i’m only a barista and this is pretty obvious, but plzz place urself on a flexible position. that way baristas can come to u for help wherever they need and you’d actually be able to help. good luck and don’t overwork urself :)

Weekend peaks,

First I usually run my lunch first instead of a ten. Weekend peaks tend to be later and those lunches are a mess to run.

Second, just don’t let your guard down. Put yourself F/CS or DTO for best flexibility. Watch the floor. If you see signs of a bottleneck it’s ok to flex the play.

The other comments are solid advice. My tip is just being vocal and open to criticism. Try to communicate everything. Ask when people want breaks, what position they wanna be, which position they dislike, and try to accommodate whenever the schedule allows it.

When I became a SSV I would ask a million questions to other shifts and even baristas. I like to know where my baristas like to go. I tell all my baristas that if they’re drowning in a position don’t ever hesitate to ask, I’ll always try to accommodate each and every one of them. I always tell them I’ll do my best to accommodate everyone, but you can’t please everyone. I usually just take note of where I put them and switch it up the next time I work with them. For tasking I like to give people options. Bathrooms or trash run? I’ll do the other. Stuff like that will show you care. Ill never ask a barista to do something I wouldn’t do myself.

I love my partners, always flexible for breaks and what not, but it took a while to get to this point. We had a brand new staff at the start of July and it took a couple months for smooth shifts to reappear. Just had to be super patient, and in time the baristas will get better. Coaching is super important and it’s all about how you approach the specific person. Coaching makes or breaks a SSV in my opinion.

Show that you have your baristas back, and they will have yours. If there’s an angry customer, HOP IN. It shows that you care about your coworkers and that you have the skills to deescalate a situation. You’ve got this! They promoted you for a reason. Just stay open minded, cool, calm, and collected and you’re gonna kill it.

Use play builder for your plan! As part of my opening tasks I open playbuilder and see when peak is predicted to happen (My store is 10-12).

I get all possible lunches and breaks out before 10 so that way all partners (besides 1 to do the 18hr pull) are on the floor and we can begin “Go-mode”.

As for the actual play it depends on how many partners your manager gives you for peak, my manager gives us 8 so that we have 7 on the floor and one to do the pull. Giving us 1 DTO, 1 DTR, 1 Warming, 1 Bar 1, 1 Bar 2, 1 CBS, and finally myself to flex. My flex position will usually be doing the front register, running food, and supporting bar baristas where needed. This way all planted baristas can stay Planted!

If we are in a 6 person play I delete the position that is Bar 2, and I work extra hard to support the bar baristas. If it’s a 5 person play (talk to your manager please), I put myself on DTO so I can flex from that focal spot of the store.

I just did Saturday peak yesterday and we had so much fun with it

The fact you care and are hunting for feedback is a good sign I’m a partner not a shift but respect and good luck on your journey

Laugh. Know your partners signs of distress and move them. But mostly just be able to laugh. It makes a world of difference. To the human workers.

been a shift for a few years and here's some of what i do!
- pay attention to your partners strengths and weaknesses. when it comes to peak you wanna have your strongest people in their strongest positions. there's time for practice and peak is not it
- try not to have to run breaks during peak, but if you absolutely have to make sure it's only 10s. get them done before or after if possible especially lunches
- look at your DCR, playbuilder, and sales/UPH frequently. i like to write projected break times on the DCR for each person so i have a guideline to follow, and the playbuilder is helpful to visualize your floor and play with flexing your partners into different positions
- have all your prep/backups ready to go before peak because sometimes you have to sacrifice your CS to cover a 10 or understaffing issues, or flexing the play for an extra person on bar
- have yourself in a flexible position, like CS or warming. if you have to be somewhere else HAVE A PLAN! your partners will be coming to you asking where to go or telling you they are off etc etc have your plan in your head so you don't get caught off guard
- don't be afraid to flex the play if things are going south, and don't be afraid to ask your partners/fellow shifts/sm for feedback
- whenever possible take someone off the floor 10-20 minutes before their shift ends and give them a task to help you get caught up. change/take out trashes, make a couple whips/backups, do a lobby spin, etc etc. a lot of background tasks can build up during peak and it takes some stress off

good luck!! it takes time to master. i've been a shift for 3 years and still struggle with weekend peaks often

Don't be afraid to flex a partner to get things to help on the floor, do a lobby slide, make a back up, etc. Our job is largely just delegating a work force. Moving partners around can also help

Give baristas two options about position when they start their shift. It gives them the illusion of choice and they'll feel better about their position but by giving them two choices, you still get everything covered that you need. Even if it's two unfavorable things like "Do you want to mop or clean the bathrooms?" They both suck but having the choice will be more productive than saying "Welcome, you need to mop"

Always found it favorable when my shifts would do that. Plus just a good psychology/parenting hack haha