by Matthias Kausch, MKRMS Wexford (mkausch@mkrms.com)
Imagine this: After returning from a three-week holiday in the sun, you are visiting your favourite coffee bar for lunch. But today, things seem different: while staff are still friendly they are offering you more extras than usual, the place is not as spotlessly clean as it used to be and the quality of foods has noticeably gone down. Ingredients for sandwiches that three weeks ago would have gone straight to the bin are now being served to unsuspecting customers, staffing levels have noticeably decreased, and the staff serving behind the counter seem to be less competent than before. These are signs that recession has finally arrived in your neck of the woods! But how would you react to your observations? Would you be able to understand the explanations of the Restaurant Manager who speaks of having to cut cost, high staff turnover, the difficulty of finding experienced staff and having to reduce wastage? Could you develop compassionate feelings towards the business owner who is trying to save his business at your expense? Chances are high you would decide to look for a new favourite lunch venue - one where you could once again lunch with your mind at ease because you know you are being served safe food from competent staff in a relaxed and friendly atmpsphere!
Since you are nothing less than an average customer, it is likely that you will not be the only one to make this decision. Sooner or later the business owner will find him- or herself in the unpleasant position to be put out of business by his/her regular customers who in their majority have decided it was time for a change!
What can you do to avoid a mass exodus of customers whose loyalty and trust you have worked hard to get and retain?
1. Adopt a planned approach to cost-cutting: Analyse the strenghts and weaknesses of your business before you make quick decisions on cutting costs.
2. Tighten the reigns rather than to take short cuts. Supervise staff better and instruct them to utilise resources more efficiently (e.g. not to waste food, streamline portions). Don't allow the quality of service to fall below the accepted standard. Even though you might to be forced to make compromises, don't to cut costs at the expense of food safety.
3. Work on retaining your qualified staff and build on their qualification. It is cheaper to keep an experienced and qualified employee than to train someone new to the level of experience and qualification of their predecessor. Ensure you replace qualified staff with employees that are similarly experienced and qualified.
4. Operate a 'quality control' system for your employees' skills. Know their competency level and allow them to learn and gain new competencies. Upskilling of employees may help you to streamline your operation.
5. Do not stop training! The biggest source for food safety lapses are poorly qualified or untrained employees. Training might come at an initial expense. It will pay off, tough, through increased staff and customer satisfaction. Cutting training and staff qualification is a road that leads to trouble and maybe disaster.
For more information on food safety training, MKRMS training courses in your area and other services MKRMS has to offer visit http://www.mkrms.com
MKRMS Food Safety Training March/April 2007
Basic Food Hygiene: Training for all employees in food businesses.
This course meets the requirements for food safety training as recommended by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI).
Duration: 7 hours Price: €120.00 per participant Certification: MKRMS Achievement Certificate*
4th March 2009: Basic Food Hygiene Course: Dungarvan, Co. Waterford
11th March 2009: Basic Food Hygiene Course: Carlow Town
25th March 2009: Basic Food Hygiene Course: Waterford City
1st April 2009: Basic Food Hygiene Course: Kilkenny City
22nd April 2009: Basic Food Hygiene Course: Gorey, Co. Wexford
Food Safety Essentials: Training for beginners or employees with little exposure to food preparation.
This course covers the essentials of food safety and hygiene. It is ideal to provide new food handlers with the knowledge they need for a safe start!
Duration: 3.5 hours Price: €50.00 per participant Certification: MKRMS Attendance Certificate*
3rd March 2009: Food Safety Essentials: Clonmel, Co. Tipperary
24th March 2009: Food Safety Essentials: Gorey, Co. Wexford
7th April 2009: Food Safety Essentials: Carlow Town
28th April 2009: Food Safety Essentials: Waterford City
Call us for any other staff training requirement you might have: food safety re-training, food safety induction training, operational training solutions...
We can help you sort your training needs!
* Achievement Certificate issued to participants who pass the written examination at the end of the course. All other participants are issued a Certificate of Attendance for the course.
Dont Miss Out - Download MKRMS Training Dates to Your PC Calender Application!
MKRMS Food Safety Training and Consulting are offering you the unique opportunity to download their training schedule for 2009 in .ics format. This type of file allows you to import all MKRMS Training Dates 2009 into your PC calender application (Outlook, Entourage, iCal and many more).
You can find the download here: Download MKRMS Training Dates 2009
Alternatively, you can have a good look around our website and find out what services we have on offer for the food retail and catering industries.
You can find the download here: Download MKRMS Training Dates 2009
Alternatively, you can have a good look around our website and find out what services we have on offer for the food retail and catering industries.
MKRMS Training Courses March 2009
MKRMS Food Safety Training and Consulting will hold the following food safety training courses in March 2009:
3rd March 2009: Food Safety Essentials, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary - € 50.00 per person attending
4th March 2009, Basic Food Hygiene, Dungarvan, Co. Waterford - € 120.00 per person attending
11th March 2009, Basic Food Hygiene, Carlow Town, € 120.00 per person attending
24th March 2009, Food Safety Essentials, Gorey, Co. Wexford - € 50.00 per person attending
25th March 2009, Basic Food Hygiene, Waterford City - € 120.00 per person attending
To book, contact Matthias Kausch on 086-835 55 46 or email training@mkrms.com with your details and a reference to the course you want to attend.
3rd March 2009: Food Safety Essentials, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary - € 50.00 per person attending
4th March 2009, Basic Food Hygiene, Dungarvan, Co. Waterford - € 120.00 per person attending
11th March 2009, Basic Food Hygiene, Carlow Town, € 120.00 per person attending
24th March 2009, Food Safety Essentials, Gorey, Co. Wexford - € 50.00 per person attending
25th March 2009, Basic Food Hygiene, Waterford City - € 120.00 per person attending
To book, contact Matthias Kausch on 086-835 55 46 or email training@mkrms.com with your details and a reference to the course you want to attend.
Food Safety Training in February: Co. Wexford - Places still available
MKRMS Food Safety Training and Consulting will hold two food safety training courses in Co. Wexford in February:
18. February 2009: Basic Food Hygiene, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford
24. February 2009, Food Safety Essentials, Wexford Town
Places for these courses are still available. Booking is strictly on a first come first serve basis, so book your places quickly!
Basic Food Hygiene is a one-day course (9.30 to 5.30) and costs € 120.00 per person.
Food Safety Essentials is a 1/2-day course and costs € 50.00 per person.
To book, contact Matthias Kausch on 086-835 55 46 or email training@mkrms.com with your details and a reference to the course you want to attend.
18. February 2009: Basic Food Hygiene, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford
24. February 2009, Food Safety Essentials, Wexford Town
Places for these courses are still available. Booking is strictly on a first come first serve basis, so book your places quickly!
Basic Food Hygiene is a one-day course (9.30 to 5.30) and costs € 120.00 per person.
Food Safety Essentials is a 1/2-day course and costs € 50.00 per person.
To book, contact Matthias Kausch on 086-835 55 46 or email training@mkrms.com with your details and a reference to the course you want to attend.
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