Before the Meltdown: Identify and Stop ‘Vibe Sabotage’ in Your Restaurant

"The pandemic hampered the industry and it’s never fully recovered," Richard Birke, Chief Architect at JAMS Pathways, observed. "Customer expectations changed. Employee expectations changed. Financial dynamics changed. So, even though we’re back to dining in, the damage has been done, and it manifests in all kinds of ways."Birke discusses the rise of internal conflicts in the hospitality industry with Modern Restaurant Management (MRM) magazine. He shares insights into the root causes of frontline burnout and provides strategies for managers and operators to intervene before these tensions escalate, focusing on issues including shift favoritism, front-of-house/back-of-house dynamics, and details "vibe sabotage," which is definted as actions that negatively impact the overall atmosphere.

Birke's first job as a dishwasher in a fancy French restaurant in Boston set the foundation for a future career in conflict resolution.

"Restaurant work was a pressure cooker then, and that…