Summer at Dartmouth: Week Six

      Six weeks down, and it's the final two week stretch! This past week was less busy as my internship coordinator, Don Reed, was out of town. Luckily, this gave me the chance to work in other areas of Dartmouth Dining Services.
      We are in the process of getting ready for fall here at Dartmouth. This means finalizing the fall menu and continually updating pricing and inventories. The fall menu is in the final revision processes. During a meeting on Tuesday, we met to review the menu as a staff. It was enlightening to hear the changes to the menu suggested as a current college student and intern at Dining Services. Many of the changes were geared towards providing a greater variety and more nutritionally sound options. It was heartening to hear that current dining trends at Dartmouth have students reaching for more steamed veggies.  
     I also worked with Novack Café. On Monday, I entered inventory for Novack Café. Due to a computer glitch, I wasn't able to finish entering inventory, but I was able to get a better feel for how all the different dining facilities on campus work together. From inventory to ordering to service each step is essential when running campus dining! I updated the Novack Café manual as well. Novack recently switched from Green Mountain Coffee to Pierce Brothers Coffee. I updated the training manual to reflect the changes in procedures and the changes in product at the Café so it will be all ready for training new student workers in the fall!
    I spent time working with Todd, the manager of Collis Market, this week as well! I got to sit in on a pitch for a new hygiene products/school supplies vendor made for the store. Many different factors apart from price are important to consider when choosing a product vendor. When the company plans to deliver each shipment, how often the company plans to deliver, how much of their inventory is kept in the store at one time, and willingness to work with the store to ensure the needs of the store's market are being reached are all important factors to consider when choosing a vendor. It's a lot to consider, but well worth it to find the right vendor for the needs of Collis Market. I also got to order the inventory for the store on Friday. It's important to order only what you need. Since there is not a lot of room for back stock, ordering too much stock can lead to crowded shelves, expired stock, and loss of profit. However, running out of a popular item can also lead to loss of profit. It was beneficial to have Todd's expertise when ordering. He knew about the demand of each product and the pack size it was shipped in. This saved me from ordering too much! I really enjoyed learning more about Collis Market and the ins and outs of running a campus store.
    I'll be busy preparing for the Slider Station/Fun Foods event taking place on Tuesday. Here's to another great week at Dartmouth