Customer Stories
The Challenge
The Mint Julep locations' labor managment processeswere quite manual, using spreadsheets for the schedule and in-store bulletin boards to get the word out. True sales and labor forecasts and historical trending reports were non-existent, and most managers based their scheduling on intuition more than anything else. As a consequence, more experienced managers tended to do a better job than the newer ones, but all were completing the laborious and time-consuming chore with blinders on.
The Solution
HotSchedules Workforce solution, integrated with the Squirrel POS system, along with the HotSchedules Digital Logbook helps greatly reduce labor costs, streamline the scheduling process and provide for seamless communications at all levels of the organization.
Key Points
- 4.1% reduction in labor costs, with sales increase of 15.58% at one location.
- The same location cut 1980 labor hours, including 753 hours in overtime.
- At another location, cut 936 total labor hours, including more than 108 hours in overtime.
“One of our locations is really enjoying spectacular results with HotSchedules. Their labor percentage dropped 4.1% and sales went up 15.58%. They’ve been open 8 years and this is the most dramatic change we’ve ever seen at this location.”
Nathan Aukerman
Director of Training, Mint Julep Restaurant Group
The Challenge
As the Lazy Dog concept grew, the team realized pretty quickly that they were going to need to adopt more sophisticated tools to help them be more efficient. At the top of the list, they identified the need for a more robust employee scheduling and labor management tool than the one that they were using. Although it was an enterprise level sales and labor reporting solution, it lacked sufficient reporting, POS integration, and the more modern toolsets for managers to achieve scheduling efficiency and effectiveness. determine staffing hours.
The Solution
The Lazy Dog Cafes began testing HotSchedules in two locations and quickly adopted the Workforce and Digital Logbook solutions for all eight locations.
Key Points
- 75% reduction in time to generate schedules
- Labor cost savings with enforced punctuality
- Improved communications and management efficiencies
“First and foremost, after adopting HotSchedules, we cut the time needed to create a schedule by 75%.”
Anthony Mejia, IT Director
The Lazy Dog Cafe
The Challenge
The Buffalo Wild Wings franchise in Brea boasts 170 employees and a complex layout, with two sets of work-staff on each floor of the establishment. Separate employee schedules must be created for each group. Managers were previously creating schedules using spreadsheets, and then printing them out and posting them in the store. Availabilities and requests off were scribbled on post-it notes or written into the request off book. Updates were written on the printed schedule, which was quickly covered in hand-written scribbles of shift releases, shift pick-ups, manager sign offs and the like, making the tracking of overtime next to impossible.
The Solution
Buffalo Wild Wings implemented the HotSchedules Team solution to increase the speed and efficiency of creating and communicating schedules and scheduling updates, as well as eliminate accidental overtime scheduling. The HotSchedules Digital Logbook has vastly improved their ability to accurately and thoroughly document staff performance and shift notes.
Key Points
- More than 75% less time managing scheduling tasks
- Reduced overtime scheduling
- Vastly improved manager-staff communications
“Between creating the schedule, managing the changes and availabilities, as well as managing the roster, there’s no doubt that we’re saving many hours of time. I’d say at least 75% less time, if not more.”
Vivian Neubauer, General Manager
Buffalo Wild Wings
The Challenge
Filling a multitude of dealer shifts on a weekly basis, while balancing unexpected, often last minute requests is not easy. With at least 13 casinos as regular clients and more and 200 dealers, the scheduling process was massive and overwhelming. Further complicating the task are the specific certifications that the dealers must have in order to be qualified for particular jobs. What’s more, casinos must have an exact number of dealers for each table in order for the table to be playable.
The Solution
HotSchedules non-POS integrated Team solution greatly reduced the time to create schedules, thereby increasing productivity. Additionally, the incidents of accidental overtime and double-booking have been eliminated thanks to increased visibility into the schedule.
Key Points
- Eliminated double-booking
- Eliminated accidental overtime booking
- Reduced time to create schedules, that is now applied to other tasks
“I can confidently say that we have completely eliminated the incidence of double-booking since implementing HotSchedules.”
Stephanie Tuggle
Scheduling Manager, Casino Job Center
The Challenge
Lauren Dorn of Hasta la Pasta and Lasagna House was looking for ways to make creating and maintaining schedules quicker, easier and more accurate. Additionally, she needed to reduce the occurrence of accidental overtime scheduling. Finally, she was seeking a better way to communicate to staff and maintain shift notes.
The Solution
The HotSchedules Team solution, which has eliminated unnecessary overtime scheduling and greatly reduced the time to generate schedules. HotSchedules mobile apps ensure all employees can access the schedule, even when not at their computers. The HotSchedules Digital Logbook has eliminated the need to use a hard-copy log book.
