Restauranteurs are a gritty group of individuals. You are tough, creative, dedicated, highly motivated, action-oriented, hard working and willing to put in the long hours necessary to build your business. But how effective are you at running it? Are you a “CEO” or “Employee” owner? Are you drowning in the minutiae of daily operations? By creating a system, you can ensure your restaurant runs the way you want it independent of you. A system is also how you get extraordinary results from ordinary people. Your first thought may be that a system will take away from the creativeness and individuality of your restaurant but they make real business sense.

There are 3 major functions of a restaurant that must be managed competently to produce a successful business: operations, financial and marketing. How much better would your business be if you could focus your energy on building those aspects of your business? How valuable would it be to actually know how your restaurant is performing and if your marketing is paying off? If you’re constantly running the restaurant. your time is limited to strategize, to create new marketing programs or take advantage of new business opportunities.

Here are the 7 benefits of creating a system:

Creating checklist, forms, procedures and manuals helps to alleviate the usual dis-organization and confusion in the start up phase.
Good people want to work for good companies that are serious about what they do.
Provides a clear understanding for employees of what is expected and how they can be successful.
Allows your employees to repeatedly give your customer’s a consistent product. Consistency is the key to creating a good reputation and loyal, repeat customers.
Increases your chances to raise capital for expansion by giving investors confidence in your business.
Increases the value of your business should you want to sell. Owner dependent businesses are worth less than those that function independently.
Gives you the greater chance of success by allowing you to live a more balanced life. Burn-out is one of the major reasons restaurants close.

Creating a system for every procedure in your restaurant can be an intimidating and daunting task. Break it down into manageable parts and start with the tasks that have the most direct or profound impact on your guest’s experience. Get your staffs involvement and support from the beginning. Operators that take the time and effort to create the system enjoy huge benefits over those that don’t.

Chef U Consulting can help you develop a system for your restaurant.

Originally published 3/4/13