SANDR in practice
Bring the question you actually have.
You may not know where the problem is yet. Tell SANDR what’s happening, show her what you have and say what you’d like to work out.
Here are a few examples of how a conversation with SANDR could go. They aren’t customer stories or a promise that everyone will get the same results.
On this page
“Food cost is up, but supplier prices look the same.”
The invoices look familiar, yet the margin has fallen. The gap is worth checking before you change prices.
What to bring
Sales, purchases, stock counts, recipes or waste notes for two periods. Make sure you’re comparing similar periods and figures calculated in the same way.
What to ask
“Look at where the gap might have come from. Have we sold more of different dishes, changed yields or portions, or had more waste? Could it be the stock count? Tell me which figures you still need.”
How to check
Agree what to check first, who will collect the missing figures and when you’ll look again. Do the numbers support the explanation, or did the first answer just sound convincing?
“Everything still comes back to me.”
You hired capable managers, but decisions still wait for your reply throughout the day.
What to bring
Examples from a few normal days or a week: what people called you about, what needed your approval and where you stepped in. Add what managers already own and what they can decide without you.
What to ask
“Help me understand why all this comes back to me. Where are knowledge or skills missing? Where is responsibility unclear? What really should stay with me? Let’s work out what I could hand over and how.”
How to check
Agree what the manager can decide and when they come to you. After a few weeks, look at what still waited for your answer and why. Fewer messages matter less than whether the work is moving.
“We keep having the same conversation about service.”
Everyone agrees the service fell short, but the team has different explanations for why.
What to bring
A few specific situations: what happened, when, who was working and how the guest felt it. If you say “communication is missing”, add an example so it’s easier to know what to check.
What to ask
“Let’s look at what keeps happening. Are we ready on time? How do we hand over, split the work and handle the load? Do our standards help during service? Prepare a short briefing and suggest one thing to try.”
How to check
Come back to what was getting stuck. Does the handover now include what used to be missed? Did the delay return on a similar day? Alongside giving the briefing, look at whether service improved.
“Same brand, but every venue feels different.”
You’ve agreed to work in similar ways, but the days and results are different.
What to bring
In a conversation about the whole group, bring comparable check-ins, reports and examples of how the same work gets done in different venues.
What to ask
“What’s shared across the group, and what should we work through in this venue alone? Help me separate them.” Similar-looking problems can come from different things.
How to check
Agree what should work the same way and what venues can adapt. Before applying a response to everyone, check whether the causes are similar too.
“Are we ready to open another venue?”
The numbers suggest you might be, but you can barely keep up with the work you have.
What to bring
The idea, the figures and how you work today: who manages, who owns what and which jobs still depend on one person.
What to ask
“Help me look at what we’d be short of if we opened another venue: management time, prep, people, training or money. What would need to work the same way at the new venue? Before a yes or no, let’s look at how ready we are.”
How to check
After the review, agree what else to check before going further. A plan helps you see what you don’t know. It isn’t enough on its own to decide the business is ready.
“The team notices things that never reach us.”
People see it every shift. Sometimes you only hear about it when they leave.
What to bring
Employee-approved Frontline summaries and your other records. People can think things through privately first. They decide whether to share, then read and approve the summary before sending it.
What to ask
“What keeps coming up? What else should we work out, and what could we respond to already?” You see the approved summary, while the conversation itself stays private.
How to check
Write in Loops about what you heard, what you’re changing and what you’re still watching. People need to see that their account received a response.
“A key person is leaving next week.”
You know when they’re leaving. Now it’s about what you can hand over in time.
What to bring
What this person owns, the skills managers have recorded and the work they haven’t finished.
What to ask
“Help me work out what to hand over in seven days. What knowledge could we lose? Who could cover? Where should a new person start?”
How to check
SANDR can suggest who might help based on recorded skills. Then speak with those people about whether they’re available and willing. A suggestion isn’t an agreed handover.
Tell her what’s happening. Work through it together.
You could start with: “Here’s what’s happening and what I know so far. Help me understand what might be behind it. What’s missing? What could we prepare for a conversation with the team?”
If something doesn’t fit, say so. Add detail, ask to see the sources and choose where to start. A useful answer often comes from keeping the conversation going.
What’s on your mind this week?
Try the demo, or apply for the 60-day guided beta and start with a real situation from your business.