Management Competition Overview

Preparing Students for Competition –

Management Events

National Restaurant Association

Management Competition

Overview

Management Competition Overview

Why Participate?

• Marketing your program

• Gain industry support

• Enhance student experience


Why Participate?

• Scholarship opportunities

In 2009, $1.1 million were awarded to the top 5 teams in both the management and culinary competitions at the National ProStart

Invitational ™

• Networking for students and educators


• The Management Competition is divided into four events: written proposal, verbal presentation, visual display and critical thinking

• The events are weighted as follows:

– 30% verbal presentation

– 30% critical thinking

– 25% written proposal

– 15% visual display


• Each year, the NRA will release a description of the fictitious city the restaurant must be located in

• In response, students will develop:

– Defined restaurant concept

– Menu

– Marketing launch


Team members

• Only current high school students enrolled in

ProStart are eligible

• Teams will have a maximum of 4 students

• 1 alternate is allowed to be used in case of injury/illness

• Students may only compete for two years (may compete on both culinary and management over those two years)


Assistance

• Mentors and educators may only assist teams in preparing for the competition

• They may not prepare any of the materials themselves – expertise is limited to acting as a sounding board and critiquing practice presentations

• The proposal should be a unique work each year, and should not be built off the prior year’s work

Written Proposal


Preparation

• When the competition rules are released by the

NRA in the September prior to competition, it will include a description of a fictitious city, including:

– Population

– Major attractions

– Prominent businesses

• Students will develop a written proposal for their restaurant concept, menu and marketing launch


Defined Restaurant Concept

• Restaurant concept description - basic information on the concept such as type of establishment, type of cuisine served, hours of operation, etc.

• Description of interior and décor – designed to ensure students understand how the concept identity touches every aspect of the restaurant

• Interior diagram – identify flow/features of the FOH (host stand, bus stations, etc.) and BOH (safety features, equipment to cook the items on the menu, etc.)

• Organizational chart – measuring whether students have captured all the personnel essential to running the restaurant (from managers to janitorial staff)


Menu Development

• Descriptions of 9 menu items

• For 3 of the menu items, must include recipes and costing, using the culinary templates

– Can be done in conjunction with culinary team

• Teams must prepare and submit photos of the same 3 items

• Teams must submit a sample of the menu presentation

– For example, drawing of menu board for quickservice, or sample menu design

• Teams are restricted to only 9 menu items – there is a penalty if they submit more


Marketing Launch

• Teams will develop 2 marketing tactics to launch the restaurant

– Will include description, goal and budget

• One tactic will be determined by NRA each year and one will be at the team’s discretion

– For example, all teams will prepare a newspaper ad or an email campaign

• Teams will submit a sample of their tactics

– Such as layout of ad, slogan for t-shirt, etc.

• Teams may only submit 2 tactics, there is a penalty for submitting more


Scoring



Judges will be looking for creativity of the concept, how well the team thought through their concept, and how well they executed on the requirements



The written proposal will be evaluated by verbal presentation judges



The only exception is the recipe & costing judge, who will judge only that portion of the competition (similar to culinary)



Accounts for 25% of total management score

Verbal Presentation


Preparation

• Teams will prepare a 10-minute presentation based on their written proposal

• Teams should treat the judges like a panel of potential investors

– The presentation should pull out the relevant information that audience would be interested in

• To level the technology playing field, teams may only use

PowerPoint and may not embed any bells and whistles (such as video, sound, etc.)

– May only use the “no transition” option for slide transitions

– May use a custom design template


Delivery

• Teams will have 10 minutes to present their concept, menu and marketing launch to a panel of judges

– There is a 1-point penalty per minute over the 10minute limit, with disqualification after 4 minutes over

– Event organizers will have a visible clock to help teams keep track of their time

• Judges will then have 5 additional minutes to ask the team questions about their presentation

– Will help judges determine that the students have done all the work on the project


Delivery

• Each member of the team must have a substantial speaking role during the presentation

– 5-point penalty per student without a substantial speaking role

• Will use a projector and screen during the presentation

• Teams will “check-in” their presentation during registration on a CD or flash drive

– They will work off this copy on the event organizer’s computer

• The verbal presentation is open to the public


Scoring



Judges will be looking for public speaking skills, how well the team works together and how well they pulled out the pertinent information from their written proposal



Q & A will focus solely on their presentation and proposal




Visual Display

Visual Display

Preparation

• Teams will build a visual display that tells the story of their concept

• Must include relevant information (and samples) from the concept, menu and marketing

• To level the playing field, teams will be restricted in the size of their display and the material it may be constructed from

• All materials to support the display must be attached to the display board

– Attached materials cannot exceed dimensions of the display board, or hang over the edges

– Only exception is a display copy of the written proposal

Visual Display

Visual Display

Delivery

• Teams may use the visual display during their verbal presentation

• After their verbal presentation, teams will set up their display in a common visual display area

• Teams will then spend 45 minutes at their display answering questions from attendees and judges

Visual Display

Scoring



Judges will be evaluating whether the visual display accurately and creatively conveys the concept



