June 28th, 2009

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A hand-picked team

Owners should take an interest in hiring process

Mary Teresa Bitti, Financial Post Published: Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Salad Creations, a growing global healthy-food restaurant chain, doesn’t just look at resumes when hiring staff. Brenda Bot, Salad Creations’ master developer in Canada, also employs a behaviour psychology assessment developed by the U. S. head office to determine whether potential new hires will fit Salad Creations’ culture.

“Everything we do here is about giving customers an entire Salad Creations experience,” Ms. Bot says. “To apply for a position, managers and salad chefs fill out an application and then we have a three-step process before we hire.”

First candidates fill in a questionnaire comprised of behavioural and situational questions. For example: You’re travelling to work and your transportation breaks down, which action do you take? Do you call a co-worker and ask them to work your shift? Do you call the store manager and explain why you can’t work? Do you call the store manager and try to find alternative transportation? Do you try and fix the problem and then call the store manager?

If they score well, they move on to a building-blocks test that assesses their problem solving skills. “This is unique to Salad Creations,” Ms. Bot says. “We use this test for chefs, managers and franchisees. It allows us to evaluate a candidate in a stressful situation because it’s timed.”

Step 3 is the interview, where candidates are asked five questions geared toward determining future performance. In an industry with typically high turnover, Ms. Bot says this process works. “When hiring for our flagship store in Toronto in January 2008, we used the process and those employees are still with us. When we didn’t use the process because we needed to get bodies in quickly, we haven’t been as successful in keeping those candidates.”

Hiring right is critical especially in this economic environment. “Very few companies have extra cash or resources to spend on staff who are not going to add value,” says David King, executive vice-president of staffing services firm Robert Half International. HR costs and payroll costs are the biggest expenses for most organizations. We’ve surveyed CFOs about how they stay ahead of the competition in this challenging economy and 65% said it was by having the best team in place. For a small company with a small head count this is even more important.”

He breaks down the steps small business owners should take to hire right:

– Determine what it is you are trying to achieve. In many cases, companies look at the job the previous person did in the role and just use that to find another person to do the job. It is important to know the right combination of skills, experience and knowledge you need to ensure that person adds value and enhances the bottom line. You want to hire someone who is in line with the company’s objectives.

– Look around, don’t just rush to fill a role. Instead, think of this as an opportunity to see who is available in the market and who would enhance the company — not just fill a spot.

– Prepare a workload forecast rather than just looking to past expectations for the role. What is coming up? Is the company retrenching or going into a new area? Do you really need a fulltime person? Project specific and contract work is trending up, and will grow even further in the future. The thought of going traditional and simply hiring full time people for every role in the company has become passe.

– Evaluate your current staff. You may have someone who is ready and wants to move up. Promoting from within is a great way to retain staff.

– Put together a job description that includes a clear job title, primary and secondary responsibilities for the role, as well as the core competencies, experience, compensation and education required.

– Screen resumes thoroughly and look for red flags: lack of stability, lack of advancement, gaps in work history, any ambiguity. These can indicate problems in the applicants past jobs. Once you’ve determined a candidate has the skills necessary, ask about other areas such as what motivate that person, how she problem solves, etc. This may provide insight you can’t get from the more traditional questions and will help better determine how the person would fit with your team.

– Have managers do reference checks instead of hiring a recruiting or screening agency to do them. It is an opportunity to get a sense of how you can best work with and motivate who you hire.

June 18th, 2009

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10 Tips For Show-Stopping Salads

June 2nd, 2009

June 1st, 2009

For Immediate Release, June 1, 2009

1)      Orange Spinach Salad Baby spinach, oranges, almonds, red onions, olive oil, lemon juice, orange juice, honey and salt and pepper. Add fresh herbs like basil or thyme. Make it hearty with salmon.

2)      Roasted Vegetable Salad Spring mix, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, red onion, roasted zucchini, roasted asparagus, croutons, parmesan cheese crisps.

