Food-Service-Manual-for-Health-Care-Institutions

Figure 5.2. Food Service Department SWOT Analysis
Strengths
• Highly qualified and concerned staff
• Low employee turnover
• High employee morale
• Positive internal image, especially in catering and cafeteria
• Ability to function within operating budget
• Strong inventory control and purchasing procedures
• High department productivity
Weaknesses
• Timeliness of patient late trays
• Timeliness of food production
• Constraints of the physical plant in relationship to meal delivery
• Aging equipment
• Limited computer access
Opportunities
• Train employees for enhanced quality of service
• Replace current patient tray line
• Improve patient satisfaction with a new patient tray delivery system
• Convert production to a cook–chill system
Threats
• Shortage of qualified service employees due to changes in the workforce
• Difficulty of serving patient meals if tray assembly and delivery systems are not updated
In phase 2, specific departmental objectives are written to assist in accomplishing the organizational
goal. The objectives must be measurable and include time frames for accomplishment
as well as specific action plans. Action plans are then developed to support the objectives.
The action plan must be specific in terms of time frame for accomplishment, who is responsible,
and how success will be measured. Also included are contingency plans in the event the initial
plan was either ineffective or the objective needed to be modified. If the objective involves
capital expenditures, the appropriate financial information is included in the action plan.
Details for writing appropriate, measurable objectives are covered later in this chapter.
Phase 3 of the business plan, like the strategic organizational plan, requires the manager
to provide leadership for implementing the agreed-on action plans. The steps of the implementation
process are delegated by the manager. The food service director’s responsibility does
not end with implementation of the action plan, the effectiveness of which in meeting established
objectives must be monitored and changes made as necessary. As mentioned, the validity
of the objectives must be continuously evaluated in relationship to the changing
environment. For example, if the food service department based one of its objectives on providing
meal service to a long-term care facility to be acquired by the institution, but upper management
decided to forgo the purchase, the objective and action plan would need modification.
Planning and Decision Making
115