Kat Posted April 19, 2015 Author Share Posted April 19, 2015 Sorry I missed you yesterday, Terpy! Our day didn't go at all as planned (emergency came up) so we ended up leaving around 9. The rest of the day before that was spent trying to meet up with various friends in between our rides and theirs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 19, 2015 Share Posted April 19, 2015 Wow. I didn't expect so many responses. I had no issues redeeming my cup pass at Chicken Shack yesterday, though the lady at the register didn't activate it, which did cause a minor issue later at Ice Scream Zone. The young lady working scanned my cup for a refill and asked if I had bought it today, because it wasn't activated. I told her yes, and offered to show her the proof of purchase. She nicely told me I didn't need to, proceeded to activate my cup, and gave me my free refill I had suspected the lady at Chicken Shack hadn't activated it because I didn't see her scan my cup, but I never had issues refilling it at the freestyle stand in Coney, so I wondered if it had been activated and I just didn't notice. Freestyle is a registered trademark of The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, a proud Kings Island sponsor. As such, it is always capitalized here. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kat Posted April 19, 2015 Author Share Posted April 19, 2015 I was offered a receipt on every purchase made so I can't directly attest to that issue but it would seem to me that refusal would violate some type of legality. And as mentioned above....the Souvenir Cup is the same price in park vs online for pass holders. The reason I bought it online is I was unsure if they were still offering the discount to pass holders. Friday night the guy in front of me with a gold pass purchased a souvenir cup in Festhaus and was charged full price despite trying to tell the young man he thought it was $10.99 with the pass... employee looked very confused and after looking around unsuccessfully trying to locate a supervisor he disagreed with the guest and told him no he needed to pay $14.99 ... guest clearly didn't feel like arguing and just paid...I didn't want to have the same experience... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dieseltech20 Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 If the park would properly train their employees BEFORE they open for the season one wouldn't have that "experience". I remember seeing the pass holder discount for souvenir cups on signage throughout the park last season. On a side note, here is my receipt for a less than $25 purchase, it was given to me without any issues. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disco2000 Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 I have always received a credit card receipt at KI for items well below $25. One scoop of ice cream and I got a receipt... Typical of the training it seems the employees get - non-existent and/or inconsistent. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dieseltech20 Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 Except in his case he was told this by a Supervisor as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsus Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 Clearly the supervisor was poorly trained.. $25 is likely the minimum to have to sign a merchant-copy receipt, not to receive one. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilbubba Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 Please realize and understand that you're dealing with primarily 15-17 year old employees having their first job. I worked at KI in Food Service for 8 seasons and while it sounds easy to train, there's a lot they have to learn. Register training is such a small part of what they have to go through. Most of their formal training is on HR related matters (sexual harassment, appearance and grooming, etc.) and for Food Employees it's also training on key things like proper food handling, alcohol policies, the various chemicals you'll use (what protective equipment you need, how you use them, etc.) and of course how all the food is prepared in your stand. Every year, a majority of these front line employees are new. Unlike traditional businesses who get to hire new employees gradually (thus allowing new employees to shadow experienced employees), Kings Island has to hire thousands in a seasonal occupation. We implemented (not sure if it's still a part of the curriculum or not) register training as part of the food training to give employees hands on experience (we had actual register labs with predefined scenarios for them to act out) but it isn't the same as being in front of real guests and the training has to be done weeks before opening day because you can't train that many people in a weekend. When was the last time someone taught you something that you had to recite from memory weeks later? Mind you it isn't only registers, it is also all the other topics you had to learn. Over the years, the registers have become much more complicated. When I left, there were no meal plans (with the exception of a few group meal options at select restaurants that we had to redeem but not sell), no phone payments, no gold pass discounts, no free refills on souvenir cups, no meal combos, etc. We also didn't sell or redeem various things like wrist bands for drinks or meal plans or souvenir cups. I'm not saying it couldn't be better. I just ask that you take all of this into consideration next time you visit the park. It really is a difficult thing to teach someone everything they may need to know. 15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 So...the system itself is largely at fault. I am reminded of Ray Kroc of McDonalds: KISS: Keep It Simple, Stupid. Customers deserve far, far better service than what I saw Friday and Saturday. