Customers judge you by your worst shift

Papa Johns' North American same-store sales fell 8.3% in the third quarter. Its CEO, Todd Penegor, pointed to one cause: customers tell him, "I love going to that Papa Johns," and then add, "I'm never going to that one on the other side of town." He calls it an "inconsistency gap" (Restaurant Dive, Nov 5).

Nobody hands you that sentence about your own business. Customers just quietly skip the visit after the shift that went badly. If you have 2 locations, 2 crews, or a day shift and a night shift, you are being rated on the weaker one.

This is for owners with more than one location, crew or shift. Papa Johns announced its plan on Thursday, so there are no results yet, and I'm leaving out the franchise fee changes.

By the end, you'll know:

• what Papa Johns is changing to close its inconsistency gap
• which 1 thing to check on your weakest shift this week
• the 1 question to ask 3 customers about the visit they remember worst

What Papa Johns is doing about it

The chain is retraining workers and stepping in faster at underperforming restaurants. It moved to regional training, so support teams can get into more restaurants more often. It is also checking the product itself: heat retention while pizzas are delivered, cheese melt points, and how dough is handled.

Penegor also said some competitors execute more consistently, though with a lower quality ceiling. His line: "Pizza is a game played nationally, but won locally, and we've been missing that win locally."

Check 1: Pick the 1 thing customers notice first, and look at it on your weakest shift

Wait time, greeting, cleanliness or order accuracy: pick one.

Say you own 2 coffee shops and the thing people notice first is the wait. Don't check it on Saturday at 10 AM with your best crew. Check it on a Tuesday at 7 AM at the shop with the newest team. Write down how long the first 5 customers wait. That shift is your brand to the people who show up for it.

Check 2: Write the 5-step "how we do it here" page

Take the 1 thing from Check 1 and put the 5 steps on a single page. For the coffee shop it might be: greet within 5 seconds, repeat the order back, call the name, hand over the drink with a lid on, say thanks. That is only an example. Use your own steps.

Then walk your newest person through the page and ask what's unclear. If they can't follow it, the page needs another pass.

Check 3: Ask 3 customers about their worst visit

Text 3 regulars and ask: "Which visit with us do you remember least fondly?" The answer often points at a day, a shift or a location. That is where to spend your next 30 minutes.

What to keep in mind

This is a turnaround plan at a chain whose sales are falling, so treat it as an idea to borrow while the results are still unknown. Your business is smaller, and your fix may be 1 conversation with 1 shift lead.

If you want a second set of eyes on your weakest shift, grab a time with me.

Source: Restaurant Dive, "Papa Johns mobilizes for a quality war", Nov 5, 2026.