Staff chat
Outlet managers, cashiers with a login, the kitchen manager, the storekeeper and the owner chat with each other inside SmartMy. They chat one to one or in groups, with photos and files. Nobody needs a colleague's personal number to ask about tomorrow's headcount.
PLANSEvery plan
The problem it solves
- The kitchen manager tells the storekeeper about a short delivery on a personal WhatsApp, and the message leaves with the storekeeper.
- A new outlet manager has to collect ten phone numbers before they can ask anything.
- Photos of a spoiled batch of paneer go to a family group by mistake.
- When a supervisor leaves, the canteen's conversations go with their phone.
How it works
- Click Chat in the main menu of the back office. It opens under the usual menu bar, in the light or dark theme you use.
- Click New, then Message someone, and choose a colleague. There is only one chat per pair of people, so an old chat opens again.
- For a team, click New, then New group, give it a name such as Main Mess Kitchen, and tick the people.
- Type and send. Click the paperclip to add photos or files. Enter sends; Shift + Enter starts a new line.
- Use Mute for a busy group, Search to find an old message, and Leave to quit a group you no longer need.
Everything it does
Who you can message
- Every active back-office user who shares an Entity with you: food staff and colleagues of other SmartMy products
- Diners, parents and counter staff who only sign in with a PIN on a tablet are not in the list
- A group can only hold people you may message yourself
Conversations
- One-to-one chats and groups you make; your organisation's channels
- Group name: up to 60 characters
- Message: up to 4,000 characters, with photos or files
- The list shows the last message, the time and the unread count, groups first
- Ticks on your own messages: one when sent, two when everyone has seen it
- New messages appear by themselves within a few seconds
What it does not do
- No voice or video calls and no voice notes
- No notification to a phone for chats between colleagues; the unread count shows in the chat list
Who uses it
Outlet managerRuns a group per outlet or shift and answers staff.
Kitchen managerTalks to the storekeeper about indents, deliveries and shortages.
Storekeeper and purchase officerAsks about orders and sends photos of what came in.
Owner or food administratorTalks to the managers of every outlet and kitchen in one place.
Where you use it
- Web: Chat in the back office's main menu, in place of Discuss. The same screen opens at the address ending in /chat on a phone browser
- Not in the SmartMy Feast Manager app or the counter, kitchen and store tablets: chat is on the web only
- Not with diners or parents: there is no chat between the canteen and its customers
- Not a phone alert: unread messages show when you open Chat
Works with
SmartMy HRMSFood staff and HR colleagues of the same Entity can message each other in the same chat.
Questions
Can diners or parents chat with the canteen?
No. Staff chat is for colleagues with a back-office login. Diners reach you through meal ratings and the messages the canteen sends.Can a cashier on the counter tablet use chat?
Not on the tablet. A cashier with a back-office login can open Chat in a browser.Do messages come to the manager's phone?
Not as a phone alert. The manager sees the unread count when they open Chat in a browser.Can we send photos of a delivery?
Yes. Click the paperclip, choose the photos or files, and send them with a message.What happens to a chat when a staff member leaves?
Archive their user. The conversations stay in SmartMy, and the others in the group keep reading them.Related features
PORTAL AND APPSManager app with alertsSmartMy Feast Manager puts the mess or canteen on the manager's phone. It shows today's and tomorrow's meals with the forecast, prepared against served with the reasons, and money and food cost. Also ratings, approvals and the week's menu. Its screens sit in the Menu under the same areas as the web.ACROSS SMARTMY FEASTNotificationsSmartMy Feast tells the right person when something happens. A diner hears when the wallet runs low or an order is ready, and a parent when a child eats. A manager when a diet changes, a storekeeper when stock runs short or batches expire. Work messages go out at once; menus and reminders wait for your quiet hours.ACROSS SMARTMY FEASTApproval chainsDecide who approves what in your canteen. It may be a void or discount at the counter, a guest meal or a promotion. Or an indent, a purchase request, a stock count difference or wastage. Each kind has its own chain per Entity, with levels and amounts, and small requests can go through at once.
See it with your own menu.
Tell us how many outlets you run and how people pay today. We will show you a day in your mess or canteen on SmartMy Feast.