{"id":12020,"date":"2019-02-18T19:00:05","date_gmt":"2019-02-18T17:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.talentlms.com\/blog\/?p=12020"},"modified":"2025-05-30T11:21:14","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T08:21:14","slug":"employee-training-food-beverage-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.talentlms.com\/blog\/employee-training-food-beverage-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"Survey: 70% of Employees in F&B Businesses Receive Zero Customer Service Training"},"content":{"rendered":"

The food and beverage industry is one of the most profitable, best-performing markets in this tiny planet called Earth. According to Plunkett Research<\/a>, as of 2017, the global market was estimated to be over $8.1 trillion, representing more than 10% of the world\u2019s GDP.<\/p>\n

Think of it this way. Apple Inc. is worth 1 trillion<\/a>. This alone means that the F&B industry could buy eight companies as big as Apple, and have enough money for a luxurious mansion in the Hamptons, and a collection of Lamborghinis.<\/p>\n

So, how could there be anything wrong?<\/p>\n

Well, there are currently 15.1 million people who work in F&B businesses across the US<\/a>. That\u2019s a number marginally smaller than the entire population of the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

And unfit training for these 15.1 million is what\u2019s wrong.<\/p>\n

We asked employees in various roles at small and medium-sized businesses to share their experience with food industry training.<\/strong> We hate spoilers, but it\u2019s about time we cut to the chase.<\/p>\n

To reveal a sneak peek, one of the survey\u2019s main findings suggests that food and beverage training is, more or less, stuck in the Dark Ages.<\/p>\n

More specifically, 52% of our respondents say they only received training when they started working at their current position (a.k.a. onboarding training<\/a>)<\/strong>. This means that only 48% of employees have some experience with continuous learning at work.<\/a><\/p>\n

Hooked? Just wait to see what\u2019s coming. Keep reading for a brief analysis of the state of employee F&B training in food and beverage SMBs.<\/p>\n

What type of training do employees receive?<\/h2>\n

Compliance training<\/a> dominates the industry. 38.5% of employees in our survey indicated they had received quality assurance, compliance, food safety training. Customer service coaching serves as the deputy governor in the land of food and beverage employee training (25.5%), followed by management training (21%).<\/p>\n

\"What<\/p>\n

By default, the industry is characterized by face-to-face interaction between workers and customers, which means that employees act as representatives of the business they work in. In fact, 89% of our respondents were in customer-facing roles. Along these lines, someone could easily assume that company culture training would be a priority for F&B organizations.<\/p>\n

Instead, only 4.5% of employees receive any sort of training on company mission<\/strong> – which is stranger than fiction. A company representative not knowing their company\u2019s values is like a salesperson not knowing the products they sell. And yet, basic training for restaurant staff includes no culture-related instruction.<\/p>\n

Sadly, it isn\u2019t just the seed of the company culture idea which hasn\u2019t grown yet. The problem is that proper customer service is neglected.<\/p>\n

We asked employees in customer-facing roles about the type of training they receive. And the ugly truth is that 70% of them say they\u2019ve never received any training on customer service.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Employee<\/p>\n

We talked to Tyler Richins, Training Director at Chick-fil-A restaurants<\/strong>, top limited-service restaurant in customer satisfaction<\/a>, who gave his take on restaurant customer service training and how much of a priority it is for businesses today.<\/p>\n

From what we\u2019ve seen so far, a training schedule for restaurant staff doesn\u2019t include customer service training. Is it neglected?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI would say that this is absolutely true. Given my previous experience in sales and recruiting, I never had any formal training in customer service. My training was mostly about closing the sale and how my software works.<\/em><\/p>\n

Most striking, though, is how much of an impact customer service has on a business and their growth, yet it is not at the forefront of most training plans out there. In today\u2019s world, we are saturated with products and services; however, the price will come in second to customer service. The Company\/Brand with the best customer service will win out every time, even if it costs a little extra. Chick-Fil-A is a great example!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

But what do employees think? We asked respondents what areas they\u2019d like to receive more training on. \u201cCustomer service training<\/a><\/strong>\u201d was the second most popular answer.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Areas<\/p>\n

Is training satisfactory?<\/h2>\n

In terms of satisfaction with food industry training, the scores are not that disappointing. The majority of our respondents (59.5%) confirmed their satisfaction with their overall training. Then again, and on the chance you see the glass half empty, you\u2019re not entirely wrong: the remaining 40.5% is still unsatisfied.<\/p>\n

\"How<\/p>\n

When asked to describe their training, 75% depicted it as compelling, constructive, and team-building. In detail:<\/p>\n