There are issues, opportunities or problems that face every business and every organization. In my business, a restaurant, my biggest issue, problem and opportunity is with my alcohol cost. This is an issue and a problem because we are losing money, and it is an opportunity because it gives me the ability to prove how effective a manager I am. The significance of alcohol cost in a restaurant is the difference in what is being accounted for and what is actually being given away. When this number is high, we are losing product and therefore losing money. This requires research because it is important that we figure out whom and what is responsible for costing the store money. Because it is not information that is easily given up, I must conduct research that begins with my ultimate goal or question, establishes a hypothesis, determines the variables, and figures out the ethical considerations.
Research Question
The research question that I ask myself when researching the high number of alcohol cost is who is responsible? The next research question I ask myself is How can I determine who is responsible? The final research question is when all of this information is figured out, what can I do to fix it?
Hypotheses
The hypothesis in my unique organizational example is that I always expect to find that bartenders are most often giving away free drinks in hopes of making more financially from the customers. The background behind my hypotheses comes from many years in the restaurant industry and being shown this to be true often. Unfortunately, when it comes to money, greed comes in to play and proper ethics and morals go out. The reality that this might not be the case is known, but it continues to remain my hypotheses, none the less.
Variables
The variables in this issue are the different people that work different shifts, the other coworkers that also have access to the liquor and beer, the prices of the drinks during different times of the day, and the different way that each drink is poured. There are six different bartenders so it is hard to determine which shifts are losing the most alcohol, because they are worked by different people. The bar is located centrally in the restaurant so if no one were to be looking, there are opportunities for non-bartenders to take alcohol from behind there. Also, during the week, we have different prices for the same drinks so it is difficult for our calculations to give an accurate reading at the end of the week. We also do not require our bartenders to use measuring devices so one person might put a little more or less than the next person.