Interviews with Stakeholders
We conducted several interviews prior to putting together this deliverable, to gain an understanding of the current practices concerning the dining industry. The interviews are with a person who is a common restaurant patron, a person who previously worked as a hostess at a restaurant, and an interview with a restaurant manager.
Below you will find revised interviews, explanations, then previous interview notes for each stakeholder.
Below you will find revised interviews, explanations, then previous interview notes for each stakeholder.
User Interview Notes (Revised)
For the third part of the deliverable I (Sarah Saimbi), showed my brother (Steven Saimbi) my group project and the website that we created on December 1st, 2012 through Skype. From there I told him that for the third part of the deliverable that my team needed to adjust the interview and that I needed to ask him more questions. He agreed to help by answering a few more questions. In this short interview, I referred Steven again as the stakeholder and told him that he is the user for this interview. During this interview, however I asked Steven more questions about the application that we designed. Below are questions that I asked when conducted the interview.
1. How often do you go out to eat at restaurants?
2. If you had an application that was on a Smartphone, or an electronic device to reserve a table, would you be willing to use it?
3. What kind of device would you use if you could own the application (APPetite)?
4. Would you buy this application?
5. If you were to continuously use this application and it fails to work, whom would you go to for help?
6. What features would you use the most on the application?
7. If the application was a success, would you recommend it to others?
Interview Summary
The interview took about 15-20min, and was pretty straight forward because Steven had good answers to the questions and he was not confused with what I needed to ask. The first question that I asked Steven was “How often do you eat at restaurants?” I asked this question to get a general idea of how often he would be reserving a table. Steven responded, “I tend to go out to restaurants mostly on the weekends and the occasional weekday. So probably 2-3times a week.” From the previous interview I found out that Steven does not use reservations a lot, therefore I asked him questions that dealt with possibly using an application. “Steve, if you had an application that was on a Smartphone, or an electronic device to reserve a table, would you be willing to use it?” He responded, “What an awesome idea! That would save a lot of time and would be something that I would use!” After that I asked him, “If you had that application, in particular APPetite, what type of device would you use to reserve a table?” He said that “constantly I am looking through my phone for emails and I do not own a tablet, so I would most likely use the application the most on my Smartphone.” There on I proceeded to ask him if he would upgrade and thus buy the application for more features.” He said that it would depend on the cost of the application, and that he would if the application worked correctly. I then asked him, “Well, if you keep using the application and then it fails to work, whom would you see in order to get help with it?” He didn’t know what to say for awhile, but then came up with an answer. “If the application did not work correctly, depending of what was not working within the application, I would either go talk to the hostess upon my reservation, or I would directly talk to the restaurant manager to see if they could do anything about it.” I then asked Steven “what features would you use the most on this application?” “I would probably use the driving features on the application, because I drive everywhere and want to go to seek out good restaurants that are nearby my work I have not visited before. Also, I would certainly reserve a table using this application and probably use features that offer rewards, even thought I said I don’t. I think that the application will be useful because all of the information about the restaurant would be on the application. I hope to actually own something like this in the future!” Steven responded. Finally, I asked Steven, “if this application was a success, would you tell others about it?” He quickly responded that, “yes, if it works and proves an efficient way to reserve a table then, I would.”
After interviewing Steven for the second time, I got a better understanding if users would actually be willing to use an application to reserve tables at restaurants. From the answers that Steven gave me I understood how a specific user would probably use the application, what they would use it for and approximately how often they would use it with t the amount of times that they go out to eat during a week.
From this interview I used Steven’s answers to help shape the flow model once again. In the flow model, it represents the communication and the interaction with the different stakeholders; user, restaurant manager, host/hostess. Since Steven was portrayed as the user in this interview, he gave me a better understand of how he would be using the application and how he would use the application to communicate with the restaurant personnel.
1. How often do you go out to eat at restaurants?
2. If you had an application that was on a Smartphone, or an electronic device to reserve a table, would you be willing to use it?
3. What kind of device would you use if you could own the application (APPetite)?
4. Would you buy this application?
5. If you were to continuously use this application and it fails to work, whom would you go to for help?
6. What features would you use the most on the application?
7. If the application was a success, would you recommend it to others?
Interview Summary
The interview took about 15-20min, and was pretty straight forward because Steven had good answers to the questions and he was not confused with what I needed to ask. The first question that I asked Steven was “How often do you eat at restaurants?” I asked this question to get a general idea of how often he would be reserving a table. Steven responded, “I tend to go out to restaurants mostly on the weekends and the occasional weekday. So probably 2-3times a week.” From the previous interview I found out that Steven does not use reservations a lot, therefore I asked him questions that dealt with possibly using an application. “Steve, if you had an application that was on a Smartphone, or an electronic device to reserve a table, would you be willing to use it?” He responded, “What an awesome idea! That would save a lot of time and would be something that I would use!” After that I asked him, “If you had that application, in particular APPetite, what type of device would you use to reserve a table?” He said that “constantly I am looking through my phone for emails and I do not own a tablet, so I would most likely use the application the most on my Smartphone.” There on I proceeded to ask him if he would upgrade and thus buy the application for more features.” He said that it would depend on the cost of the application, and that he would if the application worked correctly. I then asked him, “Well, if you keep using the application and then it fails to work, whom would you see in order to get help with it?” He didn’t know what to say for awhile, but then came up with an answer. “If the application did not work correctly, depending of what was not working within the application, I would either go talk to the hostess upon my reservation, or I would directly talk to the restaurant manager to see if they could do anything about it.” I then asked Steven “what features would you use the most on this application?” “I would probably use the driving features on the application, because I drive everywhere and want to go to seek out good restaurants that are nearby my work I have not visited before. Also, I would certainly reserve a table using this application and probably use features that offer rewards, even thought I said I don’t. I think that the application will be useful because all of the information about the restaurant would be on the application. I hope to actually own something like this in the future!” Steven responded. Finally, I asked Steven, “if this application was a success, would you tell others about it?” He quickly responded that, “yes, if it works and proves an efficient way to reserve a table then, I would.”
