Bottlenecks

I was recently at a Diary Queen buying their buy one Blizzard and get a second one for 25 cents sale. The Diary Queen was quite busy and the line long. I didn't mind - as long as I got my Blizzards. However, in observing how the workers served the customers, I noticed two things:

1. The employees never offered anything with the Blizzards - just a spoon
2. There was no self-serve of napkins, lids or any extra thing that a customer might need

This led to customer after customer asking for a lid, napkins or even a tray from the employees that disrupted their service of the next customer and increased the wait time for those who are waiting for their Blizzard.

If the manager could just stand back and watch this unfold, they could have identified the bottleneck (employees serving a customer a 2nd or 3rd time to give them extra stuff) and make a self-serve table where customers can get these items. Or at least have all employees ask whether customers want a lid or napkin too when they hand over the Blizzard.

Do you take the time to step back to identify the bottlenecks in your organization? Are there areas in which the people you serve can serve themselves?

photo courtesy of ToastyKen on flickr