Chinese whispers is a terrific game.
A group of people sit around a table. The first person writes down some information about something, then repeats it to the next person until the last one seated receives the message, standing up to repeat the message to the group.
The fun in this game ends when the original message is read out which tends to be completely different to the message at the end… lost in translation, if you will.
Similarly, "bar whispers" is a situation faced today in so many hospitality businesses, where the last person left in a team is tasked with the responsibility of training the new recruits.
A business without SOPs (Standard Operation Procedures) and thorough management oversight, creates the space for embellishment or misinterpretation from successive staff, impacting business performance.
Bar whispers almost guarantees important operational mantras are lost in translation, ultimately ending up with a failure to deliver a memorable, consistent and profitably-made cocktails.
Get serious about staff training and accountability to avoid bar whispers.