After interviewing Steven for the second time, I got a better understanding if users would actually be willing to use an application to reserve tables at restaurants. From the answers that Steven gave me I understood how a specific user would probably use the application, what they would use it for and approximately how often they would use it with t the amount of times that they go out to eat during a week.
From this interview I used Steven’s answers to help shape the flow model once again. In the flow model, it represents the communication and the interaction with the different stakeholders; user, restaurant manager, host/hostess. Since Steven was portrayed as the user in this interview, he gave me a better understand of how he would be using the application and how he would use the application to communicate with the restaurant personnel.
User Revision Explanation
All revisions are italicized. I made these refinements, and interviewed Steven for a second time in order to get more information to help strengthen the models and provide better descriptions for the stakeholders. In particular the flow models were shaped from this interview because they didn’t have any information that dealt with the use of the application. I think that these refinements were necessary to keep the flow of the project consistent with the basis of the application being present.
User Interview Notes (Previous)
On September 29th 2012, I (Sarah Saimbi) interviewed my brother, Steven Saimbi during my break home to talk about my design project for IST. I told him about how my team needs to conduct interviews with “stakeholders” and that he would be identified as a “stakeholder” I told Steven that for this interview he would be identified as the “user”. The interview at first was a little confusing because he did not understand how this would help me, but with more detailed questions and showing him the models that would be made he got the concept. I asked him a variety of questions that would help with the various models that our team needed to create. Below are the questions that
I got to ask.
Questions that I asked for the Stakeholder (the user):
1. What is the first thing that you think about when you are choosing/deciding what restaurant you want to eat at?
2. When you are at a restaurant and something does not go well with your service, food, atmosphere, do you directly talk to the manager or someone else in the restaurant?
3. When you reserve a table at a restaurant, what do you ask for?
4. How are you currently reserving a table at a restaurant?
5. Do you normally go to the same restaurant, or do you explore more options?
6. What do you do once you arrive at the restaurant?
7. Do you use coupons/offers that restaurants provide to determine which restaurant you will eat at?
8. Once at the restaurant, does the manager of the restaurant come by to ask how things are?
9. Also, when at the restaurant, does the host/hostess come by to ask how the service is going?
10. What situations are you generally in when you want to go out to eat, like driving, walking around?
Interview Summary
The interview took about 30mins to conduct and majority of the questions were answered. When asked what is the first thing that you think about when choosing a restaurant, Steven responded “I don’t go out until the weekends,
cause that’s when I have the most free time. So, for instance on Friday if I decide that I want to go out to eat, I will think about what kind of food that I want, say Chinese…from there I choose a restaurant that I know of close by that has good Chinese food and ask my friends or family if they want to join me” As the interview progressed, I asked him how is he going about reserving a table at a restaurant. Steven said that normally he doesn’t use reservations all that often, but when he decides to he will just call ahead saying what he wants. After asking that, I asked him “so when you decide to reserve a table, what are you asking for? He said that “If I go out with the family, I will ask for 4 people, and for dinner time, so like 6:30pm. I then asked him if he participates in any of the reward systems that restaurants offer, and if so if he uses them. Steven said that he does not normally get too many good offers from the restaurants, so he doesn’t really use them. Also, he mentioned that if there was a better service available for coupons/rewards that he would use that. From that part of the interview, I got a good understanding how Steven reserves a table, whom he goes with and what he looks for in a restaurant. After that we talked more about him actually being present in the restaurant and what service he wants at the restaurant.
I first asked Steven what he does once he’s at the restaurant. He thought that was a stupid question to ask. He laughed and answered that when he is at the restaurant he approaches the host/hostess and asks “hi, I reserved a table for 4 people, my name is Steven for 6:30pm”. From his answer, I moved to the next question. I asked him that “say something terrible happens with the service, do you approach the manager of the restaurant or other personnel in the restaurant?”He thought that was a tricky question to answer because of different situations. I gave him situation where the service was so long, and in the end his food came out gross, he responded saying “Sarah, that would be awful and thank goodness that has not happened, but if it did then I would immediately complain to the manager of the restaurant and demand that I am not paying for such service”. I liked Steven’s answer to that question and asked him if either the manager or the host come by to ask how he is doing while at the restaurant? Steven responded, “Yes, but only sometimes. Certain restaurants do come up to me and ask how everything is, but most of the time they
don’t”.
