Hard Rock Caf is a food service business originally focused on operating casual

dining restaurants. Founded in London in 1971, the company developed its brand
through the themed restaurant experience. Customers are typically greeted with an
ambiance of rock and roll. The company underwent significant growth and
expansion in the 1990s. Today, Hard Rock Caf is diversified, with operations in
the themed restaurants industry, casino industry, and hotel industry. The firm has
also achieved global status, with 145 themed restaurants, 21 hotels and 10 casinos
in 59 countries. In 2007, the Seminole Tribe of Florida bought the firm. Hard Rock
Cafs headquarters were since moved to Orlando, Florida.

The success of Hard Rock Caf is partly linked to the firms effectiveness in
applying the 10 decisions of operations management and productivity principles
and concepts on personnel, such as kitchen staff and wait staff.

Hard Rock Caf: 10 Decisions of Operations Management

The 10 decision areas of operations management are necessary for managers to

improve business operations. The goal is to develop operations that satisfy business
objectives, while minimizing problems that cause inefficiency. At Hard Rock Caf,
these 10 decisions are applied to ensure that the brand, company reputation, and
financial targets are met, as follows.

1. Service and Product Design. Hard Rock Caf applies service and product
design decisions to maintain the Hard Rock ambiance and image. Managers
assess different attributes of target markets and make some slight modifications
to the products and services. Still, these products and services consistently
follow the Hard Rock Caf brand image.
2. Quality Management. Hard Rock Caf applies quality management by
maintaining a specific quality assessment role for the operations manager. The
manager uses the firms quality standards to identify issues and weaknesses.
Recommended changes are then applied to ensure compliance.
3. Process and Capacity Design. Hard Rock Cafs process and capacity
design refers to internal business processes and the target capacity of facilities.
Internal business processes include food preparation, order routing, reservations,
and others. The target capacity of Hard Rock Caf facilities is based on the
condition of the local markets. The company applies process and capacity
design decisions to maximize capacity utilization.
4. Location. Hard Rock Caf decides on the location of its businesses based on
market and industry analysis. Market research is applied to determine if the
market can support a Hard Rock Caf. Industry statistics are used to determine if
expanding the firm through additional Hard Rock Caf locations is feasible.
5. Layout Design. The company decides on layout design by assessing the
expected influx of customers and the nature of business operations in facilities.
Hard Rock Caf themed restaurants, casinos and hotels have different layout
requirements. The companys operations managers apply layout design for
efficient workflow in the limited space available in these facilities.
6. Job Design. Hard Rock Cafs job design decisions are reached and applied
through an analysis of needs and expectations of the company and its
employees. The appropriateness of job design is evaluated based on employee
feedback and company standards. The companys operations management is
focused on optimizing workers person-job fit, while making it easy for
employees to do their jobs to maximize efficiency.
7. Supply Chain Management. Hard Rock Cafs supply chain management
decisions are based on market demand, variety of suppliers, and inventory
 management costs, among other factors. The supply chain management decision
is applied through the operations manager and location manager.
8. Inventory Management. The company applies inventory management
decisions through inventory management software. Hard Rock Cafs operations
management uses demand fluctuations and historical records to predict changes
needed in the inventory. The inventory is then adjusted accordingly.
9. Scheduling. Hard Rock Caf makes decisions in scheduling by evaluating
current operations effectiveness. The schedules must satisfy capacity
requirements. Also, operations managers disseminate planned schedules to staff
and use their feedback to make adjustments. The adjusted schedules are then
applied to ensure flexibility and resilience of the business.
10. Maintenance. Maintenance decisions at Hard Rock Caf are made and
applied based on a comparative evaluation of assets and the firms standards.
For example, the company has standards on how much equipment wear and tear
is allowed before the equipment needs repair or replacement. Hard Rock Caf
also has standards and policies on how maintenance should be conducted
involving qualified personnel.

Determining Productivity of Kitchen and Wait Staff at Hard Rock Caf

Hard Rock Caf determines the productivity of the kitchen staff and wait staff
through a set of well-defined quantitative and qualitative criteria that reflect
performance. Some of the quantitative criteria used in operations management at
Hard Rock Caf are as follows:
1. Kitchen staff productivity: The number of orders that the kitchen staff
fulfills within Hard Rock Cafs standard allotted time versus the number of
items ordered by the customers
2. Wait staff productivity: The number of orders that the wait staff serves or
delivers within Hard Rock Cafs standard allotted time versus the number of
items ordered by the customers
3. Kitchen and wait staff productivity: The total number of staff members
versus the total number of orders fulfilled in a day
4. Kitchen and wait staff productivity: The number of late or unfulfilled
orders per day versus the total number of orders for that day
The qualitative criteria for determining kitchen staff and wait staff productivity at
Hard Rock Caf are based mainly on subjective judgment of managers, staff
members, and customers. For example, operations managers use customer
complaints and comments to qualitatively monitor kitchen staff and wait staff
productivity.

Hard Rock Caf uses these quantitative and qualitative productivity criteria to
assess specific performance aspects of the kitchen staff and wait staff. The
company also combines these criteria to develop a broader perspective on the
productivity and performance of the kitchen staff and wait staff. These quantitative
and qualitative criteria guide productivity decisions at Hard Rock Caf.