[Thanksgiving Special] Giving Back to Your Employees
Four well-known food and beverage brands and the retention tactics behind their low turnover, from creative hiring to upward mobility and benefits.
With Thanksgiving and Black Friday around the corner, restaurants, cafes, and local businesses are building new strategies to make the most of holiday season demand. In the rush, it is easy to forget what makes these businesses work: the people behind the counter. This post looks at how four well-known brands hire the right people, keep them happy, and lower their turnover.
1. Starbucks: benefits that matter to workers
Starbucks treats turnover as a problem worth solving, and one way it does that is by offering benefits that are unusual for the quick-service beverage category.
Full-time and part-time employees can receive tuition reimbursement for online education programs, and front-line workers can be eligible for an equity reward program. The company also listens to its employees and makes retention a priority from the start.
2. Greyston Bakery: a creative hiring strategy
Greyston Bakery in Yonkers, New York built its reputation on Open Hiring, a process where anyone can be hired without a background check, resume, or interview. Instead of applying directly, interested workers add their name to a waitlist. When their name reaches the top, they are hired.
The bakery pairs that approach with positive company culture, and it partners with community programs and financial institutions to give workers access to important services. A little kindness goes a long way.
3. Pal's Sudden Service: hire for attitude, train for skill
According to Inc.com, Pal's Sudden Service, a drive-thru burger and hot dog chain in Kingsport, Tennessee, has an unusually low turnover rate, with only seven managers leaving over a span of 33 years.
Inc.com reports that the secret is hiring for attitude rather than skill. Every potential employee takes a custom qualitative survey built around the traits of Pal's best performers, which helps the chain predict who will succeed on the job. New hires then go through a rigorous training program.
4. General Mills: upward mobility for higher retention
General Mills owns major brands such as Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Nature Valley, and Pillsbury, and it treats employee retention as a priority. One reason people stay is the clear path for growth within the company.
Many management roles are filled by internal hires, so young employees who start there have room to advance. That focus on upward mobility helps the company keep people for the long term.
Have a happy Thanksgiving, and take a moment this holiday season to do something special for your employees, even if it is just a complimentary brownie.
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