Top 12 Bus Person Skills to Put on Your Resume
In the bustling world of hospitality, the role of a bus person is pivotal in keeping service flowing and guests happy. To stand out in a crowded field, highlighting specific, practical skills on your resume shows readiness, speed, and care for the details that make a dining room hum.
Bus Person Skills
- POS Systems
- Tableau Software
- Customer Service
- Time Management
- Conflict Resolution
- Multitasking
- Teamwork
- Detail-Oriented
- Sanitation Protocols
- Inventory Management
- Communication
- Flexibility
1. POS Systems
A POS (Point of Sale) system is the digital backbone of front-of-house operations. While servers lead ordering and payments, bus persons often interact with the system to check table status, mark turns, print checks on request, run waters or sides, and support the pace of service without bottlenecks.
Why It's Important
Knowing the basics of the POS keeps the dining room moving. Fewer handoffs. Fewer errors. Faster table turns. Guests feel it, and the team does too.
How to Improve POS Systems Skills
Keep it sharp and simple:
Learn the layout fast: Menus, modifiers, seat numbers, table maps. Know the fastest paths and common keys.
Use shortcuts: Quick keys, favorites, and pre-set buttons cut seconds that add up during rushes.
Master table status: Open, seated, coursed, ready to clear, sanitized, reset. Update accurately so hosts and servers see reality at a glance.
Get hands-on training: Short, frequent practice sessions beat one big training day. Run drills before service.
Troubleshoot calmly: Printer jams, stalled tickets, device resets—know the first three steps before calling a manager.
Follow security basics: Respect access levels, protect guest data, never share pins, lock screens when stepping away.
These habits tighten the loop between the floor and the screen, which is where speed lives.
How to Display POS Systems Skills on Your Resume
2. Tableau Software
Some restaurants and groups use Tableau (or similar dashboard tools) to track turn times, ticket times, guest counts, and sections. A bus person doesn’t need to build dashboards—but being able to read them and act on trends can be surprisingly useful.
Why It's Important
Dashboards turn noise into signals. If turn times creep up, if a section lags, if ticket times spike, you can adjust your pattern—faster resets, smarter staging, tighter handoffs.
How to Improve Tableau Software Skills
Learn to read the key views: Turn time by section, ticket time by hour, covers by server, table status heatmaps.
Connect actions to metrics: What lowers turn time? Pre-bussing, staged silverware, fast resets, clean aisle flow.
Spot trends, not one-offs: Look for patterns across shifts or days before changing your approach.
Ask for a quick walkthrough: A manager can show which visuals matter most to FOH.
Keep it practical: Use insights to plan sidework timing, station restocks, and section sweeps.
You’re not becoming an analyst. You’re making smart, small moves that ripple through service.
How to Display Tableau Software Skills on Your Resume
3. Customer Service
For a bus person, customer service means reading the room and acting before guests need to ask—clean tables, full waters, quiet confidence, quick fixes, and a smile that feels genuine, not pasted on.
Why It's Important
Guests remember how they felt. The small touches—crumb sweep, fresh napkin, a fast reset for a waiting party—carry real weight and bring people back.
How to Improve Customer Service Skills
Active listening: When guests speak, stop moving, make eye contact, confirm the request, then deliver.
Clear, warm communication: Short updates, upbeat tone, confident body language.
Know the floor: Specials, allergens basics, wait times, where to find things. If you don’t know, own it and get the answer fast.
Solve and follow through: Fix the issue, circle back to confirm it’s right.
Collect signals: Note common guest requests and share with the team so the next shift is smoother.
How to Display Customer Service Skills on Your Resume
4. Time Management
Time management for a bus person means threading dozens of micro-tasks into one seamless loop: pre-buss, reset, restock, help run food, check sections, repeat—without leaving gaps.
Why It's Important
Good rhythm shrinks wait times, smooths peaks, and keeps stress down. The room breathes easier.
How to Improve Time Management Skills
Prioritize by impact: Guests first (tables to reset, waters, spills), then team support, then sidework.
Batch tasks: Clear multiple tables per pass, restock for the next wave, carry in both directions.
Build a route: Create a standard loop through your sections so nothing gets missed.
Use short sprints: Two to five-minute bursts for resets and restocks during lulls.
Review and adjust: After rush, note what slowed you down and tweak tomorrow’s plan.
How to Display Time Management Skills on Your Resume
5. Conflict Resolution
Conflict resolution is handling friction—between guests, or between staff—calmly and quickly. In a restaurant, tensions spike when the room is full. Your steadiness can defuse a flare-up before it spreads.
Why It's Important
Swift, respectful resolution protects the guest experience, keeps service moving, and supports a healthy team dynamic.
How to Improve Conflict Resolution Skills
Listen fully: Let the person finish. Clarify what they want. No eye rolls, no sighs.
Show empathy: Acknowledge frustration. Validate the feeling, then move to solutions.
Speak plainly: Short, neutral sentences. Offer options when possible.
Solve with the team: Loop in the server or manager when needed. Don’t escalate solo if authority is required.
Stay composed: Breathe, keep your voice low, and focus on the next right action.
How to Display Conflict Resolution Skills on Your Resume
6. Multitasking
In practice, multitasking means rapid switching with minimal lag: pre-buss this table, refill that water, grab a rack of glassware, and reset the four-top—all without dropping the thread.
