general manager

assistant manager

team member

restaurant general manager

shift manager

Long John Silvers

After nearly three months at Long John Silver’s, my experience was both rewarding and eye-opening. I joined a restaurant that was facing significant operational and cultural challenges. A typical day involved balancing customer service, coaching team members, addressing staffing issues, managing food quality standards, handling guest concerns, and attempting to create consistency in an environment where accountability was often lacking. Many shifts required putting out fires rather than focusing on growth and development.

What I learned most was the importance of leadership at every level. A restaurant can survive staffing shortages, sales declines, and operational setbacks, but it struggles greatly when leadership standards are inconsistent. I was reminded that culture is not created by policies, it is created by what leaders allow, encourage, and consistently reinforce.

Regarding management, I observed that strong leadership was needed to establish expectations, accountability, and professionalism. Young employees can absolutely become exceptional team members when they are given structure, coaching, and clear direction. Unfortunately, when standards are not consistently upheld, it becomes difficult to build a high-performing team.

The workplace culture had tremendous potential. There were several employees who genuinely wanted to learn and improve. However, immaturity, gossip, lack of accountability, and inconsistent enforcement of expectations often created unnecessary challenges. A culture of excellence requires leaders willing to address problems directly and fairly.

The hardest part of the job was trying to raise standards in an environment where not everyone was committed to maintaining them. It can be exhausting to consistently lead by example when accountability is not supported throughout the organization.
The most enjoyable part of the job was serving guests, developing employees, and watching individuals improve. Seeing a team member gain confidence, learn a new skill, or receive praise from a customer made the effort worthwhile. Building relationships with guests and creating positive experiences remains the most rewarding aspect of restaurant leadership and is the reason I continue to value the industry despite its challenges.

My typical day at work was to come in after classes were over for the day and do a shift change with the manager that was on the previous shift. I would then count the money in the cash registers to make sure that the count was right and that no money had been stolen. I would proceed to take and make the food orders for the customer. If there was an issue with customer satisfaction, I would go and settle the issue in a calm and mature way and fix the issue to the best of my ability. I would make sure the employees were continuing to work and keep the facilities clean and working properly at all times. I would release the employees at my digression for their 30 minute break and send them home if the restaurant was slow that night. At the end of the night I would count the money in the register for the last time, calculating the income that we had made for that night. I would inspet the cleanliness of the restaurant and made sure that it was up to the standards that the owners wanted it t be. I would then let the employees leave and go home at my digression. 
    Since working at the restaurant was my first job I learned the appreciation of getting paid on a regular basis as well as working hard and getting recognition for my work. I began my learning as a leader and learned the value of other employees respect. The hardest part of the job would have been the inconvience of balancing of school and the long hours I was working during that time. Education was more important to me at that time and working would occasionally get in the way of that. The most enjoyable part of the job was spending tie with customers and my fellow employees and knowing that I was making people happy by doing what I was doing.

From a Monday through a Friday it was a different experience each day because  you never know how busy you may get or as slow it may turn out. I learned that I wasn't to great on my job as a cook but as soon as I was put as a Cashier I found my true calling and I would normally receive 3-6 dollars in tips a day. I will never forget there was this one day a customer even asked my Representative Supervisor which  in other words was my bosses boss if he can give me a tip and it wasn't allowed that I  receive tips but that day I remember in full detail. Although My store manager wasn't really a people person the Shift mangers were entertaining and they were able to trust me and depend on me to get the job done right and efficient in a professional way. Whether that be to tell the cook how much food to make, prepare the food and help out the drive thru or help myself and  to tell the customer that, "It will be a couple of minutes before your food comes out can I provide you with some complimentary hush puppies". I can't say that working there was hard because it was easy and normal to be in a happy mood because one I just got off school and I got to work at my first job that I decided to stay at for a year. But I do admit it was hard seeing it go and all our hard work just wasn't enough to stay open at our N Dysart location I was sad and felt like there could of been more I could have done but realized it was destined to shut down and id be with out a job for a while.

For most, it is a job for those who have minimal to no skills that they can offer to the job market and that is fine. You have to start somewhere.

I was a cook and a dining room attendant for the majority of my time there and the experience was just that, yet despite the repetitiveness of the tasks I did, I learned more about team interaction as well as customer service. These are skills that transfer to ANY job and are the most valuable. 

Looking back, I really wish I had been as motivated as I am today to learn, grow, take on more responsibility, and earn promotions. The sad truth is that the only person stopping me...was me.

The manager is a great man who has plenty of experience and will help you if you wish to grow. THAT is what makes a good manager! My coworkers were also friends so that made interacting a little easier. More importantly though, working with friends taught me the value of separating my professional life with my personal one.

The hardest part of the job is learning to be humble. By this I mean that when you first start working, you don't have any skills yet and despite this, people believe that they deserve better or entitled to more. This is false. Humble yourself and understand that you have to start on the bottom before you can start climbing the ladder. Once you have skills, then you might be able to jump some rungs.

The manager talked bad about her crew. Cussed them and myself out and was disrespectful. While working there there were 2 managers and that was a shift and the RGM. The shift manager was a nice manager but over worked and tried to take care of us where the rgm was more unbearable at times. Rgm wasnt able to get much help from the Area manager. It seemed that RGM was had to battle to be seen and heard by the area manager.It seemed that just about everything in the back needed to be fixed or replaced. When i was there we had a cracked vat and it took forever to have that fixed. The store needs new things not just "quick fixes: The job itself was ok but i learned that the expectations were high and everything was our fault. A day on the job was ok if we had the right manager. But most days were filled with yelling and put downs. I felt bad for alot of the people i worked with. I cant really blame the rgm for being stressed but when help is needed the area manager doesnt care it does make things harder for her as well as the employees. Rgm did try her best to make us happy. She is a good boss except needs to talk to her crew as a team not like they are her children who are getting punished and yelled at as well as cursed at. As a cook i think we could have gotten paid more. It was hard to get a raise. How can we get a raise if we felt that we were not good enough. We did the best we could but sometimes our best was not her idea of best.  I had to leave after a while due to stress and lack of interest. After a year it was time to go where the money was.

