Finding reliable food truck staff can feel impossible, especially in the early days when your schedule and needs are unpredictable.
How do you hire food truck staff when you’re unsure how often you’ll need them?
This quick guide will help you tackle staffing challenges, both in the short-term and long-term.
Fire up the engine… Let’s go!
Short-Term Food Truck Staff Solutions
Some weeks you’re fully booked and overwhelmed. Other weeks… it’s eerily quiet. When your schedule feels like a rollercoaster, consider tapping into your inner circle and recruiting experienced service industry workers.
Leverage Your Inner Circle
A common short-term solution to hiring food truck staff is to rely on friends and family for help. Most are excited for a chance to jump on the truck and experience the glamor of being a food truck owner!
While their willingness is a bonus, it’s crucial to make sure that they’re equipped to handle a fast-paced food truck environment. Even the most well-intentioned family members can create chaos if they lack training. Be sure to invest time teaching them the basics of food safety, customer service, and your workflow.
Recruit Experienced Food Service Workers
Food service and hospitality professionals are ideal candidates for food truck staff. They’re used to flexible schedules, fast-paced environments, and adapting on the fly. Many of these workers are eager to pick up additional hours while bringing valuable experience to your operation.
Use word-of-mouth referrals and social media marketing to find food truck staff. Show off why your food truck is a great place to work and enjoy flexibility, a fun atmosphere, and potential growth!
Long-Term Food Truck Staff Solutions
Friends, family, and service industry pros will help you in a pinch but building a stable, predictable schedule is key to long-term success and hiring the best food truck staff. (Plus, it’s one of the best ways to adopt an owner’s mindset!)
Build a Predictable Food Truck Schedule
When you’re just getting started, it’s natural to take any opportunity that comes your way while testing different locations, days, and times. While this is common, it also leads to chaos.
After about 6 months, you’ll likely notice some patterns:
- Which days and times are the busiest?
- Which locations attract the most consistent traffic?
- Which monthly or seasonal events can you count on?
Once you start to get a better idea of what works best for your business, you will be able to create a more predicated schedule that benefits both you and your food truck staff.
Create a Stable Environment
All this planning and predictability will lead you to being able to create a more stable environment that greatly benefits you and your food truck staff. Offering even a part-time position with regular hours and duties builds trust and reliability for both you and your food truck staff.
Food truck staff who know what to expect are also more likely to stick around, reducing turnover and helping you continue building a reliable team. For you, this stability means less scrambling for help. For your team, it means peace of mind knowing they have a steady income.
Use Technology to Simplify Your Food Truck Staff Solutions
Whether you’re stuck with short-term solutions or building a long-term plan, the right technology makes a world of difference, especially when it comes to finding food truck staff solutions.
A good food truck POS system can reduce the need for extra food truck staff while making life easier for you and the team you already have.
Here are a few features to look for in a food truck POS:
- Commission-free online ordering to handle pre-scheduled orders
- QR code ordering to streamline on-site orders and reduce wait times
- Kitchen Display System (KDS) to keep everything running smoothly in the kitchen
- Automatic text notifications to let customers know when their orders are ready
Why Choose Table Needs?
Table Needs POS is simple, user-friendly, and requires minimal training. Even someone brand new to your team can learn it in seconds!
Plus, it automates tasks that often require extra food truck staff. From managing orders to notifying customers, Table Needs POS makes it possible for you to operate solo when needed.
And that’s just the features that will help you during service. Table Needs also offers:
- Built-in sales tax automation to reduce headaches
- Cash flow and budgeting tools to help you plan smarter
- Marketing services to grow your business
Are you ready to grow your food truck business?
As your food truck business grows, your needs will change: from staffing to technology to financial resources and beyond. With a mix of creative short-term solutions and smart planning for the future, you’ll set yourself up for a successful, profitable future.
Let Table Needs help you simplify operations and boost profitability today!
Follow us for tips, news, and tutorials to run a successful small restaurant.