Key Points
- Eliminated unnecessary overtime scheduling
- Improved communications with staff
- Improved record-keeping with Digital Logbook
“A spreadsheet cell can’t alert you if you put someone on your staff into overtime. With HotSchedules, we can avoid overtime altogether, if possible, and when we have to go into overtime to ensure we have enough people on the floor, at least we go into it knowing exactly when and why. There’s an obvious dollar value associated with avoiding unnecessary overtime."
Lauren Dorn
Banquet Coordinator/Manager
The Challenge
Rising food and fuel costs had Tacos and Tequila's operating partner David Pencsak searching for ways to be more efficient and cost effective. He turned to HotSchedules to help him lower his labor management expenses.
The Solution
HotSchedules Workforce solution, integrated with the Aloha POS system. In particular, Tacos and Tequlia is taking advantage of HotSchedules overtime alerts, enforced punctuality, sales forecasting reports, certification tracking, mobile access and the HotSchedules Digital Logbook.
Key Points
- .5% labor savings from overtime alerts and enforced punctuality, equating to $17,500 annually per location
- Additional point of labor savings through HotSchedules sales forecasting reports
- Hours of time saved in creating a more accurate schedule
“Just by turning on the controlled clock-ins/outs, HotSchedules will pay for itself in the first week. As we became more efficient across the board, we’ve gained an even greater ROI.”
David Pencsak
Operating Partner, Tacos and Tequila
The Challenge
The Tilted Kilt was facing enormous challenges with scheduling employees using spreadsheets, particularly because of the number of employees per location (>100) and because they allow weekly requests off and availability for the convenience of their staff.
The Solution
HotSchedules integrated with the Tilted Kilt's Aloha POS system allows them to take full advantage of the sales and labor forecasting tools, as well as actual overtime alerts and punctuality controls. They also utilize the Digital Logbook for precise, time-bound record keeping.
Key Points
- One to one and half percent reduction in labor costs from the first month
- 75% reduction in time to create schedules
- Now able to proactively and accurately forecast sales and labor
“Conservatively, we save a percent to a percent and a half in labor costs thanks to HotSchedules. It started saving us in the very first month we implemented and has continued to save us that much every month since. Without a doubt, HotSchedules pays for itself with the labor savings we’ve achieved.”
John Stevenson
Director of Training, Tilted Kilt Franchise Operations, LLC
The Challenge
Like many restaurants, Duffy's was using spreadsheets to create schedules, which proved to be a burdensome and time-consuming process for building and communicating schedules. Additionally, though managers could build a formula to help them forecast, not all the managers knew enough about the spreadsheet formulas to do that effectively. Duffy's also attempted to use POSitouch’s® time and attendance solution for back of house (BOH) staff, but the process was lengthy and took time away from the kitchen managers to prepare for guests.
The Solution
HotSchedules intuitive, web-based scheduling and forecasting tools and the HotSchedules Digital Logbook
Key Points
- One percent BOH labor cost savings
- Time to create accurate schedules reduced to 30-45 minutes
- Greatly improved accountability for shift trades and swaps
“A year ago, we were running 12-13%, but today, we’re more like 11-12%. I attribute that BOH labor savings directly to HotSchedules.”
Frans Kobus
Senior General Manager, Duffy's Sports Grill
The Challenge
Newk’s was challenged with disparate and cumbersome processes to create schedules that took an exceedingly long time and resulted in scheduling errors. Additionally, the team had no corporate-level visibility from a reporting and management perspective.
The Solution
HotSchedules, integrated with the Aloha POS system and the HotSchedules Digital Logbook
Key Points
- 75% reduction in time to create schedules
- .6% reduction in labor costs initially, with 2-3% predicted without increase in hourly rate
- Won EEOC wrongful termination case using Digital Logbook
"As soon as we implemented HotSchedules, we went from taking 3-4 hours creating schedules to 45 minutes, an hour, max. That saves a lot of money on wasted labor and allows us to be more focused on store operations.”
Odair Ferro
General Manager, Newk's Express Cafe
The Challenge
CRAVE needed to streamline their scheduling and communication activities to ensure that managers and staff could maximize the time focused on guests.
The Solution
HotSchedules, integrated with the Aloha POS system and the HotSchedules Digital Logbook
Key Points
- 1.5% reduction in labor costs through reduced overtime scheduling, punctuality controls and sales and labor reporting
- 75% reduction in time to create schedules
- Quick implementation, thorough training and POS integration
“All in all we’ve seen an overall labor cost reduction of 1.5% through the awareness of overtime scheduling, punctuality controls and understanding the flow-through of guests and sales.”
Jim Hofer
Director of Training and Service Excellence, CRAVE Hospitality