After interviewing the user I learned a lot about the restaurant service in general. From hearing what Steven had to say I learned that people decide what kind of restaurant that they want to go when they have time, when they want a specific type of food, and with whom they choose to eat with. I also learned how restaurants interact with the user. I learned that Steven and most people would complain if something was wrong with their service to the head of the restaurant. In addition, that rarely does the host or the manager approach the user to ask about their dining experience.
From this interview I used Steven’s answers to help shape the flow model. In the flow model, it represents the communication and the interaction with the different stakeholders; user, restaurant manager, host/hostess. Since Steven was portrayed as the user in this case, he provided insight on how he would and does communicate with the restaurant personnel. The questions were specific enough to add in detail throughout the flow model.
I got to ask.
Questions that I asked for the Stakeholder (the user):
1. What is the first thing that you think about when you are choosing/deciding what restaurant you want to eat at?
2. When you are at a restaurant and something does not go well with your service, food, atmosphere, do you directly talk to the manager or someone else in the restaurant?
3. When you reserve a table at a restaurant, what do you ask for?
4. How are you currently reserving a table at a restaurant?
5. Do you normally go to the same restaurant, or do you explore more options?
6. What do you do once you arrive at the restaurant?
7. Do you use coupons/offers that restaurants provide to determine which restaurant you will eat at?
8. Once at the restaurant, does the manager of the restaurant come by to ask how things are?
9. Also, when at the restaurant, does the host/hostess come by to ask how the service is going?
10. What situations are you generally in when you want to go out to eat, like driving, walking around?
Interview Summary
The interview took about 30mins to conduct and majority of the questions were answered. When asked what is the first thing that you think about when choosing a restaurant, Steven responded “I don’t go out until the weekends,
cause that’s when I have the most free time. So, for instance on Friday if I decide that I want to go out to eat, I will think about what kind of food that I want, say Chinese…from there I choose a restaurant that I know of close by that has good Chinese food and ask my friends or family if they want to join me” As the interview progressed, I asked him how is he going about reserving a table at a restaurant. Steven said that normally he doesn’t use reservations all that often, but when he decides to he will just call ahead saying what he wants. After asking that, I asked him “so when you decide to reserve a table, what are you asking for? He said that “If I go out with the family, I will ask for 4 people, and for dinner time, so like 6:30pm. I then asked him if he participates in any of the reward systems that restaurants offer, and if so if he uses them. Steven said that he does not normally get too many good offers from the restaurants, so he doesn’t really use them. Also, he mentioned that if there was a better service available for coupons/rewards that he would use that. From that part of the interview, I got a good understanding how Steven reserves a table, whom he goes with and what he looks for in a restaurant. After that we talked more about him actually being present in the restaurant and what service he wants at the restaurant.
I first asked Steven what he does once he’s at the restaurant. He thought that was a stupid question to ask. He laughed and answered that when he is at the restaurant he approaches the host/hostess and asks “hi, I reserved a table for 4 people, my name is Steven for 6:30pm”. From his answer, I moved to the next question. I asked him that “say something terrible happens with the service, do you approach the manager of the restaurant or other personnel in the restaurant?”He thought that was a tricky question to answer because of different situations. I gave him situation where the service was so long, and in the end his food came out gross, he responded saying “Sarah, that would be awful and thank goodness that has not happened, but if it did then I would immediately complain to the manager of the restaurant and demand that I am not paying for such service”. I liked Steven’s answer to that question and asked him if either the manager or the host come by to ask how he is doing while at the restaurant? Steven responded, “Yes, but only sometimes. Certain restaurants do come up to me and ask how everything is, but most of the time they
don’t”.
After interviewing the user I learned a lot about the restaurant service in general. From hearing what Steven had to say I learned that people decide what kind of restaurant that they want to go when they have time, when they want a specific type of food, and with whom they choose to eat with. I also learned how restaurants interact with the user. I learned that Steven and most people would complain if something was wrong with their service to the head of the restaurant. In addition, that rarely does the host or the manager approach the user to ask about their dining experience.
From this interview I used Steven’s answers to help shape the flow model. In the flow model, it represents the communication and the interaction with the different stakeholders; user, restaurant manager, host/hostess. Since Steven was portrayed as the user in this case, he provided insight on how he would and does communicate with the restaurant personnel. The questions were specific enough to add in detail throughout the flow model.
Hostess Interview Notes (Previous)
On December 3rd, 2012 another interview was set up with Becky Donoso in Easton, PA over the phone in order to show her the group project, and the weebly website. She was informed that a second interview was needed in order to ask her how she would feel about the use of an application service to reserve tables. I (Matt Donoso) interviewed Becky the questions that are listed below.
1. If an application were to be introduced to users where they would be able to reserve a table on the go, how would you feel about that, or would the application make work experience easier?
2. What would you do if the application failed to reserve a table for someone, or that it malfunctioned?
3. Would you be happy to use the application software if it was on your end of the restaurant, like be able to use the software instead of using a paper list?
