Happy New Year

GBI wishes everyone a happy and very prosperous New Year!

GBI is looking forward to 2010 as we have many new exciting plans and projects coming up with small, medium and large household brands.

Our new year plans are to stay on track in order to:

• Help clients take their business to the next step
• Become the first name that comes to mind when thinking about business consultancy that produces at least a 3:1 return on investment
• Focus on operations as the crucial method of maximising revenue
• Ensure customer experience, product and service consistency and operational performance is world-class with every client

From everyone here at GBI,

We wish you all the best for 2010!

Picking Winners

An employee’s perspective on the impact of GBI’s methods on his career and work.

In the December 2009  issue of Restaurant Magazine, Gavin Brooks, area manager of Konditor & Cook, describes joining a company that has just engaged a management consultancy – and its impact on his career bringing a specialist management consultancy has on his job and career. He explains how his need for career and skill development was met by Konditor & Cook but also on the benefits that David Gibson and his GBI team brought to Konditor & Cook’s interview process and training programmes.

His story shows what people look for in a company, stressing on thedesire and need to be trained and managed properly to ensure that everyone’s talents and abilities are recongnised and utilised.

To read the rest of the article click here: Picking Winners Dec 2009

For more information on how GBI can help you achieve the same results, contact us at info@gibsoninfrastructures.com.

Visit our website www.gibsoninfrastructures.com

What’s In It For You?

In the November issue of Restaurant Magazine, Mark Ryan, Operations Director at Konditor & Cook, discusses the benefits of bringing in specialised Management Consultants to improve the organisation’s operations and develop its staff and management.

At first Mark Ryan was very sceptical about bringing in a management consultancy but after seeing the results, he has changed his mind. He has seen that the methods applied to world-class companies can easily be replicated in the food industry.

He stresses: “I have learned that the right kind of guidance and structure, from the right type of person, can add tangible value to your organisation.”

He also comments on the process that GBI adopted to implement the organisational changes to Konditor & Cook, explaining how the organisation’s management has to believe in the changes.
Strategic planning is also essential for an organisation and Mark Ryan observed how vital it is to get this right from tbe beginning. GBI was there to support and facilitate these changes for Konditor & Cook as well as provide the team with all the necessary tools in order to continue the organisation’s success.

Read the rest of the article What’s In It For You?.

Visit our website to find out more about the benefits of using GBI : www.gibsoninfrastructures.com

To find out more email info@gibsoninfrastructures.com

Train to Gain – Leadership and Management Training

Train to Gain Funding

GBI is now able to access the Train to Gain funding for Leadership and Management through the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). This will support the training and development of Directors, Managers and Leaders operating within your organisation.

The key features of this Train to Gain funding are:

• Up to £1000 available for development of Directors and Management
  1. Up to £500 train to gain funding for an owner/manager/key director/leader without contribution from the employer
  2. A further £500 train to gain funding for the management team, including the original recipient, providing the employer matches the contribution.

So you could have £1500 worth of training for just a £500 contribution

• All organisations with between 5 and 249 people are eligible for this Train to Gain funding

How Train to Gain funding works:

GBI will notify your regional Leadership and Management broker for you and they will then contact you to take you through the formalities of applying for the Train to Gain funding. Very soon after this you will be informed of the granting of the funding and how to claim your money.
With proof of the commencement of learning and production of a receipted invoice, your Specialist Advisor will arrange for the LSC to refund you the agreed contribution.

For more information contact info@gibsoninfrastructures.com

Visit our website: www.gibsoninfrastructures.com

Handling Customer Complaints

The retailing industry is one that gets complaints very often as its primary aim is customer service. So it is important to provide customers with excellent service that will make them come back. A research conducted by TARP revealed that on average a dissatisfied customer will tell about 10 of his/her friends, and in turn they will each tell another 5, which comes up to a total of 50 people.

Nowadays with the internet, blogging, twittering and social media networks, a dissatisfied customer can make an even bigger damage to your business.

Take for example Giles Coren. He posted a bitter remark on Twitter about how he was dealt with by a restaurant that had charged him twice for the same bill. This can potential really harm a restaurant’s reputation.

For every complaint a restaurant hears, there are bound to be a few others that feel the same way but have not expressed it. Most of the time complaints are reasonable (there are some that are crazy and are complaints for the sake of complaining).

Consistency in customer service and products is the name of the game. You have to provide every customer with the same level of service to garuantee repeat business. Repeat business generates 95% of a restaurant’s revenue.

GBI ensures that there is rigour and consistency in your business and puts into place methods and processes that will gurantee that all staff work to the company’s standards. Do get in touch with us to learn how we can help you embed that consistency throughout your organisation.

website: www.gibsoninfrastructure.com

email: info@gibsoninfrastructures.com

Take your Office Party Higher!!!

As we are nearing Xmas office parties, GBI recommends that this year you ‘raise the bar’.

In the Shortlist magazine we found this rather alternative suggestion for your office party: Dinner In The Sky!

This is obviously not for the faint hearted or those with vertigo. This event is hosted by Dinner In The Sky (www.dinnerinthesky.com) and can host up to 22 guests and comes with chefs, waiters and entertainers. Alternatively, you can host your wedding reception, business meetings, receptions…and the list goes on.

Some negatives that we envisage are  the restriction of speaking to only the people on your left and right, not a great deal of freedom of movement (ie, the WC is out of the question!), and most probably numbness for sitting down too long.

But we think it could be a great alternative to the usual office parties and it will most definitely be hard to top.  If you try it please tell us how it went and send us photos. (info@gibsoninfrastructures.com)

To read the original article visit shortlist.com, Issue 102, page 21 (http://magazine.shortlist.com/1V4ae71189e2c87012.cde)