A Smoothie King team member has a variety of responsibilities related to serving customers, preparing smoothies, maintaining store cleanliness and safety, and supporting overall store operations. Some of the key duties include:
Customer Service
Smoothie King team members are responsible for providing excellent customer service. This includes greeting customers, taking orders, answering questions about menu items, suggesting add-ons or other items customers may like, entering orders accurately, and processing payments. Team members aim to create a positive experience for each customer.
Smoothie Preparation
One of the core duties of a Smoothie King team member is preparing customer smoothie orders. This involves reviewing recipes, gathering ingredients, measuring appropriate amounts, operating blenders, and finishing smoothies with toppings or mix-ins according to the customer’s specifications. Team members must follow recipe cards precisely and prepare smoothies according to store standards for quality and consistency.
Maintaining Work Area
Smoothie King has high standards for cleanliness and food safety. Team members are responsible for keeping their individual work areas clean and sanitized at all times. This includes wiping down blenders, counter spaces, sinks, and other equipment between uses. Proper sanitation procedures must be followed. Team members also restock ingredients, utensils, cups, and other supplies as needed.
Store Cleaning
In addition to individual work station cleaning, Smoothie King team members pitch in to clean and sanitize the entire store. Daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning tasks must be completed. This may involve sweeping floors, taking out trash, cleaning bathrooms, wiping down tables, washing windows, dusting surfaces, mopping, and more. Team members rotate through different cleaning duties.
Opening/Closing Shifts
Depending on their schedule, team members may be assigned opening or closing shifts. Opening staff complete tasks to prepare for the business day like turning on equipment, doing cleanliness inspections, stocking supplies, and reviewing production needs. Closing staff clean and shut down the store at the end of the day, which involves breaking down stations, cleaning equipment, storing ingredients, turning off appliances, locking doors, setting the alarm, and more.
Supporting Operations
In addition to their main job responsibilities, Smoothie King team members play an important role in supporting overall store operations. This can include taking inventory counts, placing orders for more ingredients/supplies, checking in vendor deliveries, monitoring equipment function, reporting maintenance issues, assisting with merchandising and displays, sharing customer feedback with the manager, and pitching in where needed to ensure work flows smoothly.
Following Procedures
Smoothie King has detailed procedures and guidelines for carrying out all job duties related to serving guests, ingredient handling, cleanliness, safety, security, equipment use, and more. Team members are responsible for understanding and adhering to all procedural documentation. This ensures consistency across staff.
Teamwork
Smoothie King emphasizes teamwork and supporting colleagues. While team members have their own job assignments, they are expected to step in to help wherever assistance is needed. This may mean assisting with customer rushes, covering breaks, sharing knowledge, or collaborating on special projects. Strong teamwork makes the store run more efficiently.
Smoothie King Culture
In addition to specific job skills, Smoothie King looks for team members who fit their culture and embody their values. They seek those with a passion for health and wellness, a commitment to serving people, a strong work ethic, and a positive attitude. Team members are expected to treat guests and colleagues with kindness and respect at all times.
Training
Smoothie King provides extensive initial training for new team members to prepare them for their duties. This typically involves both classroom style training and hands-on practice. Training covers areas like smoothie recipes, customer service standards, ingredient handling, safety procedures, equipment use, and company guidelines. Ongoing training is provided too.
Qualifications
While no prior experience is required, basic qualifications help candidates be successful as Smoothie King team members. These include having strong customer service skills, being comfortable working in a fast-paced environment, having basic math skills, being able to follow instructions and procedures, being able to operate kitchen equipment safely, and having reliability and integrity. Food service experience is helpful but not essential.
Day to Day Work Environment
Smoothie King stores tend to be relatively small, so team members work in close proximity. Days often start early to prepare for morning customers. Hours may vary from week to week based on store needs. As a team member, you can expect to be on your feet for most of your shifts. Days are spent listening to and interacting with customers, making smoothies, cleaning, and supporting the overall store. It’s fast-paced and hands-on. Team members must be comfortable working in a cool environment since many ingredients are refrigerated or frozen.
Benefits
Smoothie King offers several benefits to their team members, including:
- Competitive hourly wages
- Employee discounts on smoothies
- Bonus potential
- Flexible scheduling for work-life balance
- Career advancement opportunities
- A fun, fast-paced work environment
Job Outlook
Smoothie King continues to grow nationwide, recently reaching over 1,300 locations across the U.S. As they expand, they continue hiring new team members. They seek team players committed to delivering excellent guest experiences. There is potential to take on more responsibility and grow with the company over time.
How to Apply
Interested candidates can browse and apply for open Smoothie King jobs online through the careers section of the company’s website. Opportunities are available for various locations and shift times. The hiring process typically includes submitting an application, interview, background check, and training period. Hiring is done at the individual store level.
Conclusion
Smoothie King team members perform a wide array of duties – from making smoothies to managing operations – to help busy stores run smoothly each day. They provide friendly service and deliver high quality products to guests. With a fast-paced work environment and potential for growth, it can be a rewarding entry-level job option for those seeking to start their food service careers.
| Shift Time | Typical Responsibilities |
|---|---|
| Opening | Turning on equipment, inspecting cleanliness, stocking supplies, reviewing production plans |
| Morning | Greeting customers, taking orders, preparing smoothies, handling payments |
| Mid Day | Serving customers, cleaning work stations and store, monitoring inventory |
| Evening | Preparing evening smoothies, assisting closing tasks like equipment shut down |
| Closing | Cleaning blenders, counters, floors at end of day, closing down store |
As shown in this table, responsibilities vary for Smoothie King team members depending on their scheduled shift. Morning and mid-day shifts focus heavily on customer service and smoothie production tasks. Opening and closing team members have more responsibilities related to opening procedures and closing duties.
