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Quick, Affordable
Training Ken
Burgin
Feeling guilty when training is
mentioned? Everyone believes in it, and no-one does
enough. But when you structure it into short and
frequent chunks, it's surprising how much can be
achieved in a few months.
You can't close up shop while a training session is
on, and it's rare to have all the staff present at one
time. In fact there may never be a time for a training
session when 'everyone is together at the same time'.
This is where twenty minute sessions work so well -
don't wait for everyone, but run short sessions with
whoever's available. No-one misses out, they just do it
next time.
#1: Kitchen Staff
Product
knowledge, speed and techniques will be prime issues.
Use picture books of ingredients (often found on the
sale table at bookshops). If you don't have celeriac,
ochra or honeycomb on hand and you want to show
them, books are useful. Another useful book will be one
that shows the meat cuts of different animals come from
eg the scotch fillet, sirloin and rump on a cow.
Show people how to use Wikipedia, the online
encyclopedia. See it's entries for ochra and honey. Online ability to search and find
information is one of the new skills that staff will
need to acquire sooner or later.
Marketing organisations like Meat &
Livestock are helpful, or find charts and diagrams
by searching for resources online like this. Now is the time for someone
to call one of these well-funded organisations to obtain
training resources. Other technical skills will involve
using the electronic controls of cooking equipment.
In twenty minutes you can only look at one particular
physical skill, but it's a start. Try filleting and
boning meat or fish. Dicing, julienne and chiffonnade of
vegetables. Use the timer to see how long it takes to
fillet or prepare a certain amount of product, with
cheering and prizes when the goal is reached.
Calculations and number skills may be weak, so
short sessions with calculators will be useful - how
much yield do you get from trimming a fish or strip of
meat, how to cost a recipe, working out menu profits or
multiplying quantities.
Buy some cheap calculators (with large buttons) from
a bargain shop and get people practicing. Download the
Calculator Instructions to get started,
and move onto simple Recipe Cards and Yield Testing.
Show them how to use the online Yield Calculator. If you have a laptop,
it adds to the range of what can be done - simple
spreadsheets are great for demonstrating the effect of
cost and recipe changes on profit margins.
Check the 'Modern Skills for Chefs' article in the Young Chefs department on this site.
Go to Sections #2: Wait Staff and #3: Bar
Staff in the Members Section.
You can join online or by using this form. Members have access to a wide
range of downloadable training tools and
material.
| 
Chicago Tour
2007
