For my customer service project, I conducted an interview with one of the managers of “The Cheesecake Factory” at Fair Oaks Mall, Michael McIntosh. The interview was conducted on Sunday, June 26, around 12:00 hours.
The Interview Preparation Process
The first stage in preparing for the interview was to choose the subject of the conversation and the nature of the information needed. In order for the material to be interesting to the reader and, most of all, to the interviewee, I researched previously published interviews related to “The Cheesecake Factory” before the discussion. This was required to avoid questions other journalists had already managed to ask. It is significant to emphasize that I did some preliminary research before the interview (Deitte et al., 2021). Accordingly, I searched the Internet for details about the interviewee, Michael McIntosh. At the same time, I researched documents pertaining to the company where the manager worked. This enabled me to understand the manager’s job’s meaning and select my interview questions.
In order not to bore the person, I selected the tactic of alternating questions. That is, while preparing questions, I alternated between closed questions, which can be answered with a single word, and open questions, which are usually answered in an open-ended form. I also created a sketch of the key message by adding two or three anchor points to discuss. In discussing important facts, I indicated the key message first and then provided other information (Deitte et al., 2021). For time savings and informative interviewing, I decided to use short and clear sentences to express my opinion.
The Results of the Interview
It should be noted that the results of the Michael McIntosh interview allowed me to learn more about the working principles and atmosphere in “The Cheesecake Factory”. It was because I immediately established friendly eye contact and followed the person’s articulation and speed of speech that I was able to create a favorable atmosphere. Thus, the manager shared that the factory employees valued the company’s mission and tried to follow it. As a result of the interview, Michael McIntosh highlighted the basic standards important to “The Cheesecake Factory” employees. Moreover, he noted that friendliness, professionalism, and high morale contribute to the company’s effective work and career development. The manager emphasized that each employee affects the overall opinion of the corporation. Therefore, there are moral and professional requirements for employees (Harro-Loit & Ugur, 2018). Accordingly, the interview results established the central values in the work of “The Cheesecake Factory” employees.
My Main Findings During the Interview
I was pleasantly impressed that the manager allocated me a certain amount of time and answered my questions in detail. This was because the interview was conducted at 12 o’clock on a Sunday when Michael McIntosh had the day off. Moreover, even though the interview occurred on a Sunday, the manager was dealing with many cases and trying to help other employees. It is also important to emphasize that I was preparing for the interview and was looking for information about the restaurant. Still, I was surprised to observe an extremely large menu. Naturally, the design of the restaurant matched the style I researched before the interview.
Although, I was still struck by the fact that the walls were not the standard colors and were eye-catching. It should be noted that I was also impressed by the conversation I had with the manager. This is because he emphasized that communication between management and subordinates is the foundation for the successful operation of a corporation (Harro-Loit & Ugur, 2018). In this way, “The Cheesecake Factory” offers exceptionally high-quality products and services primarily because of the team’s mutual respect and adherence to the company’s mission.
References
Deitte, L. A., Mian, A. Z., Esfahani, S. A., & Hu, J. Y. (2021). Going virtual: redesigning the interview experience. Journal of the American College of Radiology, 18(2), 337-339.
Harro-Loit, H., & Ugur, K. (2018). Training methods of listening-based journalistic questioning. Journalism Practice, 12(7), 918-934.