Interview Summary
As Becky went through the interview, she was a little confused about what the application would exactly be doing. I told her that the application that would be introduced would be APPetite and that it would be an application that customers could download and be able to reserve a table without walking into the restaurant or calling ahead. From there, she understood the concept of the application and then agreed to answer the following questions. The first question that was asked was “how would you feel about the introduction of the application and would it make your work easier?” Becky said that it would be one tough job to be able to adapt to the software of this new application and it would be different, however probably more useful in the end for users to reserve a table. Also, she said that it could have its downfalls of not working properly causing malfunctions to occur. Overall, she said that it certainly be more useful than using a piece of paper to cross off and make sure that people come in for their reservation. From there, another question was asked, “what would you do if the application did fail?” Becky responded that if there was a malfunction and the application did not work properly that she would report directly the restaurant staff, more specifically the manage r of the restaurant if anything did not work. She also said that if the user had trouble with the application they would most likely come to her or the restaurant manager in order to resolve their problems. The next question was asked, “Would you happy if the application was on your side of the restaurant, instead of using a paper list?” Becky questioned this and then came up with an answer. If I had the application on my end, I think that it would probably make things go more smoothly and more quickly in allowing users to reserve a table. She then said that she would be afraid of any hostesses that were of an older generation using the application because they might not be familiar using such software. Also, she said that she would certainly be comfortable with using it as long as it does not fail on her!
Becky provided answers in order to help understand how a hostess would use the application and whether or not it would be useful. From the interview, it helped by seeing that the application would be a success and that any hostess, even Becky would be ok with using the application. In addition, Becky helped with the physical model and the flow models.
1. If an application were to be introduced to users where they would be able to reserve a table on the go, how would you feel about that, or would the application make work experience easier?
2. What would you do if the application failed to reserve a table for someone, or that it malfunctioned?
3. Would you be happy to use the application software if it was on your end of the restaurant, like be able to use the software instead of using a paper list?
Interview Summary
As Becky went through the interview, she was a little confused about what the application would exactly be doing. I told her that the application that would be introduced would be APPetite and that it would be an application that customers could download and be able to reserve a table without walking into the restaurant or calling ahead. From there, she understood the concept of the application and then agreed to answer the following questions. The first question that was asked was “how would you feel about the introduction of the application and would it make your work easier?” Becky said that it would be one tough job to be able to adapt to the software of this new application and it would be different, however probably more useful in the end for users to reserve a table. Also, she said that it could have its downfalls of not working properly causing malfunctions to occur. Overall, she said that it certainly be more useful than using a piece of paper to cross off and make sure that people come in for their reservation. From there, another question was asked, “what would you do if the application did fail?” Becky responded that if there was a malfunction and the application did not work properly that she would report directly the restaurant staff, more specifically the manage r of the restaurant if anything did not work. She also said that if the user had trouble with the application they would most likely come to her or the restaurant manager in order to resolve their problems. The next question was asked, “Would you happy if the application was on your side of the restaurant, instead of using a paper list?” Becky questioned this and then came up with an answer. If I had the application on my end, I think that it would probably make things go more smoothly and more quickly in allowing users to reserve a table. She then said that she would be afraid of any hostesses that were of an older generation using the application because they might not be familiar using such software. Also, she said that she would certainly be comfortable with using it as long as it does not fail on her!
Becky provided answers in order to help understand how a hostess would use the application and whether or not it would be useful. From the interview, it helped by seeing that the application would be a success and that any hostess, even Becky would be ok with using the application. In addition, Becky helped with the physical model and the flow models.
Hostess Revision Explanation
Revisions are italicized. By interviewing Becky for a second time, she provided more insight on how she would use the application and how she felt about it. These refinements in the end reflected how the models would look with the application present and the hostess using the application. Also, the refinements helped to shape the definitions of the stakeholders, hostess being one of them. Lastly, these refinements were done to make the deliverable flow and make sense that the application is present throughout.
Hostess Interview Notes (Previous)
On Oct 7, 2012, Becky Donoso, hostess at Red Robin in Easton, PA was interviewed over the phone. She was informed that the purpose of the interview was to develop models that would represent various aspects of her job. The following series of questions was used as a guideline for the interview.
Questions asked of the stakeholder:
1. What physical aspects in your restaurant enable you to complete your
work more efficiently?
2. How is the layout in your restaurant? Do you find it useful?
3. How do you organize your work environment? Are there specific areas for foods, silverware, menus, buzzers, etc?
4. Are there any areas of your restaurant you'd change?
5. How do you usually go about seating people, waiting list or reservations?
6. How do you usually take wait list requests?
7. Do you think it would be easier if people could notify you ahead of time that they were coming and put their name on a waitlist then?
8. How do you typically interact with customers who wish to be placed on the waiting list and what problems arise?
9. How do customers react to a long waiting time?
10. How do you typically interact with customers when it is their turn to be seated and what problems arise?
11. Is there ever conflict between you and the servers or bussers?
12. What does management emphasize in your work?
13. What would you like to see more of from your management?
14. What do you currently use to record the customers that request a table?
15. What do you like about the tools you already use?
16. In what ways would you improve what you are already using?
17. Do you find buzzers to be an effective way of communicating with customers?
18. Who do you interact with to perform your job?
19. Can you describe these interactions more specifically?
Interview Summary
The interviewee stated that the main physical feature that enables her work is the hostess stand. It is positioned just inside the entrance which provides a clear stopping point for customers to wait for assistance. The stand also holds the hostess’ main tools such as menus, silverware, and seating chart/list. She explained that the layout of the restaurant facilitates operations. There is a waiting area near the front door where customers can wait for their table to be ready. They can also wait outside or leave easily due to this location. The tables are arranged in the center of the restaurant between the hostess station and the kitchen. This setup lessens the crossing of paths between different
employees and employees with patrons.
