Online training (also called digital training) means your staff learn on their phone or computer. There’s no printed binder and no full room pulled off the floor for a group meeting.
With 7shifts, Employee Training is part of the Premium plan. Because it lives inside the platform, your material sits right next to scheduling and onboarding. There’s no separate program your team has to log into.
Why move restaurant training online
Restaurant teams turn over fast, and every departure means training someone new. That’s a lot of repeated work, and the numbers show how common it is.
Deloitte research, citing Black Box Intelligence, found third-quarter 2024 turnover at limited-service restaurants was 135% for hourly staff and 55% for management.
Replacing people is expensive, too. 7shifts estimates that replacing one front-line hospitality employee costs about $5,864, and that 2006 figure is likely higher today.
Consistent training helps new hires get comfortable faster and stick around. Online training saves you time and keeps quality steady, because you build the material once and every hire gets the same version. It also pulls training out of extra meetings, so managers stay on the floor with guests.
Word docs and meetings vs. online training
Here’s how the manual way stacks up against online training in 7shifts.
| The manual way | Online training in 7shifts |
|---|---|
| Rewrite Word docs for each role and location | Build a Lesson once and reuse it everywhere |
| Pull staff off the floor for group meetings | Staff learn on their phone between shifts |
| Quality varies by who runs the session | Every hire gets the same approved version |
| Chase people by text or in person | Automatic overdue-training notifications |
| Guess who’s actually done | See completion and quiz results in one place |
Before you start: permissions and where training lives
A little setup keeps things smooth. You build training on the web version of 7shifts, and staff complete it on mobile or web. Managers can grade on-floor sign-offs from either one, too.
Two permissions control who does what. Can manage training lets a manager or assistant manager build and manage content. Can view training lets them view Courses, approve tasks, and see reporting.
Managers only see Courses that match their assigned locations. So a general manager at your downtown store won’t see another store’s training by mistake. For a full walkthrough, see the 7shifts getting started guide.
The building blocks: Courses, Lessons, and Tasks
7shifts organizes training into three simple pieces: Lessons, Courses, and Tasks. Once you see how they fit together, building your first course goes quickly.
Think of Lessons and Tasks as the parts, and a Course as the finished plan you hand to your team.
Lessons
A Lesson is a reusable teaching block. It can hold text, images, video, quizzes, and acknowledgments, and it lives in your Lesson Library.
Build a Lesson like allergen awareness once, then drop it into any Course that needs it. You don’t rebuild it for every role.
Courses
A Course is the unit you actually assign. You arrange Lessons and Tasks into an order, and each step unlocks the next as staff finish it.
One Course can be a full onboarding path. Another can be a quick menu refresher before a new season.
Tasks
A Task is an on-the-floor action that proves a skill, like shadowing a shift or showing a manager a station setup. It happens away from the screen.
A Task can require an employee comment, a manager review, or both. Managers approve it or send it back from the “Needs review” tab.
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Design a training plan that sticks
Good tools still need a plan. A little structure keeps training consistent as you add staff and open more locations.
- Start with onboarding: Give every new hire the same core Course in their first week.
- Add role-specific paths: Build separate Courses for servers, hosts, and kitchen staff.
- Schedule refreshers: Reassign short Courses for menu changes or food safety.
- Blend digital and on-floor: Pair Lessons with Tasks so staff read, then show the skill.
Give training enough runway to stick. This guide on the ideal training period covers 30/60/90-day check-ins so progress doesn’t stall.
For multiple stores, consistency is the whole game. Use the same Courses across units to train staff consistently, and build a focused server training program for your front-of-house team.
Real results: how The Sandpiper reinvented training
The Sandpiper, a two-location restaurant in Idaho, moved its training into 7shifts and felt the difference fast.
HR Director Cinda Ness uploaded an existing brand-foundations course, and 7shifts’ AI built it in about 10 minutes. “I’m done in 10 minutes. All I have to do is assign people,” she says.
That change cut training prep by about six to eight hours every two weeks. Staff now complete modules on their own instead of in extra meetings, which keeps managers on the floor.
The Sandpiper estimates about a 6% to 8% decrease in employee turnover after adopting 7shifts.
How much do restaurants invest in training?
Training is a real budget line, so it’s worth doing efficiently. The Association for Talent Development reports the average organization spent $1,054 per employee on workplace learning in 2024, measured across all industries.
Online training helps you get more from that spend by cutting repeat sessions and travel between stores.
Frequently asked questions
Course, Lesson, and Task: what’s the difference?
A Lesson is a reusable block of learning, and a Course is the ordered set of Lessons and Tasks you assign. A Task is an on-the-floor action a manager can verify.
What permissions do I need to create training in 7shifts?
You need the “Can manage training” permission to build and manage Courses, while “Can view training” lets managers approve tasks and see reporting.
Can I reuse Lessons across multiple Courses?
Yes, every Lesson lives in your Lesson Library, so you can build it once and add it to as many Courses as you need.
Does 7shifts use AI to help create training content?
Yes, AI can turn a document or a short text prompt into structured Lessons and quizzes. Review that content for accuracy before you publish.
How do employees access and complete their training?
Employees open assigned Courses on mobile or web and work through each step in order, since each one unlocks the next.
How do managers verify that staff finished on-floor training tasks?
Managers review Task sign-offs from the “Needs review” tab on mobile or web, then approve them or send them back for another try.
Get your team trained where they already work
Build once, assign in a few clicks, and track completion without chasing anyone. That’s online training that fits a busy restaurant.
Explore the employee training tools in 7shifts and see how fast your next hire can get up to speed. Start a free trial.
Rebecca Hebert, Sales Development Representative
Rebecca Hebert
Sales Development Representative
Rebecca Hebert is a former restaurant industry professional with nearly 20 years of hands-on experience leading teams in fast-paced hospitality environments. Rebecca brings that firsthand knowledge to the tech side of the industry, helping restaurants streamline their operations with purpose-built workforce management solutions. As an active contributor to expansion efforts, she’s passionate about empowering restaurateurs with tools that genuinely support their day-to-day operations.
