Maintaining Your Management Relationship When an Employee Answers to Multiple ‘Bosses’

In the restaurant industry, sometimes it’s hard for some of your employees to say exactly who is their “actual boss.” Employees may not always be working with the same shift manager every time they come to work, or they may have developed a close relationship with a manager who is not their “actual” boss and thus blurred the chain of command. In these situations, it’s complicated for the employee and for you.

Be the manager who sets up employees for success.

When you give such an employee a direction or regular task, it’s not always clear how many other instructions from other “bosses” that employee is juggling, or whether direction from another boss will interfere with what you have asked of a direct report. For his part, your direct report in this scenario is in a bit of a pickle. He needs to juggle the priorities of multiple competing bosses and either be worn to a frazzle or decide which one of you he is going to disappoint, if not both.

You want to be the…