The hostess explained how the seating process works beginning with asking for the number of people in a party and then determining which table to assign them based on number in the party and a rotation system. If there are matching tables available then a name is taken for the party which is written on a paper. As tables become available parties are called and crossed off the list in the order they were added. The hostess explained that if people were able to add their name to the waiting list before arrival it would probably not make her job easier except for there might be less annoyed customers.
The interviewee stated that most customers do not need to be placed on the waiting list, and when they do, it is generally about 10 minutes which the customers calmly wait. When waiting times are longer, around 20 to 40 minutes, many customers consider the wait, express displeasure, and leave. Other patrons add their name to the list. Problems arise when the estimated wait time is not met, for this reason the time is often intentionally overestimated. Problems can also arise when customers see others who arrived later seated before them due to their party size. Patrons are typically pleased when their party is called for seating, although many parties place their name on the list and then leave. The interviewee stated that her goal is to get the people seated because they are generally displeased and annoying while waiting. Conflict arises between the hostess and the servers/bussers when parties are not served quickly to free up tables and tables are available but not bussed. If the restaurant is understaffed at a time, the servers sometimes encourage the hostess to try to turn away some guests. The interviewee stated that management stresses retaining all customers who arrive, particularly large parties. She also said that she wanted management assistance when waiting patrons became impatient.
The interviewee stated that her primary tool for helping waiting customers is a hand written wait list. She said that she likes this method because it is simple. She stated that she did not have any ideas for improving the system. They do not use buzzers at her restaurant and when asked how she felt about using them, she replied that she would not like them because it is easier to just call for a party and skip them if they do not arrive within a few minutes. Buzzers might
take longer and might need to be recovered.
The hostess explained that she interacts with two categories of people: restaurant employees and customers. She interacts with the customers through greeting, seating, wait listing, and calling them for tables. She interacts with the
restaurant staff through communicating which tables are available and contacting management for any issues with the waiting customers.
Questions asked of the stakeholder:
1. What physical aspects in your restaurant enable you to complete your
work more efficiently?
2. How is the layout in your restaurant? Do you find it useful?
3. How do you organize your work environment? Are there specific areas for foods, silverware, menus, buzzers, etc?
4. Are there any areas of your restaurant you'd change?
5. How do you usually go about seating people, waiting list or reservations?
6. How do you usually take wait list requests?
7. Do you think it would be easier if people could notify you ahead of time that they were coming and put their name on a waitlist then?
8. How do you typically interact with customers who wish to be placed on the waiting list and what problems arise?
9. How do customers react to a long waiting time?
10. How do you typically interact with customers when it is their turn to be seated and what problems arise?
11. Is there ever conflict between you and the servers or bussers?
12. What does management emphasize in your work?
13. What would you like to see more of from your management?
14. What do you currently use to record the customers that request a table?
15. What do you like about the tools you already use?
16. In what ways would you improve what you are already using?
17. Do you find buzzers to be an effective way of communicating with customers?
18. Who do you interact with to perform your job?
19. Can you describe these interactions more specifically?
Interview Summary
The interviewee stated that the main physical feature that enables her work is the hostess stand. It is positioned just inside the entrance which provides a clear stopping point for customers to wait for assistance. The stand also holds the hostess’ main tools such as menus, silverware, and seating chart/list. She explained that the layout of the restaurant facilitates operations. There is a waiting area near the front door where customers can wait for their table to be ready. They can also wait outside or leave easily due to this location. The tables are arranged in the center of the restaurant between the hostess station and the kitchen. This setup lessens the crossing of paths between different
employees and employees with patrons.
The hostess explained how the seating process works beginning with asking for the number of people in a party and then determining which table to assign them based on number in the party and a rotation system. If there are matching tables available then a name is taken for the party which is written on a paper. As tables become available parties are called and crossed off the list in the order they were added. The hostess explained that if people were able to add their name to the waiting list before arrival it would probably not make her job easier except for there might be less annoyed customers.
The interviewee stated that most customers do not need to be placed on the waiting list, and when they do, it is generally about 10 minutes which the customers calmly wait. When waiting times are longer, around 20 to 40 minutes, many customers consider the wait, express displeasure, and leave. Other patrons add their name to the list. Problems arise when the estimated wait time is not met, for this reason the time is often intentionally overestimated. Problems can also arise when customers see others who arrived later seated before them due to their party size. Patrons are typically pleased when their party is called for seating, although many parties place their name on the list and then leave. The interviewee stated that her goal is to get the people seated because they are generally displeased and annoying while waiting. Conflict arises between the hostess and the servers/bussers when parties are not served quickly to free up tables and tables are available but not bussed. If the restaurant is understaffed at a time, the servers sometimes encourage the hostess to try to turn away some guests. The interviewee stated that management stresses retaining all customers who arrive, particularly large parties. She also said that she wanted management assistance when waiting patrons became impatient.
The interviewee stated that her primary tool for helping waiting customers is a hand written wait list. She said that she likes this method because it is simple. She stated that she did not have any ideas for improving the system. They do not use buzzers at her restaurant and when asked how she felt about using them, she replied that she would not like them because it is easier to just call for a party and skip them if they do not arrive within a few minutes. Buzzers might
take longer and might need to be recovered.
