Service Improvements at Greenhouse Market
Greenhouse Market is committed to continually improving the customer service experience and our operational efficiency. A recent survey of our own operations and those of our competitors has revealed some areas where Greenhouse Market can make improvements in both of these areas, which will increase the company's profit potential.
The current ordering system takes 4.6 minutes from the time that the customer orders to the time at which the customer is served. Our staff is sometimes overwhelmed, and this results in reduced customer service as bottlenecks occur. Through a program of benchmarking our operations against the industry leaders, we have identified ways to eliminate these bottlenecks. There are three key steps that need to be undertaken.
The first step is to streamline the ordering process. We will add a second cash register, so that counter staff no longer need to wait for the register to be free. The new ordering taking system will be electronic, so that the preparation staff sees the order immediately as it is placed, without any direct communication from the counter staff. This system is in use at the Lame Duck, which has an order-to-eat time of 2.7 minutes. The drinks fridge will be situated at the cash register, to maximize impulse beverage purchases. Customers will continue to pay immediately.
The second step is to retrain one of the counter staff to become a sandwich prep. Our current ratio of 3 counter staff to 1 sandwich prep is the highest among our competitors. In contrast, Kimmie's Kitchen with an order-to-eat time of 2.3 minutes has one counter staff for three sandwich preps. They do not have any bottlenecks in sandwich preparation. Having two counter staff and two sandwich preps will alleviate our current bottleneck.
The third step is to have the customers pick up their own orders when the order is ready. The customer will wait at the sandwich counter for their order to be picked up. This reduces the workload for the counter staff, which will now remain at their workstations for the duration of the lunch rush. The customer will pick up coffee and desert at the same time. Trays should be provided to assist customers in getting their food to the table.
To summarize the specific steps we need to undertake:
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