Page 37 - foodservice magazine September 2018

WOMEN IN FOODSERVICE AWARDS 2018
37
LEADERSHIP IN FOODSERVICE
PRESENTED BY NESTLÉ PROFESSIONAL
LISA MARGAN
RESTAURATEUR
MARGAN RESTAURANT (NSW)
What drew you to a career
in foodservice?
In the late ‘80s I married a winemaker and moved to the Hunter Valley. I left my family, friends and job as a high school teacher, so I actually went kicking and screaming. But I had always wanted to be a chef so I retrained with renowned chef Robert Molines. We then moved to Bordeaux, France for a few years where my husband made wine and I cooked. It was there
I developed my love and appreciation for quality produce and the connection of wine and food. We returned to the Hunter and have created our version of
a wine and food offer, based on our estate-grown produce and agri-dining focus.
What does success mean to you?
It means that I am excited to get out of bed every morning. It means our business can run seamlessly and consistently without us being across the minutia of every operation, because we have a talented team that supports our vision. And it means that we continually innovate, grow and get better at what we do and our guests love us for that reason. Quite simply we operate in the field of restaurants, wine and farming – three highly competitive and challenging industries. Incredibly we are still standing so I guess if nothing else that’s success.
Over your career, what have you learnt about failure?
1. Clear goal setting – Ensure
you are clear about what you want to achieve and share that with your team so they buy in. It is easy to get distracted by trends and fads but try to stick to the plan.
2. Recruiting for skill set at the expense of team culture compatibility – I now know that I can train someone to carry three plates or work a section in the kitchen, but
I can’t rewire their thinking. If they cannot connect to ‘the why’ of what we do and that we will do it as a team then it will always be a battle.
3. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it – We prepare a comprehensive budget each year forecasting revenue and estimating costs. We also analyse our profit and loss every month to ensure we stay on track.
4. Always keep your guest firmly in mind – They keep us all in our jobs.
What keeps you up at night?
This has changed over the decades but a couple of 3 am classics include:
• OhmyGod,didIendup
sending that dessert to table 16? • In the early days it was finding
and affording quality people
to work in the business.
• Now it is the challenges of global warming and the
deepening NSW drought. We are farmers and are not even connected to mains water, so this impacts hugely on us.
How has your leadership style has changed over the years?
We started our business with just the two of us so there was no one really to ‘be the boss of ’. Now with ateamofabout30Ihavehadto upskill in HR and learn to appreciate the varying behavioural styles of everyone who works for us. My style has also switched from that of a manager to one of a leader, where my job is to keep the business vision and goals crystal clear and to mentor, inspire and support the team. I think the traditionally feminine characteristics of empathy, vulnerability and communication are being seen more and more as strong leadership qualities in modern workplaces. Hopefully this addresses retention rates in the industry, which is especially true for women in hospitality.
2018
WOMEN
IN FOODSERVICE AWARDS WIFA