The hostess explained that she interacts with two categories of people: restaurant employees and customers. She interacts with the customers through greeting, seating, wait listing, and calling them for tables. She interacts with the
restaurant staff through communicating which tables are available and contacting management for any issues with the waiting customers.
Manager Interview Notes (Revised)
In order to get more information on how the application would be useful in the restaurant, I (Annie Stephenson) went back and contacted the restaurant that I sever at to talk to my manager, Kristina Leach. The interview again was done over the phone on Dec 3rd,2012 and took about 20-25minutes. The questions below are the questions that I asked during the interview.
1. How would you feel about users having an application on electronic devices which would allow them to reserve a table at a restaurant, like yours for instance?
2. Do you see this happening in the near future at your restaurant?
3. How would you feel it would help the workplace, or hinder it?
4. If the application failed to work, what would you do?
Interview Summary
The first question that I asked my Manager was “How would you feel about users having an application on electronic devices, which would allow them to reserve a table at a restaurant, like yours for instance?” Kristina responded that she has heard of something like that before only for private, upscale restaurants. She thought that this would be a good idea for her restaurant because the restaurant does not offer something like this. Also, she mentioned that if a restaurant like hers could afford it she would proceed to get the application at her restaurant. Kristina even said that she would love to have the application on her smartphone! After that I asked “well do you see this happening in the near future at your restaurant?” Kristina said, “Of course, sometime in the near future would be great!” There on I asked her if the application was theoretically present in her restaurant how she would feel about it. My manager said that “if the application was present in my restaurant, I would certainly think it would help the restaurant. I think and would help the restaurant flow. It would be more efficient in allowing users to have a place where they can easily check out the menu, reserve a party of their choice, and even use rewards and discounts at my restaurant! It would be ideal. It would be useful in my restaurant because I think it would keep the restaurant more organized, if it could interact with the users also. Overall, definitely be a good asset to the restaurant, and that it would only hinder it if it malfunctioned.” So then I asked her, “If the application then failed to work, what you would do about it?” Kristina said that she would certainly have issues with that because she isn’t the greatest with technology. What she would do then she said would probably contact the application developer of the application. She said that there must be developers/engineers of the application to contact. She said that she would certainly do the best she could to make sure that the application worked properly.
1. How would you feel about users having an application on electronic devices which would allow them to reserve a table at a restaurant, like yours for instance?
2. Do you see this happening in the near future at your restaurant?
3. How would you feel it would help the workplace, or hinder it?
4. If the application failed to work, what would you do?
Interview Summary
The first question that I asked my Manager was “How would you feel about users having an application on electronic devices, which would allow them to reserve a table at a restaurant, like yours for instance?” Kristina responded that she has heard of something like that before only for private, upscale restaurants. She thought that this would be a good idea for her restaurant because the restaurant does not offer something like this. Also, she mentioned that if a restaurant like hers could afford it she would proceed to get the application at her restaurant. Kristina even said that she would love to have the application on her smartphone! After that I asked “well do you see this happening in the near future at your restaurant?” Kristina said, “Of course, sometime in the near future would be great!” There on I asked her if the application was theoretically present in her restaurant how she would feel about it. My manager said that “if the application was present in my restaurant, I would certainly think it would help the restaurant. I think and would help the restaurant flow. It would be more efficient in allowing users to have a place where they can easily check out the menu, reserve a party of their choice, and even use rewards and discounts at my restaurant! It would be ideal. It would be useful in my restaurant because I think it would keep the restaurant more organized, if it could interact with the users also. Overall, definitely be a good asset to the restaurant, and that it would only hinder it if it malfunctioned.” So then I asked her, “If the application then failed to work, what you would do about it?” Kristina said that she would certainly have issues with that because she isn’t the greatest with technology. What she would do then she said would probably contact the application developer of the application. She said that there must be developers/engineers of the application to contact. She said that she would certainly do the best she could to make sure that the application worked properly.
Manager Revision Explanation
Refinements are italicized. These refinements were made to make the project in constancy with the application. By interviewing Kristina for the second time it helped shape the models with the use of the application. She gave me a better understanding of how the restaurant would interact with the presence of the application. There was better flow between the users, hostess and the restaurants. In addition, the refinement allowed the stakeholders to be more descriptive.
Manager Interview Notes (Previous)
On Monday October 8th 2012, I (Annie Stephenson) contacted the restaurant I serve at when I am home in order to interview my manager, Kristina Leach. The interview was conducted over the phone, and, in total, took approximately 30 minutes. I informed Kristina that her answers to the interview questions would help my team build more accurate models related to the aspects and activities of restaurant life. Below is the list of questions I prepared and asked during the phone call:
What about your current business tools do you find efficient or
inefficient?
Do your current tools/methods allow for productive interactions with the employees and the restaurant customers?
How do your current methods affect the productivity?
What physical aspects in your restaurant enable efficient work-related activity and progress?
How does the restaurant layout affect your job or daily restaurant activities? Do you find it useful or impractical?
Where you often find yourself spending the most time while you work?
How do you organize your work environment? Are there designated areas for separate restaurant functions?