2 judges will evaluate the visual display




Critical Thinking


Scenarios

• Teams will be evaluated on critical thinking skills (similar to current case study)

• A set of judges will present the teams with mini-scenarios from four categories, such as safety & sanitation, customer relations, human resources & staffing, marketing, menu development & design, concept knowledge

– Categories to be determined each year by the SRA and

NRA (announced at Orientation)

– all teams will be evaluated on the same four categories

(but with unique scenarios)


Delivery

• Scenarios will be presented while students are manning their visual display table

• Teams must work together to come up with solutions on the spot

• The answers must relate to their restaurant concept

• Critical thinking is open to the public


Scoring

 Judges will be evaluating the team’s understanding of management concepts, ability to problem solve, and teamwork



4 judges total



Each judge will specialize in the type of question they ask (one judge per category), but all will evaluate each question




Case Study

Workplace Safety

• How do teams address chemical and physical hazards?

• Do students follow the proper protocol to prevent or mitigate legal action?

• Is safety a component of every decision they make?

• Example: We see that you have a line cook position - while the line cook is carrying your signature soup, he slips in a puddle of water by the dish area. What do you do?

Case Study

Food Safety & Sanitation

• Is there a HACCP plan in place?

• Do students follow the proper protocol to prevent or mitigate legal action?

• Is sanitation a component of every decision they make?

• Example: While pulling out the beef for your signature ribeye, your prep cook notices that the walk-in seems a bit warm. What do you do?

Case Study

Customer Relations

• Is the customer always first and foremost in the teams’ minds?

• Is the Rule of 10 taken into consideration when the team interacts with customers?

• Does the team follow up with guests?

• Example: We see that mashed potatoes are the star item on your menu, how will you handle customer relations if your supplier does not deliver potatoes?

Case Study

Human Resources & Staffing

• Does any disciplinary action follow standard protocol and legal procedures?

• How are policies communicated to employees?

• How do students balance the need to properly staff the restaurant vs. cost efficiency?

• Do they look for creative solutions to staffing problems?

• Does cross-training factor into their solutions?

• Example: You have a party booked in your kid’s party room, and your lead party server calls off – what do you do?

Case Study

Marketing

• Do teams consider the impact of all communications on sales, staffing and public perception?

• Is there a crisis communications plan in place?

• Is the whole organization a part of the marketing plan?

• Example: In the coupon you printed in the newspaper, you forgot to put an expiration date.

Two months later, a table tries to redeem it – what do you do?

Case Study

Menu Development and Design

• How do all parts of the menu work together?

• How does the menu design represent the concept and menu?

• How do the prices on the menu relate to each other?

• Example: You don’t sell as much of the filet as you anticipated on Friday night, what will you do with the extra filets?

Case Study

Concept Knowledge

• How does a quickservice restaurant operate vs. fine dining?

• How does the location of the restaurant impact all other areas?

• Example: Concept Knowledge: Due to your location you serve a high volume during lunch. However, dinner tickets are down. What can you do to increase dinner volume?

Case Study

Critical Thinking Tips

• Don’t dissect what led to the current problems, address how you will solve them

– Instead of playing the blame game, deal with the situation as it is and put plans in place to prevent repeats

• Work as a team to solve the challenges

– If a teammate stumbles, jump in and help him/her out

Resources

Resources



When the rules are released, we will provide resources to help teach and prepare for the management competition



Map to curriculum



Listing of online resources



Samples



Training presentations

Strategies for Success


Know the Rules

• Make sure you and your students fully understand the rules

• You’ve worked too hard to lose on a technicality

• National rules are released in late summer/early fall


Teaching Techniques

• Apply textbook learning to real-life scenarios

• Have students help teach each other to increase their confidence in their knowledge


The management competition is not just about knowledge, it’s also about teamwork !


Team Members

• Build the team

Team membership is competitive

Team membership based on knowledge, skills, and fit – not popularity

Team building exercises

Team identity

Team participation in planning

Team contribution to development/improvement


Confidence

• Develop public speaking skills

Have students practice presenting solutions to anyone who will listen, including other educators, school administrators, etc.


Practice Scenarios

• Ask mentors to provide you with challenges they face on a daily basis and doomsday challenges

– Have students present mini-case studies on these challenges to the mentors for their feedback

• Industry people love to tell horror stories – use it to your advantage!


Practice Scenarios

• Use your own observations – what have you witnessed happen in a restaurant?

• Industry publications

Nation’s Restaurant News , etc.


Practice is Crucial

• Schedule practices and study sessions

• Strictly enforce practice and study session schedules

• Have students “interview” for the team and treat it like a job


Practice is Crucial

• Run effective, organized practices

– Simulates actual competition

– Stresses time limits

– Places pressure on team and individuals

– Builds team and individuals

– Provides exposure to external moderators and judges

– Provides opportunities to practice against other teams


Keys to Success

#1 – Obtain a mentor

#2 – Practice...Practice…Practice

#3 – Be creative

#4 – Create an atmosphere of professionalism

#5 – Ask questions

#6 – Above all, have fun!

Good luck to you and your students!

Management Competition Overview

Preparing Students for Competition –

Management Events