Pros

25% discount on food. 5 day work weeks which for private restaurants can be 6. Low expectations of management resulting in good job security. Target guest is low to middle income who do not understand tipping resulting in frustrated staff and quality people leaving for higher quality restaurants/guests.

Cons

Health and dental plans are worst I have ever seen. No bonus for assistants. No clear goals for promotion. Recently demoted Regionals to GMs and consolidated regions resulting in little oversight for GMs. Closed 45 restaurants in 2009 reducing opportunities for advancement. 20/80 internal vs external hiring devalues developing brand champions and overpaying for experience. 401k currently not matching and based on company wide sales increases.

Advice to Senior Management

Recognize that a management team achieves goals and develop bonus plan for assistants to reward hard work. Focus on objective measurements when doing reviews instead of subjective "N", "G", and "S" system. Operational hours have gone from 85 to 87 hours a week with no thanks to salaried in store management for working more hours.