Introduction
The objective of this document is to prepare the appropriate staffing plan for small business enterprise Ozero Tea Shop & Desserts, located in Little Tokyo, LA. To be able to prepare this outline it was decided to conduct an interview with the shop manager and gather some of the critical data required to make assumptions and evaluate the need for the staffing plan (Merchant, 2012). The following conditions determine the scope of human capacity and demand for specific functions that will be outlined further:
- The establishment works on average 12 hours per day with slight 30 deviations in working hours across the weekdays.
- Average capacity utilization is 87%, based on the weekly demand.
- The teashop experiences 20% seasonality between the study seasons, whereas the demand drops during the school vacation periods.
- Weekly capacity utilization varies in a way that Thursday, Friday and Saturday the establishment reaches 100% of its seating capacity and other days of the week it drops down to minimum 60%.
- The slack period of the operations is between 4pm and 6.30pm during the week. Peak hours are between 11.30am – 2pm and between 7pm and 9pm.
Operational layout of the establishment is represented by lean operation and functional layout with a single cashier and bar setting, where people can order their food, receive it and occupy the table. Often, during the busy hours tea shop staff would bring the order to the table. With the given information, it was decided that current operational and staffing setting does not represent the most effective structure. There is a clear need for additional staff and several functions that could be combined and reorganized to reduce the need for additional human resources.
Current Functional Areas Setting
The nature of the business allows running reasonably lean operation that involves five core functional areas: 1) Back office operations, 2) Front Desk staff, 3) Saloon operations and 4) Operational management. Back office operation is represented by two individual functions that include accounting and HR responsibilities and currently are occupied by two different individuals, working separately during the week with standard 8 hours shift. Front desk operation is built in a way to have three people working at the bar, individually involved in cashier operation, serving and bartender. None of these functions has cross-functional training and the restaurant at all times has three people at the front desk. Total number of employees for the functional area is six and they work with differentiated shift across the week. Saloon operation is run by two waiters and the bus-boy that take care of the cleaning as well as assistance on order delivery. This functional area is the only operation in the tea shop that represents cross-functional cooperation. Ozero management functions are run by two individuals that occupy the position of the tea shop shift manager in the course of the week days and are fully responsible for the overall operation of the restaurant. With that in mind, current staffing plan includes 13 people. The challenges presented for the Ozero operations are related to the management of the slack and peak hours and maintenance of the lowest possible costs with no impact on quality of the operations and motivation of the personnel (Dessler, 2010).
Suggested Staffing - Table – 1
The above staffing table suggests complete reformulation of the operational set up of the establishment, while maintain current functional division. This will allow reduction of the headcount from 13 to 9 employees and demonstrate financial benefits for the organization. At the same time, suggested distribution of functions will benefit the organization, giving more flexibility and adding responsiveness to the staffing needs for peak and slack hours as well as seasonal demand (Armstrong and Baron, 2008).
Recruiting practices
It is expected that current personnel with the exception of the back office and management functions will be able to assume the positions internally with appropriate training. For the position of Administration Clerk and Shop Manager the staffing plan includes Job descriptions, presented in Appendix I. Based on the job description and expectation of the management current business owners will start selection process, primarily based on working in partnership with one or two recruiting agencies. Due to the specificity of the job requirements this recruitment practice is considered the most adequate. Additional opportunity will come from direct hiring through the application form in the tea shop itself.
Compliance with Legal Regulation
Recruitment and selection process for the presented staffing plan will ensure full compliance with ethical and regulatory standards of the US Labor legislations. The values of the company and, consequently Human Resource (HR) practices will focus on ethical workplace practices, equal opportunity employment, compliance with Overtime and minimum Wage Act (US Department of Labor, 2013).
Additionally, strategic approach to HR will require placing emphases on training and internal development opportunities for the employees of the Ozero Tea Shop. This strategic approach will ensure higher retention rate and motivation among the employees and will create potential of human capital for further organic expansion in the US (Millmore, 2007).
References
Dessler G. (2010). Fundamentals of Human Resource Management: Content, Competencies and Application. New York: Pearson Education. Print.
Armstrong M. and Baron A. (2002) Strategic HRM . The Key to Improved Business Performance. London: Chartered Inst. of Personnel and Development. Print.
Millmore M. (2007). Strategic Human Resource Management. Contemporary Issues. New York: Financial Times Prentice Hall. Print.
US Department of Labor (2013). Employment Law Guide. Laws, Regulations and Technical Assistance Services. United States Department of Labor. Retrieved 31 January 2014, http://www.dol.gov/compliance/guide/
Merchant P. (2012). How a Restaurant General Manager Ensures Proper Staffing. Retrieved 1 February 2014, http://smallbusiness.chron.com/restaurant-general-manager-ensures-proper-staffing-16114.html
Appendix I – Job Descriptions
Job Description - Shop Manager
Job Description – Administration Officer
