Real Data, a Kitchen Story, and an Actionable Plan in 15 Minutes
It's Friday night, 11:47 PM. Sofía, who manages two restaurants and a dark kitchen, watches as the stack of tickets grows while orders get crossed and her Excel crashes. Oh, the kitchen! She's out of Heineken and lime, and has too much bread. A classic in the industry. The chef asks her about shifts, the riders are waiting, and she feels that agonizing "putting out fires all day" sensation that surely feels familiar to you.
The following week, Sofía decides to make a change. She automates burdensome tasks, incorporates artificial intelligence where it matters most, and moves part of the administrative management to remote work. The result: fewer after-hours calls, more cash liquidity, and a team that is no longer so exhausted.
Automate What Pays Payroll
A recent study indicates that companies implementing automation achieve a 30% increase in productivity. And it's not magic! It's about eliminating friction.
The Old Way:
- Manually taking inventory on Sundays.
- Buying on hunches.
- Shrinkage that appears “mysteriously”.
The New Way:
- Controlling stock in real-time from the point-of-sale (TPV) system.
- Receiving automatic alerts when an ingredient falls below minimum level.
- Maintaining updated costing sheets that reflect costs instantly.
How Sofía Does It:
- Connects her TPV software to Guava (https://guavapp.com). Now she can see sales, recipe costs, and margins per dish on a single screen.
- Activates automatic prep and replenishment lists. Goodbye to last-minute dashes to the cash & carry!
- Sets a standard: focuses on 3 critical products to receive daily alerts, instead of getting sidetracked by 30 impossible tasks.
Quick Tip:
- Start with one task. For example, beverage inventory. In two weeks, you'll see how your margin changes.
AI as Your Second Maître d'
According to an industry report, 70% of workers feel that AI improves their daily lives. In the hospitality sector, this translates into better decision-making and less uncertainty.
Questions Sofía Asks Guava's AI:
- What will I sell tomorrow if it rains?
- Which dish is lowering the margin this week?
- What time should I reinforce the dining room on Saturday?
The Old Way:
- “Put out more croquettes, the holiday weekend was slow.”
The New Way:
- Demand prediction by hour, weather, and historical data.
- Menu recommendations based on margin and rotation.
- Shifts adjusted to real peaks, instead of relying on hunches.
And the taste? The same or even better. When the kitchen isn't flying blind, quality improves!
Remote Work Without Losing the Pulse
Yes, administrative management can be moved to remote work in the hospitality sector: invoices, forecasts, training, and cost control. A recent survey reveals that 65% of companies with remote work policies improve team satisfaction. But beware, 40% also feel isolated. There is a solution!
What Sofía Does:
- Closes the till and performs reconciliations from home with Guava. She receives automatic daily reports in her email. No more photos of tickets at 00:30!
- Organizes 10-minute meetings on Mondays, with cameras on. One metric per person. Clear, concise, and to the point.
- Golden rules: everything operational is on the dashboard, not on WhatsApp. That way, no one gets lost.
Communication Checklist:
- A single source of truth (sales, costs, shrinkage) in real-time.
- Short rituals (daily or weekly).
- Visible metrics in the dining room and kitchen.
Technology doesn't cook for you, but it does eliminate the noise so you can cook better and with a good margin. Automate the repetitive. Delegate all the tedious number crunching to AI. Take administrative management wherever you are most efficient. And, most importantly, go home earlier than usual!