baker

customer service representative

bakery assistant

sandwich maker

opener

Great Harvest Bread Company

I worked at Great Harvest Company for less than a year.  There are some good points and some negative ones.  Of course, I understand no place is perfect.

First, the owner is a nice lady who is giving to the community. She is pretty flexible with schedules and open to suggestions and constructive criticism.  She makes it a point to make sure her customers are taken care of and she does her best to make most employees feel included.  She has a pretty good open door policy as well.

Next, most of the co-workers were friendly and easy to get along with and have pretty good senses of humor.  Great Harvest is a laid back atmosphere and I really like it that way.

As for training, the people from corporate were pretty nice and make sure you do a good job, at least from my perspective. The training time was very short but I, fortunately, was able to grasp it right away. I do have some baking experience so that does help.   

Their products are decent.  A bit too heavy for me, but I do enjoy most of them.  I really do like the fact that most items are scratch baked with fresh ingredients.  

The flip side, the owner has no experience in baking or owning a business, so it was, at times, frustrating because I, myself, only have a handful experience in baking and restaurant.  I, as well as a couple of other experienced employees in the food industry, had to really help her figure out a lot of stuff such as how to do inventory, marketing, putting away all deliveries for all the stations, safety and sanitation issues, proper storage of items, etc.  I absolutely did not mind to help her with this but at the same time, I was hired to be in one specific job position, willing to cross train in other stations, and help when needed.  I felt more like a business partner or general manager (without manager or business partner pay or perks)  than an employee.

Also, as time went on, the atmosphere, although still friendly and team oriented, became somewhat of a henhouse.  A couple of my co-workers were not treated fairly, and there was one particular employee who was to chummy with owner and it was quite apparent their friendship was tight and the owner started to show favoritism for this particular person.  It started to create a hostile work environment because this co-worker, who has no idea about cooking or baking, tried to micromanage the other stations and became bossy at times and refused to do any dishes.  She was very arrogant and would rudely toss her dirty dishes in the sink and never come back to wash them.  We have had at times, not washed her dishes and sent them back at her station and she continued to just dump them in the sink and stick her nose in the air and walk away.  She had been confronted a couple of times on her rude behavior and she did stop for awhile.  The owner was aware of her new best friend's prima donna behavior but ignored it.  She allowed her friend to behave this way.  So of course, this started the henhouse atmosphere.

But overall, an okay place to work, not great but I think it has to do with the owner's disorganization and lack of experience, not the company because it is a franchise.  I graciously quit (gave a notice) because the owner paid a new girl with zero bakery or restaurant experience, (and whom I vigorously trained and set her up for success because I wanted her to do well), the same pay rate as me ( I was told by owner, because of my experience, I would get cap pay). I felt really insulted because I do have some education in baking as well as some experience.  The owner is going to pay whoever she wants to pay her way, so I cannot control that.  But the icing on the cake, (no pun intended)  was when the owner asked me to start doing managerial duties (taking inventory of all products, training all new people, interviewing applicants, making sure all employees are following safety and sanitation procedures, etc).  I politely told her I was not interested in being a manager. (the previous manager had quit abruptly) and she replied that she was not asking me to be a manager.  Really??  Sounds like managerial duties to me.  She also stated that she couldn't really afford to hire a new manager. So basically she was trying to sucker me into working like a manager without manager pay (which btw, I was practically doing some of the manager duties since the beginning but I think the owner felt she could just pile on more job duties without offering a raise).

Also, if someone is a highly experienced baker, there is no room for growth, unless you want to buy or take over a franchise.

I show up around 6:00 AM.  Get the counters set up, and brew coffee.  Set up the chairs.  At 7:00 I start kneading dough and baking till around 11:00 to noon.  I then get prep for bread for the next day and then clean up the production area (sweeping, mopping, cleaning the table, and doing dishes).  I help out making sandwiches during the lunch rush and then I close up the sandwich shop (dishes, wrapping food, cleaning grills and wiping down cutting boards).

