How to Reduce your Restaurant Tech Stack

You wouldn’t go to three different grocery stores to make a sandwich, so why do 68% of restaurant operators currently work with at least three different tech vendors to manage their team? Ben Torres at The Menagerie Hospitality Group says it all:

“I was overseeing multiple [restaurant] concepts, there were multiple tools being used by multiple concepts, and having to log in and out, back and forth, having to remember all these different passwords, it became so cumbersome—it almost reached the point of a panic attack where you're like there's gotta be a better way."

7shifts set out to solve this industry challenge by building a true all-in-one app that serves the entire restaurant employee lifecycle from hiring, training, and scheduling to paying and retaining. With our most recent product expansions into the pay sector, we’re thrilled our vision has now become a reality.

When we say all-in-one, what does that actually mean? It means everything you need to manage your team is in one place. When your tools are under one roof, they work as one ecosystem that functions together. Your tech troubles are reduced because information automatically flows between tools. You don’t have to spend time switching platforms or hunting down and updating information more than once. From posting the help wanted ad to their last paycheck, you never have to leave 7shifts to manage that team member’s journey working at your restaurant.

Why acing the employee lifecycle matters

The employee lifecycle holds one of the keys to restaurant success for owners and operators.

1. It directly influences the quality of service and the dining experience for customers. Well-trained and engaged staff contribute to better customer satisfaction.
2. Restaurant operators who pay attention to the employee lifecycle can reduce the high turnover associated with our industry.
3. A well-managed employee lifecycle contributes to a positive workplace culture, a happier team, and improved retention—one of the industry’s top issues.

Ultimately, we want to put more time back into managers' hands to allow them to spend more time with their guests, employees, management team, and on development. The goal is to eliminate a lot of the manual work that's being done in restaurants today. When we think about helping restaurants, we’re thinking about streamlining all levels of restaurant operations.

The 7shifts Difference

A 2023 Market Leader Report by Nation’s Restaurant News found 34% of respondents currently use 3-4 tech vendors while 27% use 5-9. When all those operations are consolidated under one platform, it creates a smoother and faster experience. Data automatically flows, opportunities become clearer, and there’s only one password you and your staff need to remember. Added up, using 7shifts’ full suite of tools save operators 79 hours and over $2,100 a month.

Hire

It’s hard to find good staff. So hard in fact, that according to our recent Industry Report, it’s the #1 challenge post-pandemic for restaurateurs. 7shifts makes it easy to post job listings to Indeed, track and rank applicants, manage application information, and handle onboarding, tax forms, and documentation—all in one app. 7shifts' Hiring tools help to reduce the average expense of hiring a new employee. Not to mention the 12 hours a month in savings from manually tracking employee documents and certifications.

Train

A restaurant operator has an ever-expanding to-do list. The last thing they need is to stay on top of their team's list, too. That’s where 7shifts’ Task Management and Team Communication tools come in. No need for paper checklists, loose sheets, random WhatsApp groups, or telephone tag. Training documents, videos, and company updates are consolidated in one place and can be quickly shared to individuals or cohorts. Assign a veteran server to a custom training task list so they can show the ropes to the newbie. Then track their progress even when you’re on the go with the free 7shifts mobile app.

Schedule

Spreadsheets or whiteboards are a thing of the past. So are headaches from guessing how much staff you’ll need at a particular time, or pencil scratches to update the schedule. Spend 65% less time scheduling with 7shifts’ automated restaurant scheduling that factors in your restaurant's projected demand for a shift, employee availability that workers submit themselves, and then generates a schedule—all in minutes. Built-in labor compliance surfaces up to 341 monthly labor law infractions, equalling $589.

Take it from Jason Elmassian, GM of Hugo's Studio City:

"I just get a message, ‘Hey, I'm swapping shifts'. I hit accept or decline, and that's it. That's the end of it for me. It's wonderful. It's super nice. I cannot stress enough how much time I save not micromanaging people's schedules and their shifts."

Pay

Historically, paying tips and running restaurant payroll has been a manual process that frankly, takes forever to complete (we’ve found time savings of up to 34 hours per month with just Tip Pooling alone). Automation with 7shifts takes the journeys of how and when tips get pooled, calculated, and distributed along with wage earnings and puts them on hyperspeed with completion in just a few clicks.

Take it from one of our early Payroll adopters, Fahad Hanif, an Owner/Operator at Halal Guys in Kansas City, Missouri:

"I was drawn to 7shifts because of their simple and easy interface for scheduling, but when I found out they also did payroll, it was a no-brainer. My employees got set up via the 7shifts mobile app in 10 minutes, and I'm already saving hours of time when it comes to processing payroll. Total game changer."

Retain

An anonymous operator shared with us, “[Our] greatest challenge is staff retention. It affects the business by not being able to run efficiently because of staff turnover and not being there long enough to finish training."

Our Engage tool directly combats this common industry challenge with actionable team insights to improve coaching, get ahead of operational issues, and reduce turnover. 88% of teams using Engage report improved team morale, retention, or performance, which is a huge win in the current industry conditions.

What's Next

As we look ahead, we at 7shifts are excited about the developments on the horizon:

1. Our unwavering commitment to enhancing the user experience will be at the forefront of our efforts, ensuring that 7shifts is even more intuitive and efficient than ever before.
2. You can expect to see a wealth of data-backed insights at your fingertips, empowering you to make informed decisions to better manage your restaurant team.
3. We're working on new ways to engage your team and manage their performance effectively. Building stronger connections within your team is crucial for a thriving restaurant with strong employee retention.
4. We're doubling down on making our tips and payroll products even more robust. We understand the importance of accurate and efficient team payments, and are committed to equipping you with top-notch solutions to simplify the process.

Brent Beatty

VP of Product @ 7shifts. He grew up in restaurants and has done it all from cooking and cleaning to serving, bartending, and managing. He now helps make team management easier for restaurants.