Operations, while not as glamorous as other roles, is the brain of a business. Just like a brain, it takes care of everything people see in a business, without being seen itself. On top of that, it works to make all processes more efficient.

The Operations Food Chain

In fast food, most operations tasks are handled at a corporate level, but some are handled in house. This leads to occasional disconnects. For instance, I spent my first week working in fast food watching videos in a back office. These videos were about handling food, taking orders, and delivering food. Immediately after, I was retaught how to do operations in a completely different way. I consider this the food chain of operations. You’re told how to do something the proper way, you’re shown tricks from long-time employees, and then you develop your own way. 

I developed processes for myself so I could be as efficient as possible. I was more often than not placed on drive-thru alone, instead of with a partner, because I’d created such an efficient system.

My process used our camera system to see the line in the drive-thru, so I always knew how many orders to expect to take. After assessing the length of the line, I would do one of two things. If the line was three cars or less, I would take their order and cash them out one at a time. If the line was four or more cars, I would take and store three orders in our computer before cashing out, asking the fourth person to wait a moment. In a rush, this was the most efficient way to do drive-thru while minimizing the risk of getting the order wrong.

I was often tasked with training new employees on drive-thru because of my accuracy and efficiency using the process I’d created. 

In-store Operations

While it’s true that most operations are handled outside the grasp of minimum wage employees, there are things we take care of in house. Things like checking and ordering stock, documenting the temperatures of food storage, and counting drawers are day-to-day operations tasks taken care of by crew members.

Checking stock was handled by kitchen staff throughout the week, ordered by the general manager on the following Monday, and delivered on Thursdays. Kitchen staff was then responsible for sorting and unloading the goods. I unfortunately never got the chance to help unload the freezer truck. Two of our cooks had it completed just before I clocked in most days. 

Twice a day, a crew member walked around with a clipboard and thermometer and checked the temperatures of each food storage device. This ranged from the barrels in which custard was stored, to the temperature of the fryers. When I was responsible for temps, I made the process more efficient by starting in the kitchen. That way, if we hit a rush while I was doing them, I wouldn’t be in the way of the cooks.

Counting register drawers was done by managers three times a day, once before the store opened, then after the lunch and dinner rushes. This process documented the store’s income for the day.

Conclusion

Operations may not be the most glamorous title, but it’s the role that oils the gears of the business machine. In fast food, the operations role is split between corporate and onsite employees, for people like me, this was an invitation to create, streamline, and become our own operations managers.