4 tips from the inaugural On the Clock Summit

Our first-ever On The Clock Summit brought together an impressive array of leaders from restaurants and technology to discuss one of the most pressing challenges facing businesses today: building and managing a high-performing hourly workforce. With over 70 million hourly workers representing 60% of the U.S. workforce, the insights shared have never been more relevant. 

The inaugural On the Clock Summit in San Francisco, CA

For those who weren’t able to attend, we’ve collected four highlights for you!

1. Recognize the unique challenges of the hourly workforce

Workstream CEO Desmond Lim opened the summit by emphasizing the distinct nature of managing hourly workers: "This space is very tough to manage. There’s a very high turnover rate; people may speak Spanish or Chinese." 

As business owners and managers in the hourly space can attest, traditional management approaches often don't work quite as well for hourly workers. These workers aren’t behind a desk, they’re often multilingual, and their work can easily vary from week to week. Businesses need to make use of specialized tools and strategies to meet their unique needs.

Tip: Invest in systems and processes specifically designed for hourly workforce management rather than trying to adapt corporate tools to fit hourly worker needs.

2. Create clear paths for career advancement 

Julia Stewart, Former Chair & CEO of Dine Brands Global and Current Founder & CEO Alurx, Inc., shared a powerful insight about employee retention: "The number one reason [for turnover] is 'I don't have a clue how to get promoted here.'" She described seeing one restaurant chain transform its workforce by creating and communicating clear advancement paths; the result was 62% of general managers being promoted from within the organization.

Tips:

• Develop clear job descriptions for each role level
• Create visible career ladders
• Communicate promotion criteria openly
• Implement regular career development conversations
  

Desmond Lim, Co-Founder & CEO, Workstream; Mustafa Shakur, Co-President, Pure Fuel Sport, & former NBA player; Max Mullen, Co-Founder, Instacart; and Julia Stewart, Founder & CEO, Alurx Inc. & former Chair & CEO, Dine Brands Global 

3. Encourage high-performing teams through purpose

One of our favorite panel discussions featured Julia Stewart, Max Mullen, co-founder of Instacart, and Mustafa Shakur, co-president of Pure Fuel Sport and former NBA player. Their conversation showed that high-performing teams, whether in corporate settings or hourly work environments, share common characteristics:

• A clear sense of purpose
• Strong accountability (both individual and team)
• Regular recognition
• Alignment on goals and mission

As Max noted, "Everybody likes to be recognized for doing a good job... having really clear standards and recognizing people for going above and beyond... reinforces your company's values and mission."

Tips:

• Create regular recognition programs
• Connect daily tasks to the larger company mission
• Celebrate team and individual achievements

Lei Xu, Co-Founder & CSO, Workstream

4. Prioritize what matters

In the quick-service restaurant space especially, workers face endless demands. With so many priorities competing for attention, it can be easy to lose sight of the things that matter most. And while technology and other tools have the potential to help the situation, the wrong technology can quickly become a distraction.

Nadeem Bajwa, CEO of Bajco Group, explained how he maintains a balance.

“When we hire people, we don't train [managers] to be good at using technology. We see if they have a passion for serving the customer and making a good product. If they have a passion to win and make money for us—that's where we look at.”

Tips:

• Determine the number one priority for your company and workers. If you’re a QSR, they are probably similar to Nadeem’s: customer service, good quality, and passion
• Align with all leaders in your organization on these non-negotiable priorities
• Reinforce these priorities in all communication with your team, and proactively look for areas to improve

Camelia Coupal, Co-Founder, Coupa Cafe; Michael Harley, Director of Operations, Golden Ticket Cinemas; and Nadeem Bajwa, CEO, Bajco Group

The inaugural On the Clock Summit was inspirational, motivating, and fun! It was a privilege to bring so many leaders together in one place, united by mission. 

As Desmond noted, "We are all here because of a shared passion for this hourly workforce. Hourly workers are truly the core... they do the work every single day."