Hiring for Heart: How the Nyce Human Method Is Changing the Way We Build Restaurant Teams
There’s a moment in every interview — right after the handshake, before the rehearsed answers kick in — when you can tell if someone is just looking for a job… or looking for something more.
And in this business, that moment matters.
At Nyce Hospitality, we don’t believe in hiring just to fill a position. We believe in building something greater than a schedule. Greater than a resume. Greater than a checklist of tasks.
We’re building a culture. A team. A room full of people who show up, give a damn, and move with purpose.
That’s why we created the Nyce Human Method — a character-driven interview approach designed specifically for hospitality. It helps us cut through the noise, connect on a human level, and identify the people who actually belong in the room.
Why We Needed a New Way to Hire
Traditional interviews don’t work in restaurants. They're rigid. They’re impersonal. And worst of all? They rarely tell you anything about how someone will actually move during service.
So we asked ourselves:
What if we started every interview with the goal of understanding, not testing?
What if we focused more on energy than experience?
What if we flipped the dreaded "Tell me about yourself" question... and told them what we saw in them?
That’s the spirit behind this method. It’s not a script. It’s not a formula. It’s a way of listening, reflecting, and hiring with intention.
What Makes It Different
The Nyce Human Method is layered, just like people are.
We guide the interview through three levels:
Personality Baseline – to break the ice and get a feel for who they are outside the resume.
Functionality in Motion – to explore how they move under pressure, what slows them down, and what lights them up.
Aspirational Fit – to understand where they’re headed, what drives them, and whether we’re a fit for them, too.
Instead of asking people to sell themselves, we ask them to share. And then, at the end, we try something most places never do:
We reflect it back to them.
"Here’s what I’m hearing… You’re the kind of person who ____. You shine when ____. You seem like a [Spark / Rock / Builder / etc.]. Would you say that’s true?"
The answers that come next? That’s where the connection lives.
Hiring Isn’t Just About Filling a Role
It’s about chemistry. Rhythm. Momentum.
In this industry, when you're on a line together, on a shift together, in the thick of the weeds, who someone is matters more than what they've done.
And while we still believe in skill and discipline, we believe even more in hiring people who care:
About their team.
About the guest.
About the experience.
The Nyce Human Method helps us find those people. And when we do, we build crews that stay longer, perform better, and actually belong together.
Final Thoughts
Hospitality is a human business.
And when we hire with heart — when we pause, listen, and build relationships instead of rushing through questions, we create restaurants worth working in.
The Nyce Human Method isn’t perfect. It’s evolving, just like we are.
But it’s helped us hire better, retain longer, and connect more deeply.
And that’s a start.