Why It's Important
It keeps momentum high and idle time low. The dining room feels effortless, even when it isn’t.
How to Improve Multitasking Skills
Set priorities in real time: Guest-facing tasks first, then prep tasks.
Keep tools close: Bus tub, sanitizer, polished silver, napkins—stash smart to cut steps.
Limit interruptions: Finish the current table when safe before switching, unless a guest need is urgent.
Use micro-checklists: Reset steps you can rattle off without thinking.
Practice during slow periods: Simulate a rush—time your resets and restocks.
How to Display Multitasking Skills on Your Resume
7. Teamwork
Teamwork for a bus person is all about handoffs. You set the stage so servers can focus on guests, and the kitchen can fire clean tickets without clogging the pass.
Why It's Important
Strong coordination shrinks delays, reduces mistakes, and lifts the whole guest experience. Everyone wins.
How to Improve Teamwork Skills
Communicate the small stuff: “Two resets ready.” “Six-top sat, waters down.” “86 side plates—grabbing more.”
Align on goals: Turn times, section priorities, sidework responsibilities—agree before the rush.
Coordinate passes: Clear lanes, stage trays, and keep the expo area tidy for fast runs.
Show respect: Thank-yous, quick assists, no blame during heat. Debrief later, constructively.
How to Display Teamwork Skills on Your Resume
8. Detail-Oriented
Details are the difference between tidy and polished. Even knife alignment, spotless glassware, fresh linen, leveled table bases—guests notice more than we think.
Why It's Important
Order and cleanliness build trust. Trust relaxes guests. Relaxed guests linger, spend, and return.
How to Improve Detail-Oriented Skills
Use reset checklists: Chairs tucked, silver rolled, condiments filled, wobbles fixed, floors spot-checked.
Slow down to verify: A five-second scan prevents a five-minute fix later.
Ask for targeted feedback: “What did I miss?” Sharpens your eye fast.
Stage for success: Keep polished backups ready—glasses, plates, silver—so quality doesn’t dip under pressure.
Build habits: Same sequence every time until it’s second nature.
How to Display Detail-Oriented Skills on Your Resume
9. Sanitation Protocols
Sanitation protocols cover proper chemical use, surface contact times, hand hygiene, clean-to-dirty flow, and correct storage—keeping the dining room safe and compliant with health codes.
Why It's Important
Clean spaces protect guests and staff, prevent illness, and pass inspections without drama.
How to Improve Sanitation Protocols Skills
Follow label directions: Use the right sanitizer dilution and respect contact times for real disinfection.
Work top-down, clean to dirty: Prevent cross-contamination by sequencing tasks thoughtfully.
Glove, wash, repeat: Handwashing at the right moments—after clearing, before resets—beats shortcuts.
Use EPA-registered products: Stick with approved chemicals and maintain logs if required.
Standardize checklists: High-touch points, restrooms, entry areas—verify and initial.
Train and refresh: Short refreshers keep standards crisp, especially for new hires.
How to Display Sanitation Protocols Skills on Your Resume
10. Inventory Management
For a bus person, inventory management means tracking and restocking the front-of-house essentials—polished glassware, rolled silver, plates, napkins, condiments, cleaning chemicals—so the line never runs dry mid-rush.
Why It's Important
The right items, in the right place, at the right time. Less scrambling. Fewer delays. Smoother service.
How to Improve Inventory Management Skills
Use par levels: Set minimums for each shift and restock before you hit empty.
Count quickly and often: Small spot-checks beat big surprises. Fix gaps before the rush.
Label and zone: Clear shelves, first-in-first-out rotation, and dedicated spaces for fast grabs.
Log usage: Note high-consumption items on busy nights and adjust pars accordingly.
Coordinate with BOH and managers: Share patterns so ordering aligns with real demand.
Train backups: Consistency survives days off when others know the system.
How to Display Inventory Management Skills on Your Resume
11. Communication
Communication is the glue—short updates, clear handoffs, and respectful tone under pressure. Say the important thing, quickly and kindly.
Why It's Important
It keeps the team aligned, speeds up recovery when things slip, and reassures guests that they’re in good hands.
How to Improve Communication Skills
Listen first: Confirm requests before moving. No assumptions.
Be concise: One sentence beats three in the middle of a rush.
Mind your body language: Eye contact, an open stance, and a calm voice speak volumes.
Stay patient: Stress is contagious; so is calm.
Seek feedback: Ask teammates what you could communicate earlier or clearer.
How to Display Communication Skills on Your Resume
12. Flexibility
Flexibility is twofold: schedule agility and physical adaptability. Shifts change, sections shift, and the job asks you to move fast without breaking form.
Why It's Important
Restaurants are dynamic. Adaptable teammates keep service steady when plans tilt.
How to Improve Flexibility Skills
Cross-train: Learn host, food running, and basic expo support to fill gaps smoothly.
Warm up lightly: A few minutes of mobility before service—hips, shoulders, wrists—prevents stiffness.
Stretch after shifts: Loosen hamstrings, calves, back, and forearms to recover faster.
Hydrate and pace: Water and short breath breaks keep your engine steady.
Say yes to smart swaps: When sections or tasks move around, embrace the switch and reset your plan quickly.
How to Display Flexibility Skills on Your Resume
