Restaurant Turnaround Consulting Services

At Supply Chain Synergy Consultants (SC²), our primary focus isn’t to merely help you stay afloat; our goal is to transform the way you handle supply chain activities so that you’re continuously improving and maximizing profits in a sustainable way. Turning around a multi-unit restaurant chain is certainly no small undertaking, and you may be operating in a small window of time to return to profitability. We want to ensure that you are equipped with the necessary information to confidently make wise business decisions during this critical point in your company’s life, which is why we’ve included some items below before you consider hiring SC² or another restaurant turnaround consultant.

What Do Restaurant Turnaround Consultants Do?

The first question you really need answered is what all will the restaurant turnaround consultant be involved in? The answer is everything. When you contract out work to a turnaround consultant for your multi-unit food chain, you’re hiring them to discover any means necessary to bring your business back from the red. Typically the quickest and most-effective ways to do so involve:

• Reviewing vendors’ capabilities and prices to ensure we’re receiving the best price available,
• Negotiating new vendor contracts when necessary,
• Controlling/managing cost in areas that are currently wasteful (i.e. purchasing extra materials that won’t be used, misuse of historical data for accurate forecasting of material needs, etc.),
• Meeting with lenders and distributors to negotiate loan covenant waivers and/or debt restructuring plans,
• Managing leasehold negotiations,
• Discovering ways to reduce expenditures and improve cash flow,
• Reorganize the arrangement of material goods inside the physical locations to maximize employee efficiency and cut down on labor costs,
• Retrain employees to ensure that everyone understands their roles completely to increase accountability and identify areas for improvement internally,
• Assessing leadership and management to ensure their functional roles are being prioritized appropriately,
• Sell assets that cost the company more than they benefit the bottom-line,
• Outsource work when it is cost-effective to do so,
• Ensuring customer service is not compromised in any way,
• And so much more.

How to Hire the Best Restaurant Turnaround Consultant

Now that you’ve determined what a restaurant turnaround consultant can do for you and you’re confident that’s the route your business must take, you must figure out how to examine prospective turnaround consultants. Below is a short guide for doing so:

Examine the Consultant’s Resume

This is really how you separate the cream from the crop. Things you should look at include:

• Data around the results they’ve been able to generate,
• Relevant leadership roles they’ve had in the past,
• Years of experience in those roles,
• Their educational background,
• Certifications they hold,
• Trade associations and professional organizations they’re a part of.

Reach Out to the Consultant’s Previous Clients for Testimonials

Ask for references from some of the larger clients the consultant has worked with (as this is typically a true test of their capabilities), and come prepared with a few questions such as:

• What were some of the first changes implemented by the consultant?
• How long did it take you to see the results you were hoping for?
• How well did the consultant train your employees to sustain the transformation?

On top of reaching out to the consultant’s references, we also recommend that you conduct a Google search of the consultant you’d be working with to see what information is out there that you may not find from a resume or testimonial.

Ask Them to Audit Your Business

Auditing a multi-unit food chain may take 20+ hours, so it’s a large ask of a consultant before they receive any form of payment. Yet if they’re willing, this audit will enable you to evaluate the consultant at a much deeper level. What will they uncover, and how will they create value for your company? These are important questions that you must find some answers to before you establish a contract with them.

Hire SC² for Your Restaurant Turnaround Needs

With all of this information taken into consideration, we are confident when we say that we can deliver for you and your company. Contact Supply Chain Synergy Consultants today to learn more about our capabilities and to request an audit of your business.

Contact SC² for a Consultation

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