January 18, 2019
Sonic Franchisee Improves Time Management and Employee Retention with OpenSimSim
The Castleberry Group is a Sonic franchisee that manages 33 locations and nearly 1,000 employees in metropolitan and rural Oklahoma and Texas.
CHALLENGE:
There came a point in Castleberry’s growth when proper staffing by spreadsheet was no longer possible, so IT Supervisor James Newman set about to find a solution, an employee scheduler that would be scalable, accommodating Castleberry Group’s continued growth, and that would feature robust communications, to ensure smooth operations.
Another scheduling objective, Mr. Newman said, was to fulfill Castleberry’s mission of being “the employer of choice in the region.”
SOLUTION:
After researching various scheduling tools, Mr. Newman settled on OpenSimSim, not only because the scheduler addressed his desired objectives but because the solution was completely free despite the franchisee’s size.
When it came to rollout, Newman found the OpenSimSim team responsive to all questions and concerns from the Sonic Castleberry Group and very accommodating throughout implementation and training, which were also provided free of charge.
RESULTS:
“With the implementation of OpenSimSim, managers are now on top of their game,” Newman reports. “There’s no more accidental overtime and, where staffing runs short, shift opportunities are sent out to fill the gap via the app. A position may even end up being filled by an employee from a different location in the Castleberry Group.”
“Properly staffing shifts has become a snap with OpenSimSim, and managers now have more time to devote to restaurant operations.”
As for employee satisfaction, Mr. Newman continues, “They love the fact that they can easily specify their availability in real time and communicate with each other to cover shifts. They also appreciate the ability to pick up shifts, even from other locations in the Castleberry Group.