Throughout any given week, team members can expect to be scheduled for a variety of different shifts to cover store needs from open to close. The exact schedule may vary based on staffing levels and store management preferences. But in general, team members need to be prepared to handle all types of responsibilities at various times of the day.
The diverse shift duties keep the job interesting for Smoothie King team members. They get experience with all aspects of store operations while also benefiting from the fast pace and customer interaction. Managing the various shift tasks effectively requires good time management, organization, multitasking skills, and ability to take initiative.
Opening Shift Tasks
For the opening shift, some examples of specific tasks include:
- Disarming security alarm and unlocking doors
- Turning on lights, kitchen equipment, fridge/freezer
- Checking ingredient, supply, and merchandising levels
- Restocking ingredients or supplies that are low
- Wiping down counters, machines, and surfaces
- Setting up work station with tools and ingredients
- Reviewing daily product needs and prep lists
- Getting ice machine ready and brewing coffee
- Putting out menus and outdoor signage
Closing Shift Tasks
The closing shift involves responsibilities such as:
- Cleaning blenders, counters, sinks, and machines
- Sweeping floors and taking out trash/recycling
- Checking product levels and placing orders
- Storing unused ingredients and perishables
- Breaking down and shutting off equipment
- Removing menus and outdoor signage
- Restocking cups, lids, and tools
- Checking inventory or product expiration dates
- Preparing deposits for the next day
- Locking up and setting security alarm
As you can see, the opening and closing shifts have very different sets of closing duties essential to the smooth functioning of the store. All team members need to be trained to perform both. Some closing tasks may start before actual store closing time too.
Customer Service Tasks
When working during store open hours, team members focus heavily on serving Smoothie King guests. Common customer service tasks include:
- Greeting customers immediately upon entry
- Discussing smoothie options and taking order
- Upselling additional products like supplements
- Answering any customer questions
- Collecting payment and processing transactions
- Thanking customers and inviting them back
- Monitoring inventory and being available for assistance
- Maintaining a positive attitude and friendly manner
Properly attending to customers is a core focus for all scheduled team members during store open hours. Smoothie King aims to provide prompt, personalized service and make guests feel welcome.
Production and Cleaning Tasks
Behind the scenes store operation duties include:
- Reviewing recipe cards and preparing smoothie ingredients
- Operating blenders and finishing smoothies with extras
- Wiping down blenders and work stations after each use
- Stocking cups, straws, and other supplies
- Cleaning bathrooms, windows, floors, and store areas
- Taking inventory counts and placing orders
- Maintaining proper ingredient temperatures and safety
- Emptying trash and recycling regularly
Team members constantly switch between serving customers and working behind the scenes to clean and restock. Multitasking and time management are imperative.
Key Skills and Traits for Success
To excel as a Smoothie King team member, there are several important skills and traits to have:
- Customer service skills – Being able to greet, serve, and interact with guests in a friendly manner
- Multitasking – Managing multiple duties and customer requests at once
- Teamwork – Supporting colleagues and working together to meet goals
- Speed – Working efficiently and accurately in a fast-paced environment
- Organization – Keeping work station and store area neat, clean, and well-stocked
- Communication skills – Understanding guest needs and clearly conveying information
- Reliability – Consistently arriving on time and being dependable
- Adaptability – Adjusting smoothly to shifting store needs and tasks
- Initiative – Working independently and taking on tasks proactively
- Time management abilities – Producing quality work efficiently within time constraints
In addition to job-specific skills, top team members have an upbeat, positive attitude and sincerely enjoy creating a welcoming experience for customers.
Day to Day Experiences
While tasks vary day to day, here is an example of experiences a Smoothie King team member may have:
Monday Morning
- Unlock store, disarm alarm, turn on equipment
- Check fridge temperatures and restock milk and fruit
- Take delivery of fresh strawberries and bananas
- Make a prep list for the day’s smoothie needs
- Set up work station with clean blenders and tools
- Put out new promotional signage
Monday Mid Day
- Greet customers and take orders during a steady lunch rush
- Get smoothies and supplements ready for each order
- Work the cash register and interact with customers
- Clean blenders and counters thoroughly between orders
- Check inventory levels and restock items as needed
- Assist co-workers with restocking cups and fruit
Monday Evening
- Prepare for evening rush by chopping fruit
- Serve customers and fulfill orders
- Start breaking down one station as things slow down
- Take inventory counts and consolidate leftover ingredients
- Mop floors and empty trash
- Assist with closing duties like equipment shutdown
This shows a typical busy day. Days may vary depending on shift, store needs, staffing levels, and customer traffic.
Conclusion
Smoothie King team members perform a wide range of duties each shift. From opening procedures to closing tasks, they handle customer service, sales, smoothie production, and store cleanliness. Key skills include customer service abilities, organization, teamwork, and adaptability. Each day brings new experiences interacting with guests, whipping up nutritious drinks, and keeping stores running smoothly. With hard work and dedication, Smoothie King can be a rewarding place to grow your early food service career.