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtk1378 Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 While yes, training of things such as sexual harassment, employee appearance, etc are of the utmost importance, understanding the register should be right up there at the top of the list of things to learn. My experience with the people in food on Friday night was it seemed like the very first time they had seen the POS system which should not be the case. The cashier at Skyline on IS had a supervisor standing right next to her the whole time transactions were being rung through and it was still going at a snail's pace. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhyano Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 I was thinking about grabbing Skyline on the way out, then I saw this really slow moving line in Coney Mall and I am just like nope 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faeriewench Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 The food stands, many of them, were open for the Season Pass Preview. Today wasn't their first day. I actually got told I could NOT have a credit card receipt as I had not purchased $25. This, by the way, is of dubious legality. I asked a supervisor. Who confirmed it. I'm inclined to call my bank and lodge a complaint Monday. I hope this isn't chain wide since I am more likely to buy things at Knotts than i do at KI... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcgoble3 Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 While yes, training of things such as sexual harassment, employee appearance, etc are of the utmost importance, understanding the register should be right up there at the top of the list of things to learn. My experience with the people in food on Friday night was it seemed like the very first time they had seen the POS system which should not be the case. The cashier at Skyline on IS had a supervisor standing right next to her the whole time transactions were being rung through and it was still going at a snail's pace. I made a purchase at Sweet Spot early on Friday evening. The lady who rang me up had to have a supervisor walk her through every step. When I commented that it was good to have a "dry run" day like that with season pass holders, she said that they had an actual dry run earlier in the week, but the Sweet Spot wasn't open for that, so she had been on the register in the Emporium. Which apparently has a totally different interface from the one at Sweet Spot, since she couldn't find the button for a single buckeye, and then couldn't find the button for the Gold Pass discount. So it indeed seems like that was her first experience with that register interface. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldieButGoodie Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 I found the workers to have apparently gotten training on dialogue with customers (and didn't have anything like the bad experience described above). The only challenge was that the 'flavor' of beverage I wanted was out so I just chose another. It was apparent that they had very little experience on the actual registers, which is easily overcome (they had a store mock-up when I worked at Arby's that we had to pass at). Still, I was so thrilled to be back in the park that I found it easy to overlook the cobwebs, and everybody really *was* quite friendly. EVERYBODY asked if I had a pass for the discount - every single one. We had a *great* time. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsus Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 That's a lot more training at Arby's than I got at McD. You're supposed to watch a video and then have someone actually walk you through doing it. Well, they forgot all about me so I spent a couple days just watching all the videos. When they remembered they had hired me, I was passed off to someone else who had just started and had no idea how to use the POS. Good times.. No, wait. Bad times. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaron88stang Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 I opted to upgrade my combo at the Burrito Shack for $8 to include a souvenir cup. The line was moving extremely slow and after the guy rang me up he hit something wrong on the register and had to re-enter the order. The second time he opted to let me have the souvenir cup free...I guess for my trouble or to save time. Either way. it was strangely generous but did make up for the wait. I assumed he was a supervisor because he was running around helping where he could on both the line and the register and for the most part seemed to know what he was doing. I got a free refill later at the new Coke Market and all went smooth. I chalked up to it being opening day and things will get better plus I got a free souvenir cup so I am happy 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoChickens Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 A great time was had, but food services was again, lacking. I started to give the play by play, but it turned into a novel. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdf21972 Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 These things will happen because the park is not running on a daily operating schedule and most were new employees. Once they work the job for awhile things will run smoothly again. I'm glad that people were compensated for their trouble and allowed for making people happy for their small incidents. Free souvenir cup, or just a friendly smile. Glad that no one got upset. Just keep calm and smile Kings Island opens Friday. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoChickens Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 No one? At least one poster here got very upset, much to his regret. A long talk with the food services manager followed. Trays, how simple is that? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KIfan73 Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Last year I had more than one employee come across as not only incompetent, but - for a lack of a better description - almost acting as if they were being held against their will. I kind of felt sorry for a few of them. