So, a while back, my buddy, let’s call him Alex, he finally did it. He quit his boring office job and poured all his savings into opening this little café he’d been dreaming about for ages. You know the type, super passionate about the coffee beans, the pastries, the whole vibe. But, man, when it came to the actual running of the place, he was a bit lost, especially with hiring.
He called me up one day, totally stressed out. He needed a manager, someone to keep things running smoothly while he focused on the “art” of it all, as he put it. The problem was, he’d put out this tiny ad, something like “Café manager wanted, apply within,” and the people showing up were… well, not quite what he needed. Some were way overqualified, expecting a big team, others had no clue about the daily grind of a small food spot.
I went over to his place, and he showed me the “job description” he was using. It was literally three lines scribbled on a napkin. I told him, “Alex, mate, no wonder you’re struggling. We need to actually write a proper food and beverage manager description.” He just looked at me like I’d suggested he learn to code in a week.
Figuring Out What He Actually Needed
So, I sat down with him. My first step wasn’t to jump online and copy some generic template. Nope. I started by asking him a ton of questions. “What does this person really need to do every single day?” I prodded. “Forget the fancy titles for a second.”
We made a list. It was pretty down-to-earth stuff:
- Dealing with the local bakery for bread and pastry orders.
- Making sure the two part-time baristas actually showed up for their shifts.
- Keeping an eye on stock – milk, coffee beans, sugar, all that jazz. He was constantly running out of things.
- Handling customer complaints, because, let’s be honest, someone always finds something to complain about, even in the nicest café.
- And, yeah, even occasionally jumping in to make a coffee or clear a table when it got super busy. This wasn’t going to be an office job for the manager.
Once we had that raw list, I started thinking about how to phrase it. I did a quick search online, not to steal words, but just to see what kind of language other small cafes were using for a food and beverage manager description. I picked up a few common phrases like “inventory control,” “staff scheduling,” and “customer relations,” but I made sure we translated them into what they meant for his café.
So, instead of “Develop and implement innovative beverage programs,” which sounds like something for a massive hotel, we wrote something like, “Help choose our specialty coffee beans and teas, and manage stock to ensure we always have what our customers love.” See the difference? Much clearer for the kind of person he was looking for.
We also made sure to include a bit about the café’s personality. We put in things like “looking for a hands-on leader who enjoys a fast-paced, friendly environment” and “must love coffee and creating a welcoming space for regulars.” We wanted someone who’d fit the vibe, not just tick off boxes on a skills list.
It took a couple of hours, a lot of coffee (from Alex’s new machine, of course), and a bit of back-and-forth. But by the end, we had a solid page that really described the job. Not just the tasks, but the spirit of it too.
And you know what? It actually worked. When he posted the new, detailed food and beverage manager description, the applications he got were so much better. People understood what the job was really about. He found a great manager a few weeks later, someone who really got the place and wasn’t afraid to roll up their sleeves.
It just goes to show, sometimes taking that extra bit of time to really think through what you need, and then writing it down clearly, makes all the difference. It’s not about using fancy business words; it’s about painting a clear picture. That was my little journey into the nuts and bolts of a job description, and honestly, it was pretty enlightening to see how a few well-chosen words could completely change the outcome for my friend.
