Lakota's Philosophy(Policies & Procedures-continued)PROFESSIONALISMProfessionalism is really just an awesome attitude. This attitude is naturally tailored to fit your involvement in each work-place scenario. Because of its inherent value in the work place, professionalism is very highly prized. It is an attitude that, once adopted, can transform a person of most any age or experience level into a highly respected and valued asset. We are always looking for professionals and we will continue to do so until our staff is nothing but! We are also asking you to BE a professional whether you are one now or not... Professionals - What they do: * Professionals keep on learning, growing, and improving, at virtually every thing they do. They are creative, energetic, and alert. They are self-starters. * Professionals LOOK professional. They are neat and clean and have a tendency to smile a lot because they feel pretty good about themselves. Most people who don't think they have this quality just don't realize that no matter what their life experience may have been thus far, they can change their mind about it. Feeling good about yourself and being a professional are decisions. * A professional finds ways to be productive when there are no customers in the house. That time is great for cleaning, preparing for the next rush, busing tables, sweeping the floors, checking stock.....and best of all, they don't need to be told. * Professionals in a service oriented business, understand that this is our house and our customers are our guests. They know that one of our most important functions is to manipulate the atmosphere with our guests in mind. Music, heating & air-conditioning, lighting, and even the volume of our voices and topics of conversation should be adjusted in the best interests of our crowd. * A professional will do their very best to make a drink whether it's on the menu or not. A bartender won't ever refuse to make you a drink just because it's not on "the menu". Our menu is expandable to whatever we can make with the ingredients we have at our disposal. Have the customer explain what's in the drink they want and price it comparably with a similar drink that IS on our menu. A professional keeps potential customers in the building. That customer will come back time and time again because you gave them special treatment! * Professionals do not talk about pay or complain about work in ear shot of their guests. (Sound carries quite well here!) Nor do they allow themselves to be lured into an argument with a patron regardless of the subject matter! * Professionals have more than one speed. When there is a rush, they like it, and know how to step up their game to the next level. They know how and when to hustle! * Professionals understand that working in their chosen area, is about gaining experience and self-improvement, regardless of seniority or pay level. Of course, money is very important but few really successful people are driven by money alone. They are driven by enthusiasm for whatever they have chosen to do. It may not be perfect but it's seen as a stepping stone. * Professionals have dignity and treat others with respect. They don't waste their time judging others and gossiping. They consciously choose to focus on positive subjects and would rather have a good laugh than spend the day whining. * Professionals do their very best to leave work at work and home at home. * Professionals work on their people skills. Being here is an outstanding opportunity to do just that. Taking advantage of this opportunity will pay powerful dividends for a lifetime.
If you ever wonder about the respectability of being a Barista, consider Europe, where the average age of a Barista is 35! It is a very highly admired and respected profession and is widely undertaken as a career.
ATMOSPHEREPart of what we do at Lakota is to manipulate the environment to suit the needs of our guests. What? You mean your first priority is to make sure OTHER people are comfortable? That's correct. Please put the comfort of our guests first! Temperature: Always, always try to keep the heat and air-conditioning at a level that is comfortable to our guests who are for the most part just sitting. Our level of activity will at times make us run warm. Please don't let your guests get hot or cold, so you can be just right! Music: We have XM radio for our music selections. Our music is meant to be heard gently in the BACK GROUND. The hard truth is that our music is not meant for you to JAM through while you're at work. Your moods must take a back seat to the selections we feel are best for our guests. Through much experience, we've settled on music from opening until noon that is fairly tame. We don't want anything distracting; nothing hard core. Please, only "soft jazz", acoustics, or classical (no opera), in the mornings. Just keep it light! As the day matures, you can play some classic rock, jazz, some alternative, etc, but keep the volume to a low roar. In the morning... 16 seems to be the best volume setting. The music should never be higher than 18 except for after hours during closing. (After the doors are locked!) Please stick to the guidelines we have, for now. They will expand as we learn more about the selections we have available on XM radio. Your input is welcome but we are done with the whole me-first approach to music selection! This has been a problem for years. Please don't test us on this. Enough for now.
SLOW TIMESYou will find the need to use slow times as windows of opportunity to get things done. Chances are, you should be cleaning instead of leaning! This can be a very busy place but each and every shift has it's side duties that must be done before you leave the building, regardless of how busy you were during the course of your shift. What you fail to get done on your shift falls to your co-workers on the next shift. All hell breaks loose for them when you dump your un-performed duties on them. To prevent this type of neglect, we are implementing a checklist system that must be double-checked by a manager or shift leader before you leave for the day. It will be signed and placed on the office desk. This will let us know if the work was done AND how well it was done. (or not!) When you have an opening, get a bar towel and wipe down empty tables and chairs, dust the lamps, Windex the glass door and hardware. Pull the bar stools out and sweep. Bus tables and clear dirty dishes from occupied tables (with a big smile!). You'll notice that our guests really appreciate the extra attention! Tidy up the bathrooms! Pick trash up off the floor... Our quieter times are also great for whipping the store back into shape. Through the course of the day, our tables and chairs get moved around a lot. Use our Floor Plan and Seating Chart to get things back in order as you sweep and tidy up! Many of the re-stocking duties fall on the night shift. However it is everyone’s responsibility to help out and restock as the day progresses. Take note of what needs restocking and get after it. Sysco Orders: When the Sysco order shows up, hop to and help out. It's part of your responsibility if you're not too busy. It’s a big job for one person but it goes really fast with a little team work. Generally putting the Sysco order away falls to whoever is available, so don't hesitate to pitch in when you can! If you need to stay close by, you can help out by pulling all of the items that go behind the bar or in the refrigerator. Also, if no one is around you'll need to rotate the frozen goods into the freezer downstairs. If you don't have time, make sure someone else gets on it before things thaw out too much. All said and done, you'll be surprised how the small things make such a big difference when everyone forms the habit of helping out! Your co-workers will LOVE you when you leave them a well-stocked, clean, and organized work space. And we will too!
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