As a Samurai Sam’s® franchisee, you already know how important it is to build a great team of employees. For restaurants, you need kitchen staff, customer-facing staff and management staff. Because servers and cashiers directly interact with customers, they represent the quality of your business. You want highly motivated, dedicated servers, but how do you recruit and retain such employees?

To stay competitive and build a great team, make your employees feel valued. Of course, excellent performance over time can be rewarded with promotions, but there are other approaches you can take as well.
Here are 3 things you can do to help your employees feel valued:

• Communicate effectively. Leadership qualities go a long way when it comes to managing a team. Make sure you give positive feedback, and keep criticism constructive. Make sure everyone is on the same page regarding expectations and policies. If you need to reprimand somebody, take them aside privately.
• Provide benefits. This doesn’t have to mean health insurance coverage or a 401(k). It could be something like access to free meals, a flexible schedule, a fun break room, team bonding events, or even access to job and career training.
• Give employees a voice. Trust your employees and value their opinions. You might be pleasantly surprised at the insight and ideas they have based on their experiences at work. If a staff member complains, encourage them to come up with possible solutions and support them in doing so. Give them a say in how the restaurant operates, as this can make their job more satisfying and increase their commitment to the company.

While much of the success of your Samurai Sam’s franchise is on your shoulders, building a great team can certainly help you be successful. If you treat them right, provide a benefit to working for you and give them a say in their work, you can stand out as a great employer. With happy employees, customers tend to notice a difference.

©2017 Kahala Franchising, L.L.C. All rights reserved. All other trademarks referenced are property of their respective owners. The information provided herein is for informational purposes only and is not intended as an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, a franchise; nor is it directed to the residents of any particular jurisdiction within the U.S. or elsewhere. The following states currently regulate the offer and sale of franchises: CA, HI, IL, IN, MD, MI, MN, NY, ND, RI, SD, VA, WA, and WI. If you are a resident of one of these states, or of a jurisdiction that has similar requirements, we will not offer you a franchise until we have completed the applicable registration or obtained the exemption from registration, and completed the applicable disclosure requirements. Regardless of what state you reside in, an offering can only be made by a franchise disclosure document.