Nothing eases the mind of a food truck owner more than not having to worry about their staff. A well-trained, and reliable food truck team allows vendors to step away from the truck without having to worry about what could happen while they’re gone. The strength of your kitchen staff helps determine this level of stress.

Building a strong team requires that vendors focus on the guidelines used for hiring, training, managing and mentoring. With that said, a successful kitchen staff starts with you. The better you are at teaching and mentoring your staff members, the better they will be at carrying out their tasks, even if you are gone. Today we’ll discuss a simple method for you to build a strong kitchen staff for your food truck business.

How To Build A Strong Kitchen Staff

The fastest way to build a great kitchen staff is by hiring the right people. While this may seem obvious, it’s easier said than done. You need to absolutely take into account work experience. But prospective employees should need to have these four basic traits.

Smarts

All of your employees should possess the ability to learn new tasks, techniques and tools for their job. Not only that, but they need to be able to retain the information learn. Ask your cooking candidates specific questions about the job they’re applying for, including some general cooking knowledge questions. Their answers will give you some idea of what to expect once your customers show up.

Responsibility

Worrying if a staff member will once again be late for a shift, or show up at all is no way to run a food truck. Responsibility also means that a they can perform a task properly. A responsible staff member tells you that the truck is low on a common ingredient before it’s gone. Build a team in your truck instead of individual members working for your team.

Energy

A kitchen staff member with a high level of energy is awesome. Cooking, or working a food truck service window, are jobs that need high-energy people. An energetic employee going to get more done, and finish jobs more efficiently than low-energy employees. During the interview ask candidates questions about time off. Employees who keep busy during their time away from the truck are more likely to be people with the energy level you are looking for.

Friendly

This last trait isn’t the most important, but working in a small, hot and pressured food truck kitchen with people who are likable as opposed to those who aren’t makes a shift feel shorter. Let your current staff be part of the interview process. Have them talk with the applicants, to get to know them a little. When building a successful kitchen staff, it’s important to put together a team that gets along. People who get along together work better and are more efficient.

RELATED: The Complete Human Resources Guide For Food Trucks

The Bottom Line

Building a strong kitchen staff for your truck will make your life as a food truck vendor so much easier. The best way to start this process begins during the interview stage. While hiring people with these traits won’t guarantee that your truck will work like a well oiled machine, it certainly gives you a better chance.

What other traits do you look for when hiring your food truck kitchen staff? Share your thoughts on this topic on social media. Facebook | Twitter