The Systems Approach in Foodservice Management

The concept of systems approach..

System approach to food service management views the organization as a unified, purposeful system composed of interrelated parts that interact in ways to achieve goals.

Classification of food services..

For your information, the groups have been divided into 3 types :

• Commercial - foodservice operations that compete in a freemarket and are open to all                                        customers ; profitable. For examples, restaurant, supermarket, convenience                                  store, snack bars, delis and so on.

                             

Convenience store

Supermarket

Snack bars

restaurant

• Non-commercial - This segment prepares and serves food in support of some other establishment’s main function or purpose ; non-profit. For instances, hospital, colleges and universities, nursing homes, governmental organizations, and business.

college's food court

hospital as a non-commercial FS

cafeteria in office building

vending machine

• Military - bases and ships provide food services to military personnel.

military foodservice

Foodservice Operation...

The nature of foodservice management :

• All organization must have their own mission as a summary of the organization's purpose, goal and objective.
• So, in order to achieve the mission statement, the objective must be developed as specific and measureable target of an organization.

The systems concept and approach...

History :

• Classical approach said that, to reach the goals of an organization, all of the workers need to perform efficiently.
• Social and psychological factors were important measures for employee satisfaction.

Basics of systems theory :

• System : a set of interdependent parts that work together to achieve a common goal.
• Subsystems : the interdependent parts of a system, the parts of a system.
• Systems Theory : viewing the systems as a whole made up of interdependent parts.

Systems Model

 Definition of key systems :

• Inputs – resources such as money, material, time, information required by a system.
• Operations – the work performed to transform inputs into outputs.
• Transformation – the process required to change inputs into outputs.
• Outputs – finished products and services of an organization.
• Feedback – information on how operations worked or failed or how they should be changed to restore equilibrium.
• Controls – the self-imposed plans and legal documents that impact the organization’s function.
• Equifinality – the same outputs may be achieved from different inputs or transformational processes.

Benefits of systems thinking

1. More effective problem solving
2. More effective communication
3. More effective planning
4. More effective organizational development

4 types of foodservice systems

• Conventional ( Traditional ) - raw food are purchased, transformed into final products for service and held at serving temperature until served.

              Advantages :

• high quality control of food
• flexibility in menu items
• less freezer storage required

              Disadvantages :

• stressful work day
• difficulty in scheduling the workers
• food safety
• higher food cost

              Rationale :

• food may be procured with limited amounts of processing
• conventional system demands skilled labor

Conventional system

• Ready-prepared ( cook/chill or cook/freeze ) - food is produced onsite, held chilled or frozen, and reheated for a later time.

              Advantages :

• reduction in labor cost
• quality and quantity control
• workload is evened out

              Disadvantages :

• High initial capital investment for equipment
• need reheating (rethermalization) equipment
• perceived loss of quality

              Rationale :

• reduced labor expenses
• decreased labor cost
• volume food procurement may decrease food cost

Ready-prepared system
                                        

• Commissary - Foods are purchased and produced in large central production kitchen and delivered in bulk to satellite serving areas for final production.

               Advantages :

•  Lower food and supply costs
• Purchasing power
• Ingredient control is improved
• Lower labor costs

               Disadvantages :

• High initial capital investment for building and equipment
• Transportation costs
• Perceived loss of quality
• Food safety problem can affect many customers

               Rationale :

• accommodates remote services area

Commisary system

                                            

• Assembly/serve - known as ‘kitchenless kitchen’. Fully prepared foods are purchased and require only storage, final assembly, heating, and serving.

              Advantages :

• less labor and less skilled labor needed
• minimal investment in equipment and space requirement
• portion control easier, less waste

              Disadvantages :

• high food cost
• limited availability of desired menu items
• additional freezer space needed
• concern over recycling

              Rationale :

• Assuming lack of skilled labor and available supply of highly processed foods, this system can be successful.

Assembly/serve system

                                                  

THE END OF THIS CHAPTER :D