Running a restaurant is rarely an easy task. The good news is that there are a variety of tools available to help you simplify your tasks.
Whether your business is large or small, fast-food or fine dining, it’s in your interest to equip yourself with the best tools to simplify your management processes.
You’ll save time and improve efficiency, so you can concentrate on what you do best: looking after your employees and customers, and developing your business.
1. POS software
Point of sale software (POS) is a must-have for all restaurants. It’s a tool that allows you to charge your customers. Many programs also allow you to manage your inventory and create sales reports to better understand your customers’ habits.
POS software is essential to simplify the management of your restaurant. Choose it carefully, as you’ll be working with it on a daily basis. Take the time to compare and test different solutions.
2. Scheduling software
With a scheduling software, you can get rid of your old Excel spreadsheet and create your restaurant’s schedule much more quickly. For example, you’ll be sure to respect your employees’ availabilities, and leave management will also be simplified.
Your employees will be able to make their leave requests directly in the software, and you’ll be able to approve or reject them with just a few clicks. Your employees’ availabilities will be updated and appear directly in the planner when you make the schedule.
Most scheduling software packages also offer you the option of tracking employee time and attendance. Your employees clock in with their PIN and their work time is automatically recorded.
You can quickly see time entries that differ from the schedule, and even access the employee’s justification note. You can approve timesheets easily and avoid payroll errors!
Agendrix scheduling software even offers features to simplify the management of your human resources, such as:
- Collecting personal information from employees
- Creating anonymous surveys to improve practices and improve employee retention
- Recognizing your employees’ work on an online platform
You can easily centralize all employee management tasks in one place.
3. Task management software
Task management software can be a great help to busy managers. It makes it easier to find your way through your multiple tasks, and you can more easily determine what needs to be done as a priority.
Some software or apps even let you share your to-do lists with members of your team. This can be a useful tool if you want to delegate tasks, or even just make daily to-dos for your team members.
Here are a few examples of interesting software:
4. Human resources management software
Human resources management software, or employee management software, is very useful, especially in the restaurant industry. Restaurants generally have a higher employee turnover rate than the average business. Employee management is therefore critical.
Well-designed software will help you simplify staff recruitment, manage employee files, structure training, carry out performance reviews, and much more.
You’ll be able to keep an eye on HR indicators such as your employee retention rate, payroll and employee satisfaction index.
5. A professional communication tool
A professional communication tool is an application that allows you to centralize all your communications in one place. So, no more post-it notes, text messages, or never-ending Facebook Messenger message management.
If your employees or colleagues need to leave you a note, they can write to you within the application. You can also send private messages or post announcements on the restaurant news feed. This makes it much easier to publish and share your sales reports with the rest of the organization.
What’s more, your employees can write to you in real time. This way, you can be kept up to date as soon as a problem arises. A professional communication tool also enables you to better separate your professional and personal lives.
Agendrix employee management software even lets you see if your employees have seen your messages, or even request a read confirmation from them.
6. Payroll software
The need for payroll software doesn’t need justification. It helps you avoid mistakes, keep track of things for longer, and automate everything to do with your employees’ payroll.
Payroll software often goes hand in hand with scheduling software. So it’s important to ensure that your 2 software packages are compatible when it comes to choosing them.
It’s also much safer to use software to protect employee data and avoid losing valuable documents.
Here are a few examples of interesting software:
7. Online ordering app
Most restaurants now offer their customers the option of ordering take-out. If this is the case for you, you’ll certainly need an online ordering app to simplify orders.
Your customers will be able to access your full menu, leave notes and even choose the time they pick up their order.
Using an online ordering app also reduces errors when taking orders over the phone. So your staff can concentrate on preparing meals and serving customers.
Some software or apps even offer the option of taking care of delivery for you!
8. Reservation management software
Instead of keeping track of your customers’ reservations in a notebook, get a reservation management software. This will considerably reduce errors.
What’s more, your customers will be able to make their own reservations online, making their experience even simpler, in addition to lightening the load on your staff.
It’s a simple and effective solution to simplify the management of your restaurant.
Here are a few examples of interesting software solutions:
9. Employee engagement software
Ensuring employee satisfaction is crucial, especially in a context of labor shortage. Don’t wait for your employees to leave you to solve problems. Instead, send them regular satisfaction surveys to gather feedback.
As a result, you’re likely to avoid many conflicts and frustrations. Your employees will be happier and stay with your team longer.
Agendrix scheduling software also offers the option of sending anonymous surveys to your employees. Alternatively, you can use a specialized application or software to do so.
10. Inventory management system
Inventory management is crucial to avoiding losses and optimizing a restaurant’s profits. And since profit margins can sometimes be slim, it’s no luxury to equip yourself with software specifically designed for inventory management.
Not only will it be easier for you to keep an eye on your inventory, but you’ll also be able to create alerts so you can order what you need before you run out.
Good inventory management systems will also be able to help you create reports and make predictions to optimize your inventory management.
Here are a few examples of interesting software:
Technology to the rescue
First and foremost, take the time to assess your needs and identify the software that is essential to your business. There’s no point in subscribing to a multitude of software or apps if you’re not going to use them.
And don’t forget to take the time to compare different tools and test them to make sure they’re right for you. Take into account their cost, functionality and even the customer service offered by the company that provides them.
Take your time, there’s no need to rush things. Happy searching!
