Throwing a new hire onto the register on day 1 is a disaster. It stresses them out and annoys customers. Build a structural onboarding program.
- Days 1-3: Culture, tasting coffee, cleaning procedures, shadowing. No customer interaction.
- Days 4-7: Register training, food prep, milk steaming basics.
- Week 2: Pulling shots under supervision, handling rush periods with a "buddy".
Slow training involves "fast" efficiency later. Retraining bad habits takes twice as long.