Listen and Learn

Headsets improve customer service and keep crews on the same wavelength.

By Derek Gale, Associate Editor -- Restaurants & Institutions, 3/1/2007

When Jack in the Box redesigned drive-thrus, wireless headsets were added to help speed service.

Upscale independents, often known for attentive service, are learning a thing or two from drive-thru operations when it comes to speeding service. Headsets, a drive-thru staple, are one of the ways QSR technology is helping larger restaurants operate more efficiently.

At the 16,000-square-foot Buddakan in New York City, headsets allow managers scattered across the vast restaurant to stay in touch with the maître d’ as well as with kitchen managers. Constant communication quickens turn times, which leads to improved revenue.

"We are high volume, so being able to seat quickly is important," says Kelley Jones, vice president of restaurant operations for Philadelphia-based Starr Restaurant Organization, the multiconcept operator behind 320-seat Buddakan.

Alerting the front door that a table is paying and leaving shortly allows a new group of guests to be staged, so there is minimal down time, Jones says. "In some cases we are putting down the last silverware as a new party is being seated."

When using headsets, employees are conscious of providing a personal guest experience, he adds. That means removing earpieces when talking with guests. This also eliminates the perception that restaurants may be taking their use of technology too seriously.

Headsets keep managers connected to operations across many foodservice segments. At Miami University (above) in Oxford, Ohio, Assistant Director of Student Dining Mike Mitroi uses walkie-talkie units for concessions. "Our managers monitor cross-talk and listen for any problems," he says. "If anything comes up, managers can assist and support staff members."

At Prairie du Sac, Wis.-based Culver’s Frozen Custard and ButterBurgers, managers wear headsets to monitor drive-thru traffic and redeploy workers as needed. And Jack in the Box made new headsets part of last year’s makeover of drive-thru operations.

The San Diego-based chain’s new wireless headsets, which do not require belt packs, allow for hands-free communication, so employees can talk with guests and prepare orders simultaneously. Multiple channels also enable crews to take customer orders while talking with each other on a private channel.

Lisa McDaniels, manager for campus dining services at the University of Missouri, Columbia, is another big believer in headsets contributing to better service in large operations. But she admits that employees do not always feel the same. "At first, staff thought the headsets were great, but then the newness wore off and they didn’t want to wear them. I had to remind them on a daily basis," McDaniels explains.

Some of her employees would say they were not wearing them because the headsets gave them headaches; others didn’t like sharing the earpiece with colleagues. Perhaps the largest issue, though, was that after two years, many of the expensive headsets had disappeared: The department was down to only six pair after starting with 18. "We had a good system of signing the headsets in and out," McDaniels says, "but we kind of neglected the sheet for a while, and that’s when they got lost or thrown out by accident. I would suggest that there be some inventory system in place."