As a cook at KFC, each day was very routine, starting each shift checking product stock. The shift mostly consists of keeping chicken breading and fry grease levels in check as well as the stock for the Long John Silver's food, then cooking the orders that the managers tell you. This was my first real job, and I learned a lot on maintaining excellent work ethic, how to properly train new employees, and lead a team of co-workers to a common goal. During my employment the management was excellent, with my General Manager having over 15 years of previous fast food experience, he knew how to properly treat employees in a very friendly but stern manner to get work done. My co-workers knew how to do their jobs, and did only what was expected of them. A few of them were lazy, but they still did some work, and all of them recognized my hard work and respected me and my opinion on how to solve problems. The hardest part of the job was cleaning underneath and behind all the fryers, because of the quantity and complexity of the fryers. This task usually entailed crawling under each machine and scraping the grease off the surfaces, then pulling all 9 fryers out of their positions and cleaning their backsides. The most enjoyable part of the job experience was the friendly atmosphere, respect from co-workers and managers, and the free food with each work shift.

A typical Day at work you start off with having to clean and wipe everything down so that the grease doesn't build up. Working drive-thru sometimes the people are very quit so hearing them is very hard, asking them to repeat irritates them and then you have an upset customer. Being at the Front, you have the customers that will give you a hard time with what they want. They say one thing then change their minds, leaving you to have to clear the order and start over and them being upset that you took so long to order. At closing time you have to wash all the dishes and clean the back area if you were drive-thru. In the front you clean all the tables, sweep, mop and scrub the floors. Then refill anything that is low and empty the ketchup, tater sauce, and shrimp sauce out. I learned that you are never going to be able to please everyone, so always keep your smile on and be friendly and you will have one customer to brighten your day every time. Management was good, we had team leaders and I think they should be looked over better before being left alone with the employees, because when the main manager isn't there they tend to slack, leaving the employees to slack. My co-workers were not very good, they never did everything they were suppose to so it always left the good workers doing more. Hardest part of this job would be the people and atmosphere that you work with. The most enjoyable part of this job is if you make someones day with the smile on your face.

I worked at KFC/Long John Silver's for just over six years. I was a manager there so my typical day at work encompassed a lot of different responsibilities. I worked with currency every day. I exchanged money, did safe and till counts, change exchanges with our bank, and the like. I worked with customers taking orders, resolving discrepancies, and more. I managed other employees assigning job tasks, training them on new specials and such, and providing the proper example to emulate. I maintained proper cleanliness of the restaurant, filtered and cleaned ovens and fryers, swept and moped the lobby, etc. I made sure inventory and food & paper products were accounted for and ordered correctly. I learned a lot from this job, and although it is a starter job it does teach you a lot. It helped me create strong work ethic, manage time, work with customers, teamwork, and much more. My co-workers came and went every so often, but they are all just people trying to make a living or to get experience. The hardest part of the job was all the demands needed to be met as a manager with little assistance from upper management or other employees at certain times because of poor company regulations and scheduling. The most enjoyable part of the job is the people you meet and befriend. They are more often than not easy to get along.

On a typical day at work I arrive at least 5-10 minutes early sometimes sooner. I stay till my job is done at the end of the day. And sometimes it’s fast paced  and other times it can be slow but I go and clean and make sure we are working in a clean environment. And I did dishes swept moped and worked the drive thru most of the time but I was also cross trained to be able to help with cooking and working front counter. The management is great! I learn everyday on how to better improve my skills. The work place is really good especially since I get time to know my fellow co-workers and to help them and show them ways to improve their skills. The hardest part of the job honestly is when you have so many people coming in like say it’s lent. We have so many people coming in and ordering fish shrimp anything but normally not chicken it’s difficult to keep up sometimes and can be difficult to get everything right. We are only human but we have to take responsibility of when we mess things up. The most enjoyable part of the job is really for me getting to know fellow coworkers. Cause once you can get along and know your fellow coworkers and know their strengths and weaknesses then it’s easier to make things work a lot better as a team. 

A typical day at work is spent taking customers orders, and preparing food for those orders. In the down time, it is spent cleaning the store to prepare for the next rush. The employee morale, even while backed up with a line to the door, is very high. Everyone loves their job, and prefers the fast paced job scenario. Everyone gets along, and are always finding ways to improve ones job requirements, as well as helping others improve theirs, in a respectful way. There are daily meetings right before opening, to discuss reviews from customers, as well as review what we could do better that day in making sure to get better reviews. The employees work as a team, where as if one falls behind, the others come together to help catch them back up. Working so close with management on a professional and personal level assists in getting your foot in the door for career advancement, as they work side by side with you everyday. The most enjoyable part of working for Long John Silvers is the end of the day when the store closes, as well as the beginning of the day before the store opens. Morning prep, and nightly closing means the employees being able to let loose, while still being professional with the chance of customers driving by before realizing we are closed.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
General manager 303 salaries reported	$51,678 per year
Assistant manager 187 salaries reported	$16.93 per hour
Team member 130 salaries reported	$12.49 per hour
Restaurant general manager 28 salaries reported	$54,981 per year
Shift manager 232 salaries reported	$14.81 per hour

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