Recently we spoke with the team from Luna Grill about how they engage their team using Luna-versity and ensure that the content on their platform is constantly evolving. Read our interview below with past and current Key Administrators Hayley & Emily for insights on how they did this.
For those of us who don’t know, tell us a bit about Luna Grill?
The two owners of Luna Grill are motivated by their passion for Mediterranean food and family. And when they describe their restaurant chain as consisting of “family,” they’re not exaggerating.
Sean and Maria Pourteymour, who launched Luna Grill in 2004, which is based in San Diego, California, are husband and wife. Sean serves as CEO, and Maria as chief cuisine officer. Maria’s parents ran a Greek restaurant, and Sean’s family was Iranian, which led to fusing Mediterranean and Middle Eastern flavors into their dishes such as chicken kabab plate, flat-cut chicken plate and gyro wraps.
Luna Grill has grown to 50 outlets, located mostly in Southern California and the Dallas/Fort Worth area. All locations are company-owned; none are franchised.
How do you engage your team with your platform?
Engaging our team with Luna-versity has been at the forefront of our business goals. We ask all team members to log in at the beginning of their shift, where we constantly load new content to get their attention. Being able to log in and find weekly newsletters, new modules, surveys and competitions, our team always engage with the platform and the latest business information.
We update our login page frequently, on average about twice a month. These updates our based around LTO’s, new product launches and business goals. Not only do we focus on updating the login page but having a dynamic dashboard, being able to log in and see the most up to date information on the brand is key. By changing the Dashboard layout, adding new & animated widgets, and removing elements that are no longer necessary, we are able to keep the Dashboard fresh & exciting.
What tool do you use most on Luna-versity?
As mentioned above, the Dashboard and updating it with the latest content is a major priority in our business. The other is ensuring we provide gamified and exciting training for our team. Through the use of the E-Learning tool and implementing SCORM within our business, our learners are more engaged.
Have you utilised any of the Free Off the Shelf World Manager content in the past two years?
Yes, introducing management succession training for our business was crucial during COVID. With the assistance of the Off the Shelf content, we were able to evolve this training with the help of World Manager.
Do you find the Internal Surveys tool a great way to gain feedback from your team members on the training process and what can be improved for future new starters?
Yes, we use the internal surveys tool a lot in our business. We love that the surveys sit within Fuel Gauges and are a part of the learning journey. The standard within Luna Grill is that all training sits at 90% of above on average, so having the internal surveys in this section helps ensure they are being completed. We also like that team members are able to provide feedback on their training through this tool, as sometimes it is hard for them to do so in person.
What prompted the idea of introducing iPads in your locations?
The introduction of iPads in locations was an easily and cost-effective decision when we looked at the cost of printing and laminating documents that were constantly being updated for our teams. With 54 locations, we were printing 1 x 100+ page book of recipes and 1 x 70+ page book on plating that were being updated 3-5 times per year.
We also needed a way of making our recipe books more engaging. So, by making them interactive PDF’s we were able to link recipe videos and easily push updates.
Have you found there has been greater engagement since introducing the iPads?
iPads made users feel more comfortable with technology/the platform because they were forced to use them. So yes, in a way it helped with engagement. It also helped tremendously with consistency. When recipes were printed, managers would hold onto old versions and things would get mixed up which created inconsistency with recipes.
Thank you to Hayley and Emily for their time and for sharing with us how they utilise their platform to drive key engagement and ensure consistency across their locations. Luna-versity is constantly evolving which keeps their content fresh and engaging, ensuring that their World Manager platform is the source of truth for their network. For more information, or if you’d like to explore engagement opportunities for your platform, please reach out to your Relationship Manager.