Are there any areas of your restaurant you would change, or any spaces you would suggest adding?
How do busy times affect your employees?
To what extent do you interact with customers?
What are customer interactions typically like?
Do problems arise? If so, what kind?
In your opinion, how do long waiting times affect customer satisfaction and restaurant atmosphere?
Interview Summary:
The 30-minute interview was very casual and the conversation was easy flowing. For the most part, Kristina understood the meaning of the questions and how to answer them. We began with questions #1, #2, and #3 regarding types of business tools/methods in her restaurant and whether or not they allow productivity and efficient interactions. Kristina explained that her most useful and practical tool was the restaurant’s managerial computer, which she uses for a variety of activities. She described that the computer is where she “creates and stores a majority of business-related files for the restaurant, including where [she] makes the employee schedule weekly and where employee contacts are kept.” She continued to describe that she uses her computer for Internet access to check and update the restaurant’s website, to manage the company’s email account, and to purchase goods from/interact with suppliers. Kristina notes that her“computer absolutely promotes restaurant productivity,” and without it her establishment could fall apart. Furthermore, she described the employeeschedule as a useful restaurant method because it organizes a structured timetable of an entire week. Kristina then quickly remembered the company phone is another great tool, allowing for customer and business-related phone calls and interactions. From these initial questions our group gained better perspective as to how to create the artifact models, which we had been struggling with. Instead of drawing a single tool, for the manager stakeholder, we now knew that displaying the variety of tools on an image of a desk or an office was the better choice. In addition, we knew to add employee schedules into the physical model.
The next set of questions I asked Kristina pertained to the physical environment of her restaurant. I began by asking which of these aspects enable efficient work-related activity and progress. Kristina noted that the “employees only”area was a very beneficial area for the staff. Not only does this give Kristina an area to have an office, but it allows storage for personal belongings, chairs for breaks, and a clock to keep time. She continued by saying various clocks are strategically placed around the restaurant so both the staff and anyone in the establishment have a visual aid to reference when searching for the time. Kristina then began discussing the loading dock area in the back of the restaurant where deliveries and shipments are received. She commented that “the location of the loading dock in the back of the restaurant is convenient for the restaurant because it essentially opens into the kitchen’s back door,” and it also is beneficial because it does not hinder the entrance or get in the way of the rest of the restaurant. I then asked about the rest of the layout, and Kristina explained how her restaurant has indoor and outdoor seating and a bar. She said the one-level layout makes it easy for the wait staff to navigate through the table aisles, and she likes that she can always have an eye on the entire floor. She noted the most useful area in the restaurant was the wait-staff computer screen area, where the staff goes to punch in orders and transactions. Multiple screens protrude from the wall enabling a spacious and organized area. Kristina claims she spends most of her time either on the floor overseeing activity or in her office. One space she wished they had was a waiting area because “often times
the regulars at the restaurant take up the bar-seating area, so those waiting for their table either have nowhere to go or stand behind the bar.” When the people waiting stand behind the bar seats, they cause traffic within the activity flow. Here, Kristina jumped ahead and answered question #8 so I didn’t even need to ask. This section of questions gave our group a lot of information. We knew in the physical model, a waiting room was key to allow spacious waiting
room. In addition, to help the staff, an “employees only” area and wait-staff computer screens were necessary to enable a practical environment. We also knew a loading dock would be a good component for the physical model. Furthermore, placing clocks around restaurants helps everyone keep track of time.
For the most part, the paragraph before described the designated areas of work mention in #7. I asked if Kristina had anything to add and she just said an organized hostess area is essential for presentation and productivity. Next I
asked how busy times affected her employees. Kristina said that everyone must be hands-on during this time to ensure productive work-flow. The hostess should answer telephones, or by the bartender if the host is unavailable, so the wait-staff can Kristina, herself, can tend to the floor. I moved on to ask how much she interacts with customers and she tends to greet regulars, answer historical questions, or manage large parties, which reserve the restaurant. Aside from that, Kristina says she usually asks how customer’s meals taste and how the service is, or she attends to customers when issues arise. Next, I asked how those interactions are. Kristina explained they can be anywhere from very positive to very negative. These interactions depend on how the service of the staff was that day, including the kitchen crew. Furthermore, large parties sometimes cause difficulties when they are disorganized, tardy, etc. I then asked Kristina to elaborate on what issues arise with customers. Kristina said, “Normally, issues result from slow service, incorrect orders, or dissatisfaction with the customer’s meal.” Aside from that, if the guests had a really miserable time, they will sometimes say just about anything to prove how unhappy they are. My final question to Kristina was how, in her opinion, did long waiting times affect customer satisfaction. Kristina explained that long wait times are probably when customers are the most irritable and she laughed saying, “…especially because they’re hungry.” Customers will continuously hover over the hostess and sometimes trickle onto the restaurant floor to peek and see if tables are opening, leaving, etc. This final part of this interview gave us a better idea of the interactions between the restaurant (manager/owner) and the customers. We could add information to the hostess flow model and we also knew our application would be popular to users who dislike wait times.
What about your current business tools do you find efficient or
inefficient?
Do your current tools/methods allow for productive interactions with the employees and the restaurant customers?
How do your current methods affect the productivity?
What physical aspects in your restaurant enable efficient work-related activity and progress?
