You have a new junior stew who is willing, quick and completely untrained. In three weeks she has to be able to run a table on her own while you are on the other side of the saloon. How you spend those three weeks determines what the interior looks like for the rest of the season.
Teaching a service skill
Show, then do, then watch, then release.
- Explain why the standard exists, not just what it is. A junior who understands why the knife blade faces inward will not drift.
- Demonstrate it slowly, then at speed, narrating what your hands are doing.
- Let them do it immediately, in a safe setting: crew mess, empty saloon, no guests.
- Watch and correct in private. Never correct a junior in front of guests or other crew. Note it, and address it after service.
- Release with a check-back: give them the task, tell them you will inspect, and actually inspect.
Feedback that works
- Be specific and behavioural: "your covers were three centimetres off the edge on seats four and five" beats "the table was sloppy".
- Give it close to the event, but never during service and never when either of you is angry.
- Balance correction with recognition. A junior who only ever hears what is wrong stops trying things.
- Ask them to teach it back. If they can teach it, they own it.
Setting and auditing standards
A standard that is not written down is an opinion. A standard that is not audited is a suggestion.
| Element | What good looks like |
|---|---|
| The standard | Written, specific, measurable, illustrated with a photograph where possible |
| The training | Every crew member has been shown it and has done it under supervision |
| The audit | A named person checks it on a defined rhythm against the written standard |
| The correction | Findings are recorded, fed back and re-checked, not just noted |
Audit by walking the space with fresh eyes, at guest height, in guest lighting, following the path a guest takes. Photograph the correct setup and keep it as the reference, because memory drifts and crew change.
Writing service SOPs
A good service SOP is short, sequential and usable by someone who has never done the task.
- Purpose: one line on what the SOP achieves.
- When it applies: the trigger, the timing, who does it.
- Equipment: what to gather before starting.
- The steps: numbered, in order, one action each, in plain language.
- The standard: what the finished result must look like, ideally with a photograph.
- Version and date: so the crew knows which version is current.
Write SOPs with the crew who do the job, not at them, and keep them where the work happens rather than in a folder nobody opens.
Onboard Notes
- The fastest way to destroy a junior stew is to let them fail in front of guests and then criticise them afterwards. Set them up to succeed: give them a zone they can handle and stand where you can catch it.
- Do not confuse your personal preference with a yacht standard. If you cannot explain why it matters, it is a preference, and juniors can tell the difference.
- Cross-train deliberately. Every service should have at least two people who can run it, or you become the single point of failure and you will never get a day off.
- Remember what these lessons are: independent study that awards no certificate. Competence is signed off aboard, by assessment, not by reading.