Casual dining chain, 22 venues
The sales section went from 58 to 79 in three months
What the first audit showed. An even level of service and a good kitchen,
with a failing upsell: dessert was offered in 3 cases out of 22. The average check had
been flat for two quarters.
What was done. A mandatory dessert offer when clearing main courses, with
specific wording. A session with the team using recordings of their own audits. The
sales section was added to venue managers' incentives.
Result after three months. Sales section at 79 against 58. The spread between
the best and the worst venue halved.
Restaurant group, 7 venues
We found the venue dragging the group down
What the audit showed. A group average of 76 looked acceptable. Broken down by
venue it ranged from 89 to 51: one venue consistently failed the greeting and the
payment, and it accounted for most of the negative reviews.
What was done. Targeted work with one team instead of chain-wide measures.
A new shift supervisor and retraining for the hosts.
Result. The problem venue went from 51 to 74 in two months. The group average
rose to 81 without touching the other six.
Coffee shop chain, 14 venues
Service time cut by 40 seconds
What the audit showed. Second-by-second timing showed the delay was not in
preparation but in taking the order: the barista asked about size and milk as separate
questions, losing up to a minute at peak.
What was done. The order script was rewritten: one question instead of three.
The counter workflow was rearranged.
Result. Average time from approach to handover down by 40 seconds. Throughput
at the morning peak rose noticeably in operational terms.