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PKIVortex Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 The long lines and waits for food didn't really bother me this past weekend, as I knew it was opening day and most where new employees who had very little experience working the real deal. But it can only get better from here, hopefully it will too, cause I don't remember food service being like that at all last year! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creed Bratton Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 While yes, training of things such as sexual harassment, employee appearance, etc are of the utmost importance, understanding the register should be right up there at the top of the list of things to learn. My experience with the people in food on Friday night was it seemed like the very first time they had seen the POS system which should not be the case. The cashier at Skyline on IS had a supervisor standing right next to her the whole time transactions were being rung through and it was still going at a snail's pace. What if it was?!? I bet you've never been at a fast food joint with a person on the register who that day was their first or second day. Of all things to complain about, a cashier still learning the register going slow. Okay, how about the go fast and say your total is $52.78 for a three way coney, would you be okay with that? Maybe they have a learning disability but can function well and take a few days to learn a concept that many see as simple. At least many here have the ability to go to the park whenever they want and to eat at Skyline on International Street, where some others a snails pace employee is the least of their worries. I get it, it's frustrating to be in line forever and to be rung out by a trainee, but we should be looking at the world from their point of view before we criticize. Sorry to dtk1378, not calling you out specifically. I've seen a lot of "issues" on opening days from all parks from enthusiasts and non, to which I feel sorry for the park employees. I would hate to be treated/belittled (in person or online) like all the stuff I've seen, especially the first two days or weekends I've been on the job as a park employee. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtk1378 Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 At no point did I mention in my post I was upset with the cashier or the supervisor, but you can interpret my post whichever way makes you feel more empowered. My issue was with the training the cashier and supervisor had been put through. I was simply stating that training on a POS system should be conducted beforehand, and as some have already stated there was instances where the cashier told the customers that yes in fact it was the first time they had seen this POS system because the systems vary from shop to shop within KI apparently. If it was me in the situation of the supervisor that was standing right next to the cashier I would of simply told the trainee,"Hey, let me check out a few of these customers so we can get the line down a bit and you can watch, then when we slow down we can go back to training". 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Creed Bratton Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 You must have missed the point of my post where I said I wasn't calling you out specifically. Having trained upwards of 100 or so employees/associates on POS systems....you can tell someone how to use the system in a "training simulation" how to do the job until your blue in the face, they still most likely won't get the experience/training they need until they are actually in front of customers. The rough thing about training to actually provide good customer service is that you either sink or swim....to me, as a previous supervisor and store manager the supervisor did nothing wrong by having his/her trainee continuing to serve the guests, no matter the speed. The supervisor may have seen where the development of the associate was and could possibly move them to a non POS position. I apologize again if you think I was specifically calling you out, because I wasn't. Those who know me here, know that I'm not about being empowered but educating and looking at the whole picture. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dieseltech20 Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Don't quote someone if you aren't calling them out. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoChickens Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 POS systems, still cracks me up. Yes I'm juvenile at times 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dieseltech20 Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 First time I ever saw that used here, I had to think about it, lol. Both terms do properly identify the system. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtk1378 Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Just imagine having to be a "POS Analyst", I'm glad that the type of POS I analyze is "Point of Sale" 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldieButGoodie Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 I think the real trouble may be that all of the (touchscreen, right?) POS systems *look* the same, but have completely different *interfaces* tailored to the shop, stand, service. Moving from one to the other is not trivial if the products are different. Hopefully things like drinks are all located in the same spot, along with discount 'buttons', etc.- but it wouldn't surprise me if that were not the case. Just glad to have the park open again! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Italian Job 2005 Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Did anyone figure out yet if those mysterious, un-marketed drink wristbands were available for sale again this year? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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