Minoru Hashiro, Operating Partner at Outback Maki Nibayashi

Minoru Hashiro, Operating Partner at Outback Steakhouse, talks to Maki Nibayashi about opportunities in the service industry.

Please tell us a bit about your organization.
Founded in 1988, Outback Steakhouse offers high quality food and service, generous portions at moderate prices, and a casual atmosphere suggestive of the rustic Australian outback. Japan was interested in the market share of Outback Steakhouse, and it is now the second largest franchise after the US. We choose the best quality ingredients and it took a long time, almost a year, before we were prepared to open our first branch in Minami-Machida. Since then, we opened our second branch in Shinagawa and this year we are planning to open three more branches, the first in Shibuya on April 17.

How is the business doing in Japan?
We have brought everything over from the US, from the atmosphere of the restaurant to the service. At first we were worried about how Japanese people would feel about the overly friendly wait staff, but now we have built up confidence and there seem to be no complaints. Outback' success lies in our five main principles: hospitality, quality, sharing, fun and courage. Quality is extremely important everything we make is homemade, nothing is brought in frozen. Hospitality is a must of course. Sharing this is an Outback specialty and we feel that the restaurant is not there for the company, but it is there for our customers and the employees, who make everything possible. If the customers are happy, then the employees are happy. Every employee at Outback has an opportunity to grow and prosper in the company. We have employee-of-the-month contests where the employee who makes the most over their quota for the month can win a prize. The main idea is that the employees have a good time while working and this will show in their service.

So what kind of people are you looking for?
With the opening of our Shibuya branch we need from about 100 to 120 part-time employees. This is a lot of work because there are only three managers and a few key employees. We cannot train each person at different times, so this is where the concept of giving more responsibility to part-time workers fit in. For example, if each person is in charge of three tables, it doesn't matter if they are a part-time worker - those three tables are their responsibility and they must make the customers happy. We have no manuals for service. We believe that since everyone is an individual it is important that this comes across in the service. By creating manuals employees can end up sounding like robots. If it is good for the customer, the worker can do whatever they want. We need people who are naturally hospitable, positive and energetic, and who can take things in their own hands for better service. Hopefully, applicants will be genuinely interested in the restaurant and hospitality business. We're looking for bilingual (English and Japanese) people because almost a third or even half of our customers are non-Japanese.

Can you tell us a bit about the salary and benefits?
We offer an annual contract for full-time staff we hire as key personnel and managers. The salary will be based on experience and negotiation after the initial interview. We offer all the Japanese insurance schemes. For part-time work, taking the example of Shinagawa, the hall service staff receive JY950 per hour, the back-of-house staff receive about JY1000. We also pay part of the transportation fee. Our stores are not open during the day, but the kitchen staff have to come in early for preparation. We are hiring back-of-house staff to do mainly kitchen work and pre-preparing meals, line cooks and dishwashers. For the front-of-house staff, we need hostesses to greet customers, and service staff and bus boys.

Contact details:
Call Miss Yamashita at Outback Steakhouse Japan (03-5786-0611) for further information on how to apply.

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