BOH Covert Assessment

Our Specialty here at BOH Consulting

A Very Important Read

Another asset offered by BOH Consulting is a covert audit of you operation. This operation is specifically used in up and running operations when profit margins aren’t being met or the ownership isn’t familiar with what to look out for in a BOH Operation. For instance, an entrepreneur who is more familiar in a bar operation, opens up a pub and might not be as familiar with the Back Of House kitchen operations. They might call us and say “Hey, I’m bleeding money here somewhere and I can’t figure it out. My Bar is doing well so I feel it’s my kitchen operations that might have some problems. This is where BOHC would suggest a “Covert Operation” be utilized.  

The First question is; “What is a Covert Operation?”  It is explained like So….In the highly efficient world of corporate food service, staying on top of your kitchen numbers is Paramount as much as the culinary aspect and is stressed and essential to the success of the corporate BOH operation. The experienced corporate kitchen managers will constantly self audit themselves to ensure consistency and safeguard against any potential revenue loss. This also allows the KM to address any issues before it causes problems. In the corporate world, BOH assessments and audits are conducted covertly by company Kitchen Managers unknown to the operation and are well versed in the company’s menu specs and kitchen policies. They are quickly able to see if the unit KM is properly running their kitchen in accordance to the guidelines set down by the company. After a 10 day evaluation, the Managers are informed of the audit at which time all unit managers meet with the CKM (Corporate KM) and reviews the evaluation. Kitchens are graded in each of their departments and an action plan is devised to address any issues as well as timelines set for squaring away any problems.

The reality of the situation is, without a “covert evaluation,” you’re not going to get a true assessment of the every day workings of the kitchen operations. When the staff knows they are under scrutiny they will do everything by the book making evaluation of the BOH operation time consuming and inaccurate.

However, when you send in a consultant covertly, the consultant knows how to quickly become “One of the guy’s.” They are able to observe and evaluate the kitchen in action as well as the current systems in use. From that position it also gives the consultant a complete overview and enables them to pinpoint specific problem areas to define whether the problems be in operations, personnel or both.

In the private sector, ownership might question the integrity of a covert operation. Let’s keep in mind that the bottom line is that if ownership is seeking a consultant there is a problem in your ROI (Return on Investment) and ownership unquestionably has the right by any means to protect their investment. No one should ever question ownerships methods as to what they need to do to achieve their financial goals. It is but one of many tools that the investor has at their disposal to ensure the profitability of their investments. You should NEVER worry about “Offending” a KM or Chef as you are doing it for their benefit as well as yours. If in fact your employees are on the up and up, they should welcome any feedback that will assist them in better running their BOH Operation.

Unfortunately, at times, that’s not always the situation. We have run into a few instances that uncovered improper uses of ownerships trust and monies. In one particular situation, it was discovered that a chef had his own catering company on the side and they were using the restaurant as their personal commissary. They were out and outright stealing food and using the restaurants labor as their own. It was a very cleaver operation, mixing their own catering jobs in amongst the restaurants catering jobs and no one had a clue. Had ownership not utilized our covert tactic, they might have gone out of business within the year. When this was uncovered and rectified, the numbers quickly came into line and within 3 months the operation was showing a profit offsetting the cost of the consulting job tenfold in the long run. Incidentally, the owner and the chef involved had known one another for many years, so you just never know when it comes to greed.

There are many other infractions causing loss of profits that are uncovered in covert type operations. For instance; Line cooks producing menu items, declare them as “mistakes” and feeding the Crew. Waitstaff giving food away in hopes of increasing tips. A bowl of soup here and dessert there, counter help throwing in a bag of chips or a drink to a friend, or not even ringing in the order making some sort of excuse to the line cooks to make it. It can run ramped through the kitchen as well. The lazy or improperly trained prep cook throwing away perfectly good food driving the food cost up and profits down. We’ve run into the owners who hires an employee at a low rate of pay and thinks they’re getting a deal. they might think they got themselves a ten dollar an hour helper but in all actuality after you get done adding up all the waste, they are costing ownership $20 and hour. Profit loss, or bleeding money comes in all shapes and sizes. EVERYTHING adds up in a poorly run kitchen. It sometimes takes the trained eye to see things happening right under ownerships noses. What’s mentioned here is but the tip of the iceberg as to hidden losses in an inefficiently run BOH Operation.

Many a time owners are astonished that people they put their trust in, who they think are doing good for them, are unknowingly costing them profits. Ownership should never be shy when it comes to protecting their investment? Think about it.

Ultimately, it’s everyone hope that it’s just poor performance in the kitchen rather than illegalities causing a strain on profits. The fact is, you need to know and need to know ASAP because when time is money, the covert operation is as efficient and cost effective as it gets. It also sends a message to your employees that you are serious about their performance and ethics and you will protect your investment at all cost. Let BOH Consulting sit down with you and discuss how out Covert Tactics can assist your operation meet it’s financial Goals