At Karakter, communication on work schedules is as clear as sea water

In a beautiful beachfront location on Curaçao we find Karakter, a special combination of top restaurant, relaxed beach bar and unique event location. Owners Jorrit Heekelaar and Marleen Gerritsen opened a small restaurant on Sint Maarten in 2008 and spent the first few years working in pairs to develop the hospitality concept. In three years, the business grew into a beach bar and restaurant with a relaxed Caribbean atmosphere where service and quality are key. In April 2012, Karakter’s second branch was opened on Curaçao. Karakter Sint Maarten has since been sold, but on Curaçao Jorrit and Marleen now run a professional hospitality company with now more than 100 employees. Although it still feels like a family business.

That Karakter not only takes good care of its guests, but also pays a lot of attention to its employees, is evident from the many extras on offer. On the island, Karakter tries to be known as an attractive employer. There are training courses on hospitality, for instance, but also on first aid. Besides team meetings, staff outings are organised and there is a healthy hot meal for everyone.

Efficient and clear

Using the Dyflexis app especially saves a lot of time when scheduling. Where previously this meant a whole day, or a few evenings of work, this is now fixed in a few hours. Marleen: “That’s really nice. We can use the time we save to, for example, coach or train employees better. It is also clear and reliable, because changes are immediately visible to everyone. Moreover, employees now have insight into their worked hours and accrued holiday hours themselves. We find it important that there are no discussions at the end of the month. It also makes payroll easier, as hours worked are uploaded directly into the payroll processing programme. We can no longer imagine working with excel files, printed rosters or sharing rosters via e-mail or whatsapp. It is SO efficient and clear now.”

“We used to spend a whole day on it, now the schedule is fixed in a few hours.”

Flexible

The choice of Dyflexis’ workforce management system has contributed significantly to the further professionalisation of the hospitality company. A challenge in this day and age. Accessibility and ease of use were therefore the main reasons for choosing Dyflexis, Marleen indicates. “Our managers are very happy with it and new employees are also often surprised by its clarity and transparency. We use the app for more than just planning and time registration. A lot of communication goes through Dyflexis these days. Employees can respond to open shifts themselves in the app and we have labels for certain tasks, so everyone knows exactly what is expected of them that day. Events are visible to everyone in the calendar and via the communication screen we can also announce fun staff outings. Dyflexis really gives overview throughout the organisation and that brings peace of mind.”