Feedback is all around us. From the customers, staff, and the business itself, we can only make great decisions for the coffee shop when we practice listening to understand. Trouble is we often avoid listening for fear of what we will hear, or because we falsely think we know what someone thinks or that their opinion cannot be helpful due …
It’s a common belief that there are not enough hours in the day to do the work that we need to get done in order to run a good coffee shop. The truth of the matter is that, more than a lack of time, this feeling is a result of poor time management. In particular, not having appropriately set and …
In our pursuit of optimization, analysis, scientific rigor, and financial success, we may find ourselves wondering, “where is the life in all of this?” Could it be that in dissecting every inch of our business, we have inadvertently killed it? Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the need to remain connected to and act from the heart. …
The experience of the customer day-in and day-out is often treated as a given. Something that is expected, but not something that is earned. We work to The real focus of our efforts should be on training and resourcing our staff to deliver a consistently excellent product, space, and hospitality experience every time. Are we truly doing that? Today on …
Changing things in the cafe tends to focus on image and expression. Maybe we upgrade branding, focus our menu, change lighting, furniture etc. But what is even more important in the quest to make positive changes as your grow, it to pay attention to the heart of the operation that supports everything else. Today on Shift Break we will be …
There is far more going on behind the scenes of your numbers than just meeting your metrics. The money that flows in and out of the business is the life blood that represents health, trust, activity, and the growth of the whole. Trouble is we either focus on it alone, or we try not to focus on it at all. …
Quality of the coffee, experience, service, and just about anything else in the cafe will always be something an owner and leader focuses on. These days we tend to concentrate our efforts on the acquiring of quality, instead of the creation of it. All the potential those great beans, your wonderful staff, and even our space have, is just potential …
It seems like the conversation we have around what can be done for staff to create more value, longevity, etc never gets around to a place where you can look at what you are doing and have done and say, you know what, that’s pretty good, that is enough. Honestly it feels weird even typing it because we do want …
It could be roasting, kitchen, drive thru, bakery, or any other area of where special focus is required or different systems and staff work all under the same brand and even under the same roof. When you have multiple departments you need to create a plan to bring prevent silos and promote harmony. Today on Shift Break we will be …
We all want to see positive growth and good numbers in our cafe. We also want to see the ROI for the effort we put in to generate those numbers. For many, to look at the reports and see profit and everything looking healthy is a sure sign that all is well and we are doing the right things. The …
