So there has been a great response from owners and managers over on the other thread:
I hope that all you baristas have been reading the responses seriously. Here at Cafe Kuba lwe are in the midst of hiring and I wish that some of our potential new hires expressed the things listed in the responses. There is gold in them thar hills! So if you just glanced over it it as so much "blah, blah, blah" do yourself a favor and re-read it and apply what you read.
Now...I want to hear from the baristas only!
BARISTAS! What is it that you wish your boss knew?
As a work a day barista for just about all my career I will start...(also as a manager these are things I strive for...
1. Communicate and demonstrate your expectations...regularly.
This one for me has always been a frustration. It should be clear from the previous discussion that the world of an owner or boss can be wrought with many distractions that steal attention away from the most important aspect of the cafe. THE STAFF! Seriously. You can have the worlds best coffee and best equipment and best macro photography of both of those things and it won't matter to the customer if the staff is neglected. There is nothing more frustrating than the lack of communicated expectations. Many baristas just want to know they are doing well, making progress, and pleasing their boss. They quickly give up on this notion when they realize their boss is doling out blanket compliments not based on true knowledge or observation but in the spirit of shallow praise. I want honest, well thought out, circumstantially well informed, and helpful praise and criticism.Don't praise me if I don't deserve praise. I can see through it and it perpetuates the communication problem.
2. Be on my side...
This is not a one way street. Baristas must take up the cause of their employer as their own or else they ought not expect their boss to do the same. That said, there are many times when a boss will treat a barista with condescension in front of a customer or supplier etc. Using the barista as scapegoat for the problem at hand. Even if it was the baristas fault...and not the customers...use the word "we" be diplomatic, address the problem later if you must one-on-one...but there is nothing as demoralizing as being thrown under the bus in front of the people you see everyday, and your boss does not. Often times a boss will create a difficult scenario and leave the scene. Leaving it up to the baristas to bear the brunt of their decisions. As a boss if you do not feel the weight of your decisions then you are entirely too detached. If you do not stand by your employees they will not be inspired to take on the commission of your shop. You are the boss...you fall on the sword, you are to blame, and you get the credit. It goes hand in hand.
3. I have a life outside coffee.
This one is tricky because, well, much of my life IS coffee...but really I cannot expect my baristas to share in this because they are meant for other things. As a boss, you are often times staffed by those who have both talent in coffee AND in say music, engineering, social work etc...they are ambitious in both. Don't pour any contempt on the non coffee related ambitions by purposing to not invest into that staff member who YOU HIRED but is not as available as the full time employees. The are just as valuable.
So these are just a few things off the top of my head here.
Baristas, what say you?
PLEASE NOTE THIS! :
Make your posts civil and polite. If you know your boss reads this sites threads then I would encourage you to go to your boss first and tell them these things, then post...it would be terribly awkward for your boss to find out about these things first on line.
You guys are the backbone of this industry and I know you have a lot to offer in way of helpful feedback to those who make your jobs possible.
So lets hear it!
-cd
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