For the Saxton Group (TSG), an operator of over 75 McAlister’s Deli restaurants, hospitality means having a personal touch, even in their hiring processes. Operating manually, managers could form relationships with candidates and find long-term fits. But that manual operation also led to slow hiring, and when things move slowly, candidates often drop off.
“Our restaurant managers had to review applications and personally call applicants to schedule interviews,” said TSG Chief People Officer, Matt Heston. “It took several days just to coordinate an interview.”
TSG knew that understaffing would cripple their customer experience. So they had to pull different levers to offset a lack of candidate volume. At one point, they were spending $25,000 every month on recruitment advertising. And with managers being buried in hiring logistics, they had less time to spend on the floor of their restaurants tending to customers. TSG sought a solution that could fix their pipeline issues while reducing their advertising spend.
Job advertising spend became unheard of for us. We needed a better solution.
Chief People Officer
An AI-powered upgrade.
TSG partnered with Paradox to modernize their hiring with an end-to-end automated solution. Now, TSG leverages Workday Paradox Conversational ATS to automate the monotonous work throughout the hiring process. Built for frontline hiring, Workday Paradox Conversational ATS makes job management easy—a mobile-first backend gives managers the ability to handle hiring work on the go so they can focus on their guests. And if their restaurant is understaffed, managers can toggle roles open with a simple tap, then let conversational AI handle all of the incoming administrivia.
Frontline candidates want to apply quickly and easily. TSG meets those needs with Rachel, their conversational AI agent available via career site widget or by text through scanning an in-store QR code. Rachel turns the application experience into a simple chat conversation. Candidates search for jobs, ask questions, and apply with just a few short messages. Rachel screens candidates for minimum qualifications, and after a few minutes and a few messages, the entire application is finished. Since adding Rachel, TSG has reduced their time-to-apply by 80%—from 15 minutes down to three.
[Conversational ATS] takes a load off our operators and allows them to focus on the customer experience.
Chief People Officer
Automating interview scheduling with just a text.
Once a candidate is deemed qualified, Rachel instantly moves to schedule them for an interview. Restaurant managers can configure Rachel with their own interview preferences, and since Rachel is synced to each manager’s calendar, she understands their availability without any extra effort. Rachel will send open times to candidates, and once they select a time that works, Rachel will place a calendar hold and notify the manager. If managers or candidates need to reschedule, Rachel can handle that with just a few more short texts.
The automated scheduling has just saved our restaurant managers so much time.
Chief People Officer
The financial impact of a staffed restaurant.
By getting applicants through the hiring process quicker, TSG has been able to combat understaffing without overworking their managers. And with that comes a positive feedback loop that improves customer experiences, reduces employee turnover, and increases profits. Satisfied employees are able to dedicate more time to their customers, getting food to the table quicker and serving each customer with a better attitude. As a result, increased patronage becomes more likely, bringing more dollars into the store.
Since team members aren’t overworked, they’re staying on for longer—TSG has reduced annual turnover by 37% since implementing Paradox. And with more employees staying on, TSG has been able to reduce their job advertising budget by $270,000 annually. In addition to saving job advertising budget, TSG's reduction in turnover—as well as their ability to hire faster—has helped them decrease their cost-per-applicant from $50 to $1.
If we can hire, train, and develop the right people, it’s going to save us money and increase our bottom line.
Chief Operating Officer
AI allows TSG to strategically slow down.
The Saxton Group has curated a hiring process that gets frontline candidates through the funnel quickly, freeing managers to spend more time with and hire qualified candidates, ultimately reducing turnover. So what’s next? Well, TSG plans to slow down.
“We’re at the point where we have a frankly overwhelming flow of applications,” said TSG Chief Operating Officer Stephen Lee. “We’re now planning to target areas where we can create friction that will reduce our applicants but increase the quality of applicants we’re getting.”
It might seem counterintuitive, but by moving slower TSG can build upon the improvements they’ve made to their profits by moving faster. With turnover reduced to manageable levels, TSG is no longer just trying to find bodies to fill restaurants. They can now be selective, and seek more best-fit candidates that match their ideal profile—which in turn will improve customer experiences and further improve profits.
It’s a win for candidates and it’s a win for our company. With the savings managers have now, it’s paid for itself.
Chief Operating Officer