February 15th, 2024

How to Choose the Right Restaurant Roster & Payroll System

Restaurant Roster System

With the high cost of labour, an online restaurant roster system has moved from being a digital option to an essential tool. With it, the business owner and managers can make accurate predictions about next week’s wage bill, or see how much the business is costing hour by hour. Responsibility can also be handed to section heads eg the head chef not only does the kitchen roster, they can also see and be accountable for the wage total – budgets can be set and met.

If the weather changes and it looks like customer numbers will be down, budgeting for the next few days can be handled accurately, and communication with staff about shift changes can be sent out quickly. Roster, Rota or Schedule – different countries have a variety of terms for the same important labour management service.

Essential Functions of a Restaurant Roster System

Rostering Capabilities

  • Build rosters for multiple locations and teams.
  • Automatic roll-over rostering from one week to the next, and use of roster templates.
  • Easy to understand User Interface – easy for managers and staff.
  • Error alerts when building the roster, to avoid double-ups or staff working longer than allowable hours.

Pay Rate Management

  • Multiple pay rates by role, time of day, day of the week, and special holidays.
  • Interpretation of government awards and official pay rates for accurate payroll.
  • Update pay rates when official rates change – one click to update all rates.
  • Update pay on critical birthdays when a young person moves to a higher rate.

Integration and Compatibility with other Financial & HR Systems

Integration with other management systems

  • Integration with time clock systems, including pin, finger and face recognition plus geo-fencing.
  • Integration and export to payroll and bookkeeping systems like MYOB, Xero and Quickbooks.
  • Integration with customer booking & table management systems to guide optimal staffing levels.
  • Integration with restaurant management systems and dashboards.

Data Management and Export

  • Import employee information from CSV files or other data formats.
  • Import/export data from or to a competitor roster system
  • Continual update of hours worked for real-time costing.

Communication and Employee Management

Employee Communication

  • Messaging and communication with employees via app, email, and SMS.
  • Communicate to staff about the need to fill available shifts.
  • Block on roster changes according to management decisions.

Employee Onboarding and Management

  • The employee onboarding system records essential information and photos.
  • Integration with immigration and visa systems to check eligibility for work.
  • DIY onboarding for employees to add their own information, with corrections possible by management.
  • Leave tracking and management.
  • Approval for leave and shift swaps.

Reporting, Analytics, and AI Capabilities

Management Reports

  • Management reports are accessible on a PC, phone, or tablet.
  • Exception reports to highlight over or under-staffing.
  • Wage and time forecasts.
  • User access reports for managers to see who has made changes or updates.
  • Different reports are created for different departments and levels of responsibility eg head chef, FOH manager, supervisor, and general manager.

AI and Advanced Analytics

  • AI capabilities for predictive scheduling and labour optimisation.
  • AI-driven analytics and suggestions for improved decision-making in staffing and cost management.

Recruitment Support

  • Recruitment features include handling applications and applicant communication.
  • Create job advertisements on a standalone page or able to be embedded on the restaurant’s website.
  • Store applications from unsuccessful candidates for future use.
  • Communication to applicants with templated messages.
  • Email integration with the business’s email system eg Gmail or Outlook.

Security and Support

  • Highly secure data protection, including 2 Factor Authentication
  • Set up service, ongoing support, training, and help system through online documentation and videos.
  • Training for different levels of management eg simple rostering for FOH manager, through to advanced analytics training.

Cost Considerations

  • Cost is easy to understand, compared to competing systems: cost is per employee or flat rate, and variations by level of service offered.
  • Minimal number of add-ons so the base price does not keep increasing.

Essential Functions of a Restaurant Payroll System

Here are the important features to look for when deciding on a payroll system for your restaurant. Increasingly, payroll is being bundled with rostering systems.

Integration with Rostering and Time Tracking Systems
It should seamlessly integrate with rostering/scheduling and time tracking systems to accurately capture employee hours worked, including regular hours, overtime, and differing pay rates for various shifts or roles.

Award Interpretation
The ability to automatically interpret and apply complex pay and award rates and agreements is crucial. This includes handling different pay rates for weekends, public holidays, late nights, and early mornings. Plus managing tips and gratuities.

Multi-location Management
The system should manage payroll operations across all restaurant sites with multiple locations, allowing centralised control while accommodating location-specific variations.

For Kylie Denning from FC Accounting, who works with dozens of restaurant and cafe operators, the non-negotiables for a payroll system:
  • Follows the relevant Award (in Australia) and updates pay rates when the Award increases and when the employee’s age changes (eg from junior to adult rate)
  • Rostering and payroll are combined in one software system
  • It automatically calculates superannuation payments and remits them to the relevant fund.

Compliance Management
Compliance with tax and employment laws is non-negotiable. The system should automatically update to reflect current tax rates, superannuation contribution rates, and other legislative requirements, ensuring compliance and avoiding penalties.

Employee Self-Service Portal
Employees should have access to a portal to view their pay slips, track their hours and pay and superannuation to date, manage their personal information, submit time-off requests, and access year-end tax documents.

Payroll Reporting and Analytics
Detailed payroll reports and analytics are essential for monitoring labour costs, budgeting, and financial planning. The system should offer customisable reports on payroll expenses, employee hours, and other metrics.

Tax Filing and Payments
The ability to automatically calculate, file, and pay payroll and group taxes is crucial for saving time and reducing errors. The system should also support end-of-year tax form preparation and submission, plus reports for independent contractors.

Security Features
Given the sensitive nature of payroll data, robust security measures are essential. This includes encryption, multi-factor authentication, regular security audits, and compliance with data protection regulations.

Able to Scale and Develop
The system should be able to grow with your business, easily accommodating new employees, locations, and changes in payroll legislation without significant overhauls.

Customer Support and Training
Reliable customer support and access to training resources are important for troubleshooting and ensuring your team can use the payroll system effectively.

Leave Management
The system should manage various types of leave, including annual, sick, and unpaid, ensuring accurate tracking and compliance with employment standards.

Selecting a payroll system with these features can help restaurant owners streamline their payroll processes, improve accuracy, maintain compliance, and provide a better experience for their employees.

Restaurant Roster System

Check the other useful blog posts on the Foodie Coaches website…

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