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TRIAGE IS MOST ASSOCIATED WITH medical emergencies, but the concept is equally relevant for family entertainment center operators navigating complex, fast-paced environments. With multiple attractions, staff roles, and guest touchpoints in constant motion, even minor issues can quickly compound if left unaddressed.
Applying a triage-based mindset allows operators to identify, prioritize, and resolve operational pain points before they escalate. “FECs have a fast-paced environment with lots of moving parts and people, so compounding problems can make costs add up,” says Nate Reinhart, owner of The Upload Company. “A practical framework of diagnosing, treating, and preventing can make sure that an FEC is thriving and not just surviving.”
This approach can be broken down into six core steps designed to help FEC leaders move from reactive problem-solving to proactive performance management.
Triage Mindset
A triage mindset will help operators break down problems into four categories—urgent and important, urgent but not important, important but not urgent, and neither urgent nor important.
“Important is an attraction that is not performing; urgent is one of your top-performing games not working,” says Barry Zelickson, owner of Next Exit Entertainment and a 35-year industry veteran. “The triage mindset helps determine where you need to put your attention.”
Root Cause Analysis
“Are you fixing the actual problem or just putting a bandage on it, which then continues to be a problem or becomes a larger problem?” asks Zelickson. Once you identify the fundamental reasons behind a problem, it’s easier to solve.
For instance, if parents routinely become frustrated over disappearing party hosts at children’s birthday parties, venue leadership can surely tell the host to stay in the room. However, this approach is not always effective.
“Have your party host give a clear communication of expectations to parents,” Zelickson explains. “Give them the schedule, and let them know when their room time ends. Tell your party host if they have to leave the room, let the parents know when they will be back.”
Immediate Intervention
A top-performing arcade game can fit this step. Zelickson warns that guests seeing broken games on the floor will result in a negative impression of the FEC. Leaders should take action as soon as a broken game is brought to the facility’s attention, and a plan should be determined by the facility’s root cause analysis.
“If the game is just going to be down a day or two, put a fun sign on the game to let customers know you’re aware of the issue,” he says. “But if the game is going to be down for a week, just pull it off the game floor. Finding a game that’s down is a negative for the guest.”
Action Plans
Action planning involves creating a step-by-step strategy for sustainable fixes. For example, an out-of-operation pizza oven is a nightmare scenario on a busy Saturday full of birthday parties. This is an urgent and important issue based on the timing, but the facility then has to figure out a way to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
“Push through the moment to get through it, but afterward, figure out what went right and wrong, then you can create an action plan to deal with it better the next time,” says Jeremy Hoyum, owner of Urban Air Trampoline and Adventure Parks. “For the pizza oven example, if it was just bad timing due to a part wearing out, look into preventive maintenance.”
Growth Readiness
It’s hard enough to have a handle on the operations of one FEC, but these issues can compound quickly if multiple facilities owned by the business are not prepared.
“It’s easier to handle an issue and be reactive if you have one facility, but if you have more than one, you need to be proactive,” Hoyum shares. “You don’t want to have pizza ovens going down at all of your locations due to the same part wearing out.”
Evaluate and Evolve
Operating an FEC is a never-ending process of monitoring and learning, according to Zelickson.
“The industry is full of continuous change, but there are easy ways to keep your facility fresh,” he says. “It can be as simple as rearranging the games in your arcade or offering a limited-time item on your food menu. Find things that keep people thinking that things are new and fresh.”