How does the restaurant layout affect your job or daily restaurant activities? Do you find it useful or impractical?
Where you often find yourself spending the most time while you work?
How do you organize your work environment? Are there designated areas for separate restaurant functions?
Are there any areas of your restaurant you would change, or any spaces you would suggest adding?
How do busy times affect your employees?
To what extent do you interact with customers?
What are customer interactions typically like?
Do problems arise? If so, what kind?
In your opinion, how do long waiting times affect customer satisfaction and restaurant atmosphere?
Interview Summary:
The 30-minute interview was very casual and the conversation was easy flowing. For the most part, Kristina understood the meaning of the questions and how to answer them. We began with questions #1, #2, and #3 regarding types of business tools/methods in her restaurant and whether or not they allow productivity and efficient interactions. Kristina explained that her most useful and practical tool was the restaurant’s managerial computer, which she uses for a variety of activities. She described that the computer is where she “creates and stores a majority of business-related files for the restaurant, including where [she] makes the employee schedule weekly and where employee contacts are kept.” She continued to describe that she uses her computer for Internet access to check and update the restaurant’s website, to manage the company’s email account, and to purchase goods from/interact with suppliers. Kristina notes that her“computer absolutely promotes restaurant productivity,” and without it her establishment could fall apart. Furthermore, she described the employeeschedule as a useful restaurant method because it organizes a structured timetable of an entire week. Kristina then quickly remembered the company phone is another great tool, allowing for customer and business-related phone calls and interactions. From these initial questions our group gained better perspective as to how to create the artifact models, which we had been struggling with. Instead of drawing a single tool, for the manager stakeholder, we now knew that displaying the variety of tools on an image of a desk or an office was the better choice. In addition, we knew to add employee schedules into the physical model.
The next set of questions I asked Kristina pertained to the physical environment of her restaurant. I began by asking which of these aspects enable efficient work-related activity and progress. Kristina noted that the “employees only”area was a very beneficial area for the staff. Not only does this give Kristina an area to have an office, but it allows storage for personal belongings, chairs for breaks, and a clock to keep time. She continued by saying various clocks are strategically placed around the restaurant so both the staff and anyone in the establishment have a visual aid to reference when searching for the time. Kristina then began discussing the loading dock area in the back of the restaurant where deliveries and shipments are received. She commented that “the location of the loading dock in the back of the restaurant is convenient for the restaurant because it essentially opens into the kitchen’s back door,” and it also is beneficial because it does not hinder the entrance or get in the way of the rest of the restaurant. I then asked about the rest of the layout, and Kristina explained how her restaurant has indoor and outdoor seating and a bar. She said the one-level layout makes it easy for the wait staff to navigate through the table aisles, and she likes that she can always have an eye on the entire floor. She noted the most useful area in the restaurant was the wait-staff computer screen area, where the staff goes to punch in orders and transactions. Multiple screens protrude from the wall enabling a spacious and organized area. Kristina claims she spends most of her time either on the floor overseeing activity or in her office. One space she wished they had was a waiting area because “often times
the regulars at the restaurant take up the bar-seating area, so those waiting for their table either have nowhere to go or stand behind the bar.” When the people waiting stand behind the bar seats, they cause traffic within the activity flow. Here, Kristina jumped ahead and answered question #8 so I didn’t even need to ask. This section of questions gave our group a lot of information. We knew in the physical model, a waiting room was key to allow spacious waiting
room. In addition, to help the staff, an “employees only” area and wait-staff computer screens were necessary to enable a practical environment. We also knew a loading dock would be a good component for the physical model. Furthermore, placing clocks around restaurants helps everyone keep track of time.
For the most part, the paragraph before described the designated areas of work mention in #7. I asked if Kristina had anything to add and she just said an organized hostess area is essential for presentation and productivity. Next I
asked how busy times affected her employees. Kristina said that everyone must be hands-on during this time to ensure productive work-flow. The hostess should answer telephones, or by the bartender if the host is unavailable, so the wait-staff can Kristina, herself, can tend to the floor. I moved on to ask how much she interacts with customers and she tends to greet regulars, answer historical questions, or manage large parties, which reserve the restaurant. Aside from that, Kristina says she usually asks how customer’s meals taste and how the service is, or she attends to customers when issues arise. Next, I asked how those interactions are. Kristina explained they can be anywhere from very positive to very negative. These interactions depend on how the service of the staff was that day, including the kitchen crew. Furthermore, large parties sometimes cause difficulties when they are disorganized, tardy, etc. I then asked Kristina to elaborate on what issues arise with customers. Kristina said, “Normally, issues result from slow service, incorrect orders, or dissatisfaction with the customer’s meal.” Aside from that, if the guests had a really miserable time, they will sometimes say just about anything to prove how unhappy they are. My final question to Kristina was how, in her opinion, did long waiting times affect customer satisfaction. Kristina explained that long wait times are probably when customers are the most irritable and she laughed saying, “…especially because they’re hungry.” Customers will continuously hover over the hostess and sometimes trickle onto the restaurant floor to peek and see if tables are opening, leaving, etc. This final part of this interview gave us a better idea of the interactions between the restaurant (manager/owner) and the customers. We could add information to the hostess flow model and we also knew our application would be popular to users who dislike wait times.