I have learned how to work with people and use their strengths to the overall advantage of the bakery.  I have learned how to bake and also converse with my co-workers and customers and still get the work done in a timely manner.

My boss expects a lot from myself and the other managers.  He tends to give us a free reign as long as we don't let anything get out of hand. He is there whenever we need him and is always looking for ways to get us to improve just a little more.

The people I work with are great.  We are all kind of like a family In the way that  we all know each other on a personal level and are always there for one another.  Even if we don't agree with each other on things, we don't let that get in the way the the business.

The hardest part of the job is knowing dealing with unhappy customers.  We try our hardest to make every experience the best for them but sometimes things go wrong.  As a manager I get these from time to time and I find that if the customer can feel like they can relate to me; that I can then get the problem fixed in the future.

The most enjoyable part of the day is knowing that I work with some of my best friends.  We all have our own levels of education and interests but we can always find things to talk about.  We all try to cheer each other up and make the work place, a place where we feel wanted and safe.

Honestly, a fun place to work. You have a lot of pros like free bread, freedom of music, tasting the products. There are cons like no benefits, lack of training, inexperienced upper management, and extra work for dedicated employees without pay increase (bakers, management). Another major con is lack of meal breaks even on 8-12 hour shifts. The fun aspect is being able to create delicious bakery items, breads and goodies. Knowing that immediate satisfaction of seeing a customer walk out with your product, and happy about it. If you are good at catering to upper management and their idea of how it should go, by all means this is the job for you. If you are between 15-25 and have school scheduling obligations, this is for you. If you want to learn how to bake fresh stuff, this can be for you. However if you are looking for a long term job, stable income and a career, this location is not for you. Great Harvest is an awesome company if you find the right owners. Their mission, values and goals are realistic and achievable. As someone with a vast amount of experience in various industries, I’ve never been happier than when baking a fresh batch of bread or tasting fresh made scones as they come out of the oven. It’s a shame not all Great Harvest locations the same. 

For new employees, training is bare bones and lack luster. That isn’t to say there isn’t a lot to know, most positions have a lot that they need to get down to be an effective employee. But they are only given a few days of (non-structured, shooting from the hip) training by a more experienced employee before they are set loose on their own. I always felt when I asked a question that I wasn’t supposed to ask questions and I was supposed to already know, there wasn’t a lot of patience here.

I was only here for 9 months but most people I saw hired came and went faster than I did, they have a few veterans who have been there for years, but most people leave because it’s very high demanding and thankless work. (Shouldn’t be thankless work, they just hardly ever thank people)

I saw countless employees (bakers specifically) come and then be fired with two weeks because they messed up on something. Mistakes were not treated patiently and they expected perfection before they even gave proper guidance on how to perform.

Management just was a mess, no one was ever in the same page. They brag about how loose and free they are, with no real structure, but it just doesn’t work the way that they think that it does. It’s the classic “we’re doing you a favor by employing you” kind of vibe, when they demand a lot.

Arrive at 1:30-2am to begin the mixes for the day. On Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday I'll arrive at 1:30 to begin the sourdough early. If somebody called in, I'll stick around for a few hours and help them form the dough, but usually the load would be so large that they would have people come in at 6am to start forming. 2 trucks would come every week and I would put the order away while inbetween mixes.  Usual day is mixing dough from 2am-7:30am and then cleaning up.

My previous baking job was purely sourdough, so I learned a lot about using yeast when mixing dough at Great Harvest.  Gained experience using a Hobart mixer. Experienced reducing and increasing batch sizes while keeping track of units sold.

Management was the owners, who would be in every day. They were very nice people who would work with you however they could. 

The hardest part of the job was going over the sales numbers from the past week and reviewing the numbers from last year to try to have just enough bread out on the shelves. 

