This week, we've been chatting with Sydney Street Dual Site Manager, Lizzie, and Assistant General Manager, Lily, at The Flour Pot Sydney Street, where part of their roles involves the training of new supervisors across the whole business. Here's a little bit more about the work that they do and what they enjoy most about it.

Understanding the role of a Flour Pot supervisor:

We hold high expectations for our supervisors across the whole estate. An important aspect of our supervisory role is to ensure smooth-running operations day to day, including being able to open and close the shop, managing their team, and maintaining a positive work environment. Additionally, we manage customer interactions while complying with the policies and procedures we have in place as a business.

The Training Process:

When supervisors are externally hired into the business or internally promoted, we have the privilege of guiding them through a comprehensive training program. As part of our role as trainers, Lizzie and I welcome them to spend a week with us at our flagship store on Sydney Street, nestled in the heart of the North Laines.

Our first step involves assessing and identifying their skills and knowledge gaps using the training log curated from our HR development program. With this information at hand, we tailor personalized development training, ensuring it aligns with their individual learning styles.

Throughout the week, we provide hands-on training experiences, allowing them to shadow us, engage in role-playing scenarios, and take on supervisory responsibilities within the Sydney St store.

After their time with us, we continue to offer ongoing training at their home site, incorporating feedback provided during their week-long immersion. We emphasize the importance of continuous learning and provide full support, both from us and at their home site. Our ultimate goal is to nurture supervisors, helping them grow into their roles and potentially advance into management positions if they so desire.

We strive to ensure that our supervisors are inspiring and motivating leaders to their teams, adept at effective communication in busy environments, and capable of adapting to fast-paced situations. Witnessing higher retention rates across our estate following the implementation of this training scheme reaffirms our commitment to investing in our employees' development within the hospitality industry. The journey begins with the invaluable time spent with us, Lizzie and Lily.

Lizzie's story:

I started my Flour Pot journey at our Sydney St site 7 years ago as a Front of House member. Now, I proudly serve as the dual-site manager for Sydney St and Elm Grove. Throughout my time in management, one thing I've always held onto is my passion for people—it's utterly contagious!

With my wealth of experience in managing teams and ensuring operational excellence, I realized that my skills perfectly aligned with the functions of HR. As I embark on my own development within the business, I continue to embrace change and pursue new professional development opportunities. I work hand in hand with our HR department to master training and support our employees throughout their FlourPot journey.

At our vibrant Sydney St site, we also have our AGM, Lily-Grace, who works closely with me to execute our training program. Lily began her FlourPot journey two years ago, starting as a shift manager. Following in my footsteps, and with my support and seasoned knowledge of management skills, Lily progressed to Assistant Manager and then finally AGM in her current role. Like me, Lily is on her own developmental journey within the business. She loves all things operational and financial, drawing from her role as a trainee accountant outside of FlourPot. She hopes to utilize this expertise within her role and develop further up into the business, bridging the gap between operational management and financial management.

Both Lily and I emphasize the importance of teamwork and collaboration. We are a perfect example of this, continuing to express our commitment to the professional growth of others and maintaining strong interpersonal relations with employees.