To make parmesan cheese crisps:  Grate fresh parmesan cheese onto a baking sheet lined with slipmat or parchment paper and bake at 375 until golden brown and bubby (about ten minutes). Garnish two on top of salad.  Drizzle salad with balsamic vinegar and honey herb and Dijon dressing.

3) BBQ Chicken Salad Romaine, mango, roasted red pepper, green pepper, red onion, green onion, and grilled BBQ chicken. Garnish with Tortilla Chips. Drizzle with Sweet onion dressing.

4)      Italian Summer Salad Romaine, tomatoes, red onions, carrots, black olives, avocado, croutons and Italian dressing. Add Ham or tuna salad to make it hearty.

5) Cool Buttermilk Ranch Salad Iceberg, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, broccoli, egg, mushroom, cheddar, corn and buttermilk ranch dressing.

6) Tarragon Chicken Salad Spring mix, chicken salad, green apple, walnuts, red onion, and drizzle with olive oil.

7) Grilled Peached and Steak Salad Mixed greens, grilled steak, grilled peaches, pecans drizzled with olive oil and fresh lime juice.

8. Peach and Feta Salad Spring mix, peaches, avocado, bacon and feta cheese drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

9) Spinach, Tomato and Corn Salad Baby spinach, corn, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, fresh herbs (chopped dill, basil, mint, parsley), drizzle with red wine vinegar, olive oil, minced garlic and salt and pepper.

10) Summer Fruit Salad Banana, Mango, strawberries, cantaloupe, watermelon and pineapple topped with granola, yogurt sprinkled with cinnamon.

For further media information or to schedule an interview, please contact:

Nelson Hudes

Hudes Communications International

(905) 660-9155

June 1st, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

10 TIPS/TRICKS FOR MAKING THE GREATEST SUMMER SALADS

Summer is here and healthy eating can sometimes become a concern as people tend to eat more when good weather arrives.  They may indulge when they go up north to the cottage, or when they have lots of friends and family over for an outdoor barbeque or perhaps eat that extra desert at dinnertime.

With that in mind, Jenna Bot of newly opened Salad Creations in Toronto says she wants everyone to try and stay healthy during the Summer of 2009 and has put together her Top 10 Tips and Tricks for Making the Greatest Summer Salads along with some of her own 10 Great Summer Salad ideas.

1)   Design Your Own Salad, think of a theme like “Canadian” and choose ingredients that suit the theme. (An example of this is Canadian Cob- which is a Salad Creations featured Salad)  You can also think of a recipe for an entree or soup and use those ingredients to turn it into a salad. For example buffalo wings, gazpacho, steak and potato.

2)   Less Is More. Simplify your salad by choosing two ingredients as the main

focus.

3)   For A Healthy Crunch, add a handful of nuts to any salad. Jazz up by pan frying (non stick) with a drop of honey.

4)     Dressing Rules:  Creamy works well on iceberg and romaine and salads with few to little ingredients (let the dressing be the focal point)

Vinaigrettes work well on spring mix and spinach. They lightly dress the salad so the ingredients in the salad shine through.

Balsamic vinegar and oil works well, Experiment with different oils and vinegars for different flavour profiles. For extra flavour add lemon juice or zest, honey, garlic and/or Dijon mustard.

5)     Experiment With Seasonal Fruits such as berries (pomegranate seeds, blueberries, and strawberries), mango, oranges, apples, peaches).

6)     Experiment With Different Starches: couscous, quinoa, potatoes, leftover pasta, and tortilla chips.

7)     Grow Fresh Herbs indoors or on the patio (chop up and put in salads for healthy benefits and unique flavours).

8)   Use What’s In Season to make fresh tasty but inexpensive salads with Ontario grown product.

9)  Using Leftovers: You don’t need to buy new items to make a great salad. The original famous “Cobb” salad was made from leftovers

10)  Experiment with different lettuces: There are tons of varieties to choose    from: maché, boston leaf, red leaf, watercress, arugula, and endive.

For further media information or to schedule an interview, please contact:

Nelson Hudes

Hudes Communications International

(905) 660-9155

nelson@hudescommunications.com