Last week I was in a Dome, drinking an average tea and a very tasty carrot cake. Having finished the first pot of tea but not the conversation I was involved in, I asked a passing waitress if she could organise another pot of tea for me and another coffee for my colleague. She said […]

Last week I was in a Dome, drinking an average tea and a very tasty carrot cake. Having finished the first pot of tea but not the conversation I was involved in, I asked a passing waitress if she could organise another pot of tea for me and another coffee for my colleague. She said – NO! She indicated that I would have to go to the counter to order and pay. I didn’t. My colleague and I agreed that it was all too hard, and we decided to walk back to his office and chat along the way. The net result was that the Dome concerned missed out on the best part of $10 in revenue, the direct costs for which could only be 10%, all because they had a strategy of minimising costs by not offering table service – even when the staff clearly have very little to…