Most enjoyable part of the job is when a customer comes up and tells you how much they enjoy the product that you created.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The best part about working the company is that you get a free loaf of bread every week and you get a free goodie every time we work.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
In my experience, wages and commissions were inconsistent and unfair. Employees were told they would receive commissions on certain holiday products, but several coworkers said those commissions never appeared in their paychecks. And it never appeared in mine.  This caused a lot of frustration and turnover. Nobody stays there long. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The store had very high turnover, which made training difficult and often left the staff feeling overwhelmed. Management styles between the owners were very different—one was very kind and open to feedback, while the other struggled with communication and organization. And was barely there. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
The day usually involved preparing the store, helping customers constantly during busy periods, and then closing. Staffing at closing sometimes felt thin, which made the end of the shift stressful. Especially because they were mostly minors.

I was in charge of either opening or closing the bakery. Both of these shifts came with great responsibility, and my boss was never shy of making me feel like my work was appreciated. Production team was in charge of getting the bread made, kneaded, and in the oven by a certain time. Counter crew was in charge of making every customer feel welcome and that their voice was heard, with the end goal of them leaving more than satisfied. Management was fantastic. My boss is one of the smartest and most genuine people I have ever met. He taught me patience, great customer service skills, and the basics to owning a small business. My boss and co-workers did a good job of keeping a positive and relaxed work environment while constantly staying busy. The hardest part of the job was effectively and efficiently multi-tasking throughout the entire day while still producing quality products. After working there for a couple years I had it down to a T but, at first, it was a bit overwhelming. Most enjoyable part of the day was the continuous flow of interesting and unique customers I was able to meet.

Never, ever work at this location. I barely lasted a week, and I consider myself to be a loyal, hard-working employee. Management is alway rude, brash, unappreciative, and the worst case of micro management I've ever encountered. You're always getting yelled at, everything you do is wrong (can be as little as the way you hold a pencil), and management loves belittling employees. I was warned by multiple employees to leave as soon as I could. 

I felt super uncomfortable being there, even on my first day of work. Management always contradict themselves and blame everything on their employees. Employees don't even talk to one another because they will get yelled at. 

Customer service is very low on the priority scale and management encourages their employees so engage with customers as little as possible. After working in customer service for 8+ years, I was shocked at how I was getting disciplined for talking to a customer about the bread for longer than the management approved of. 

Overall, this location is the worst place I have ever worked at.

Great Harvest is a great place for high schoolers or college students to work. There's generally flexibility with different shifts so this helps with planning your schedule. With that being said, it's not really a good full-time job where you can expect to get 40 hours+. It's a great place for people that want to learn about breads, or for people that want a part-time side job, or for culinary/pastry students who want to get a feel for what it's like working in the industry. There's a morning dough making shift, a morning sweets baking shift, a morning counter shift, morning kneading/shaping shifts, a mid morning/afternoon bread baking shift, afternoon prep shifts, and afternoon/evening counter shifts so lots of different shift options and times available. Pay is not bad, but don't expect a lot. Obviously, working in a bakery where there's a lot of baking happening will mean that you'll be in a very hot environment so just keep that in mind when applying. It is casual so you can wear shorts and t-shirt so that helps.

When starting at the bakery, the job seems great. You get a lot of free food, coworkers are nice, super flexible, and management is understanding of any mistakes or questions. However, this will add up. There is a lot of gossiping especially among management, and pretty much filled to the brim with high school students (15/16). Complaints aren't taken seriously, and because management is so flexible, a lot of employees can do the bare minimum and still retain their job, while others have to pick up the slack entirely. If you attempt to set boundaries, you end up hearing gossip about yourself. It can be mentally draining, on top of the customer base being rather pretentious. On the bright side, hours are flexible, and if there is an emergency it's easy to call out. They emphasize a "family" atmosphere, but it really means that they'll hold you accountable for management-level responsibilities while paying you as little as possible. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Baker 26 salaries reported	$16.45 per hour
Customer service representative 12 salaries reported	$12.98 per hour
Bakery assistant 13 salaries reported	$16.87 per hour
Sandwich maker 4 salaries reported	$15.63 per hour
Opener 3 salaries reported	$10.00 per hour

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