COMMUNICATION RECOMMENDATIONS

CASE STUDY: Sai nong Restaurants

Shyam Bhanderi, Liz Brown, Rushil Chawla, Lisa Grant and Prashant Kumar

CASE SUMMARY

● This case looks at a small restaurant business in the food and hospitality industry expanding to a multinational franchise.

● A Chinese restaurant chain in Spain is purchased by an American Food Industry Holding.

● When the business starts to expand, the discrepancies between management and employees increase.

KEY PROBLEMS ● Language Barriers ● Unequal distribution of power ● Improper modes of communication ● Lack of information being transferred between departments and from

head office

● No standard operations process (i.e. recipes passed on orally in Chinese) ● Lack of common language ● Lack of understanding and trust leads to underlying issues, which results

eventually in the form of a strike

EVIDENCE/ANALYSIS

● External rotation index – 60% among waiters, 30% among management

● 14 out of the 27 restaurants went on strike (over 100 cooks)

RISK/BENEFITS

“First, in the absence of a shared language, directo communication between HQ and subsidiaries is virtually impossible. The main solutions would be to find alternative communication channels (e.g. translators) in the short term and to implement focused language training or selective recruitment to improve language skills in the longer term.” – Harzing, A.W., Koster, K. Magner, U.

EVALUATE POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS – Nov. 13

Team integration

Engagement program

Management hierarchy

Staff transfers

Performance reviews

Communication model

COURSE OF ACTIONS Team Integration & Engagement

Team integration through weekly meetings – over a meal.

Engagement program – soccer tournament with other restaurants to build team cohesion, send/invite staff to food festivals, potluck, once a year staff party,

Management Hierarchy

Ensure Americans meet with each staff member to understand what they love about their job prior to making any big changes. This will help determine how macro changes impact staff on a micro level.

Oversee both kitchen and floor staff, and emphasize all staff answer to this manager. Provide sufficient managerial training for this role and ongoing support.

COURSE OF ACTIONS

Management Hierarchy (Cont’d)

Implement a standard of operations and a policies and procedures manual. All staff must have read and signed the manual prior to starting work.

Staff Transfers

Implement a probation period. Staff cannot be transferred prior to probation period. If staff transfer is required, management must have a conversation with the employee before transfer occurs.

Performance Reviews

Performance reviews occur regularly, along with a rewards and recognition program.

COMMUNICATION MODEL

English will be the common language of communication

Use Schramm’s Model of Communication: Focus on ensuring the two-way communication is accurately delivered and received.

Emphasize open and interactive communication: Use motivational Ted Talks to inspire staff to share their views and experiences freely.

It will require employers and employees to meet and patiently ensure both parties understand the topics discussed.

Time for questions and clarification will be built into each meeting.

COMMUNICATION RECOMMENDATIONS

● Implement a common language among different departments ● Provide English language training for all staff ● Build in day-to-day redundancy: Ask for clarity ● Document all recipes out in Chinese, English and Spanish: allow for cultural

integration of cooks, as a franchise has been decided.

● Every employee must adhere to the guidelines and policies of the company. ● Allow employees to code switch in order to speak their language and allow for

their richness of culture.

● Provide sufficient time to communicate any changes to staff

RECOMMEND & JUSTIFY BEST COURSE OF ACTION – 16 Nov

EMPHASIS ON SINGLE CONCEPT – 16 Nov