Abstract

Restaurants are in an industry that seems to be one of the most competitivein the nation. The challenges of operating in this particular industry are exacerbated bythe relative similarities that exist between many food service providers. One means that may be used to achieve a degree of differentiation may be through the restaurant's customer contact personnel, i.e., its wait staff. The restaurant's wait staff is an important factor in determining customer satisfaction and customer satisfaction in turn is an important determinant of the restaurant's profitability and longevity. The purpose of this research is to assess the relationships that exist between the wait staff's levels of customer orientation and their sales skills, job satisfaction and organizational commitment. The results indicate that the positive relationships exist between the wait staff's customer orientation and their skills, job satisfaction and organizational commitment.