Who Will Benefit from this Program?
This program was designed to benefit current and emerging leaders and managers in the restaurant, hospitality and foodservice industry who wish to develop people skills as a complement to their technical operations skills. It offers the knowledge and methods necessary to increase leadership performance among chain managers, operator/owners, unit managers, manufacturers, distributors, and trainees preparing for increased management responsibility.

Employees in the restaurant, hospitality and foodservice industry are often promoted to management positions because of their expertise and experience gained while working through all aspects of operations.

In order to implement their specialized knowledge, they must be able to direct, motivate, train, supervise and evaluate employees who report to them. This program was designed to help employees identify and learn these vital "soft" skills, so important to personal development, management ability, the performance of other employees, and to the success of any organization.

Who is Offering this Program?
This Leadership & Management Program is offered by the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF) featuring Harvard ManageMentor PLUS (HMM PLUS) from Harvard Business School Publishing (HBSP) eLearning.

The NRAEF develops, promotes and provides educational and training solutions for the industry. One of its key strategies is to help the industry recruit and retain employees. Harvard Business School Publishing eLearning division offers a range of resources and programs including Harvard ManageMentor PLUS to support practicing managers and organizational leaders with fast, effective ways to tackle the daily challenges of business.

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Why is this Program Necessary?
In an industry where employee turnover can be especially challenging, improved leadership techniques can significantly lower management turnover rates, so companies can focus on improving their bottom line. The program also conveys to employees that the restaurant, hospitality and foodservice industry is one that encourages professional development, offers a career path, and personal growth.

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What is this Program Designed to do?
This is a just-in-time education and training program designed to build key leadership and people management skills in an applied, hands-on, practical way. This program can be incorporated into the day-to-day activities of restaurant, hospitality and foodservice operations. Designed as a turn-key program, it can easily be implemented in your company's on-going operations. It has been implemented in our restaurant, hospitality, and foodservice industry, and it works! Use it as an investment in retention—motivating individual managers and demonstrating that their company is investing in their future.

The foundation for the program is the online resource, HarvardMentor^®PLUS, and the Harvard Business School Publishing (HBSP) "Universal Competency Matrix," a competency model that sets forth the major capabilities managers and leaders need in 11 areas, ranging from "customer focus" to "managing change." (See Appendix A.) Modules from HarvardMentor PLUS are matched to these competencies.

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How will this Program Benefit Your Organization?
This NRAEF Leadership & Management Program has the following features:

• Delivers high-quality knowledge from Harvard Business School Publishing eLearning to the working restaurant, hospitality, and foodservice manager
• Easy to implement
• Affordable
• Flexible, easy to customize
• Easy to sustain over time
• Based on sound education principles—a competency-based curriculum
• A blended approach combining online elearning with in-house, group discussions to apply the techniques to your operation
• Flexible enough to integrate with your current program, or serves as a complete program for your company
• An excellent way to create a culture of participation, management development and leadership behavior

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What is the Purpose of this Implementation Guide?
The purpose of this guide is to give an overview of the contents and benefits of this program and to recommend suggested methods for using this program in your organization within the restaurant, hospitality, and foodservice industry.

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How do you Implement this Program?
A great strength of the program is that it is flexible and can be implemented or used in a variety of ways from individual development to structured sessions where the material is discussed and applied through practical, hands-on exercises. Once enrolled in the program, each participant has full access to all 41 modules/topics from Harvard ManageMentor PLUS. A program of study can be chosen that fits your organization and addresses specific, selected topics of need and interest. Some possibilities are the following:

1. An individual development plan for a manager: One use of the program would be to support an individual development need. For instance, if a manager wants to gain expertise in coaching, delegating, and giving feedback, an individual plan of study focusing on those and related modules could be selected. The manager could concentrate on those topics and delve deeply into them, completing back-up readings and/or working one-on-one with his/her own manager.
2. Supplement your in-house management and leadership development program: An organization may already have an in-house curriculum, and this program is an easy, low-cost way to supplement or add to that already existing curriculum. A selection of the modules could simply be added to an existing in-house program.
3. Online self study: The program is set up so that an individual could embark on a program of self study, working through the topics according to his/her need, relying on the online material in the Harvard ManageMentor PLUS topic module as well as the toolkit of best practice and follow-up readings.
4. Blended approach: combine a set of online modules/topics with facilitated discussions and applied exercises designed to practice and apply the ideas learned from the readings and discussions. This blended approach can be implemented in a single restaurant or plant, in a multi-unit chain, in a small organization, or large corporation.
   This guide presents a recommended version of the "blended approach" that was developed and successfully implemented in our industry. This is a starting point that has been tested and works. It can be modified and customized to meet your organizational needs. Experience with online learning shows that one of the most effective methods combines online information with the "human element"—contact with a coach or facilitator who enables discussion and practical application of the concepts and ideas.

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