Prepare before the first shift
Assign a trainer and prepare the first-week plan. Clarify role expectations, scheduling contacts, training priorities, and where the new hire can ask for help.
- Have HR advisers confirm required employment paperwork.
- Provide role-specific operating and safety training.
- Make the first-shift contact clear.
Use observable milestones
A training milestone describes a skill the new hire can demonstrate. Reading a document alone does not show that someone can execute during service.
- List the essential tasks for the role.
- Schedule practice and feedback with a trainer.
- Record support needs without collecting unnecessary personal information.
Check in consistently
Use short first-week and first-month conversations to understand what is clear, what is difficult, and what support is missing.
- Ask for specific examples.
- Agree on one or two next steps.
- Review the onboarding process when several hires encounter the same issue.
PUT IT TO WORK
Give the next step an owner and a review date.
Use this guide to structure a team conversation. Document the assumptions, choose a focused action, and revisit the result.
Explore restaurant calculatorsEducational operating guidance. Adapt the process to your restaurant and review professional matters with the relevant qualified advisers.