Swipe Right to Unlock Your Business’s True Potential

In this episode of the Restaurant Success Podcast, veteran restaurant advisor Matthew Mabel explores how to identify and hire "the one" person who could transform your multi-unit independent restaurant business from reliable to exceptional. This comprehensive guide for restaurant entrepreneurs covers the most common missing pieces in restaurant operations, from operations directors to business managers, and explains how the right hire can increase profits by 2-3 points while providing owners with newfound freedom and flexibility. Whether you're struggling with business administration, need culinary expertise to stay competitive, or require learning and development support to enhance guest experiences, this episode provides actionable strategies for restaurant owners looking to scale their operations and achieve sustainable business growth through strategic hiring decisions.

Key Topics Covered

• Identifying your restaurant business's missing piece - the key person who can elevate operations
• The five most common strategic hires for multi-unit restaurant entrepreneurs: operations director, business manager/CFO, learning and development specialist, culinary expert, and company president
• How operations directors can increase restaurant profits by 2-3 points beyond their compensation while providing owners weekend freedom
• The business case for hiring administrative support to free owners for guest attraction and revenue-generating activities
• Why learning and development expertise is increasingly crucial for exceptional guest experiences and count growth
• When to refresh culinary talent to stay competitive with discerning restaurant guests
• Strategic considerations for hiring a company president and transferring operational control
• How to supervise and develop team members at levels you've never managed before
• Why "fake it 'til you make it" fails in restaurant business leadership and team development

Links Mentioned

• Restaurateurs When You Lack Experience, Add Someone Who Has It: https://surrender.biz/restaurateurs-when-you-lack-experience-add-someone-who-has-it/
• Smart Restaurateurs' Guide to Hiring Your First Operations Director: https://surrender.biz/smart-restaurateurs-guide-to-hiring-your-first-operations-director/

Resources Mentioned

• Website: www.surrender.biz
• Free initial consultation available

Connect with Matthew Mabel

Matthew works with owners of successful, independent, multi-unit restaurants to improve:

• Profit growth
• Sales optimization
• Guest count increase
• Unit expansion
• Employee engagement
• Brand loyalty

How to Support the Show

• Subscribe to the Restaurant Success Podcast and Newsletter
• Rate and review the show
• Visit www.surrender.biz for additional resources

Transcript

Hello, and welcome to the Restaurant Success Podcast. I'm Matthew Mabel, veteran restaurant advisor, coach, consultant, and speaker devoted to multi-unit independent restaurant unit, profit and revenue growth, internal harmony and ownership freedom and flexibility.

This is your weekly entree of the advice, strategy and tactics that I currently provide to my best clients.

Today we're going to talk about finding your business's missing piece. That one person who could transform your entire operation from reliable to exceptional.

Think of it like finding The One, in your personal life, except this is the business version.

We'll explore who this missing piece might be for your restaurant, how to identify what you need, and why making this hire could be the single most important decision you make this year.

You know, finally finding "the one" - the person your company has missed for its entire life - makes an incredible difference. This missing piece allows you to overcome the barriers between reliable and exceptional success. It's like a business version of a romance novel, but very real.

But who is "the one" for your business? Well, that all depends on you - the owner and founder. This missing piece revolves around something you don't excel at, that you undervalue, that you lack experience with, or that you feel stuck doing which makes you borderline miserable while you handle it.

Let me walk you through the most common people my clients add to their teams, and the incredible results they see.

In many cases, the missing piece is an operations director who installs proven best practices. The result for my clients who go this route? 

Well, profits increase by two to three points in excess of the amount of their new operations director's compensation package.

That financial benefit also brings you the joy of increased personal freedom. It gave one of my clients the amazing chance to not work weekends for the first time in their life. For another, it allowed them to go on more memorable vacations for longer periods of time.

In other cases, the missing piece is a business manager or CFO to handle the world of administration - letting the owner focus on what they truly love: attracting new guests. The time they once devoted to insurance, accounting, and talking to the bank, they now spend doing what they love and having a lot more fun at work.

Increasingly, the missing piece is a learning-and-development person. In a world where fantastic guest experiences raise all-important guest count, my clients look at adding someone who redesigns and reinforces educating team members in an innovative way - delivering results that significantly exceed leaving this up to unit managers.

Some of my clients add culinary expertise when their tired menus lead to concepts that find it hard to keep up with the competition. With more discerning and educated guests opening your menu in your dining room every day, refreshed culinary talent can be the difference between attracting and repelling diners.

Lastly, other clients hire a company president to completely take the reins when ownership does a gut check and has a willingness to really let go.

Now, let me explain how this actually works in practice.

A lot of my advisory work revolves around identifying the right position and person to add to my clients' teams. I collaborate with recruiters to identify, enroll, and hire these people. I also coach these new leaders on how to adapt and integrate and also coach owners on inspiring and developing people who rise to a level in their area that my clients have never supervised before.

If you could think of one person to add to your organization who would elevate your success, who would it be?

I can read your mind as you tell yourself, "In a flat market, I don't want to spend the money."

But, that money currently leaks out of your profit and loss statement and you can't see it. Each of these people - when hired and onboarded correctly - stops those leaks, and paying for themselves is just the beginning.

Before we finish today's episode, I want to tell you about two articles I've written in the past which are relevant to today's episode. I've made sure to link both articles in the show notes for this episode.

First, if you're thinking about this concept but wondering how to actually supervise someone at a level you've never managed before, I've written about what happens when restaurateurs lack experience in an area.

The key insight is that "fake it 'til you make it" is a horrible strategy for developing a multi-unit team. Many successful restaurant owners have only worked at a high level in their own company, so when they need to hire and develop people at positions they've never supervised before, they need external guidance. 

And, I've linked a comprehensive guide specifically for hiring your first operations director, since that's one of the most common and impactful hires my clients make. It covers the three most important criteria to look for, including finding someone with experience in a company bigger than yours and ensuring they have true respect for what you've accomplished. The results can be transformative - I've seen clients increase their cash flow and net worth by five hundred percent after making this hire. 

So - make sure you check out both articles. 

Let me tell you about how we might work together. I work with owners of successful, independent, multi-unit restaurants to grow their profit, sales, guest count, and unit count. My unique approach bonds employees and guests to restaurant brands and allows owners to enjoy the freedom and flexibility they have earned.

To schedule a call with me to discuss how to achieve your biggest goals, follow the link in the show notes. The initial consultation is complimentary, and we can discuss which big moves might be right for your operation.

Thanks for listening. If you haven't already subscribed to the Restaurant Success Podcast and Newsletter podcast, please do so, and rate and review the show. Find more information in the show notes at Restaurant Success Podcast dot com.

Also find tons of information you can use in print, audio and video form at my website, www dot surrender dot biz. Thanks again and see you next time.