between job satisfaction and employee turnover. Journal of applied psychology, 62(2), 237
Fong, K., & Kleiner, B. H. (2004). New development concerning the effect of work overload on employees. Management Research News, 27(4/5), 9-16
