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Restaurant management is a profession poised for about 30% growth in the next two years according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics in the United States. It is an industry that is the largest employer outside of the Government in the US. The advantage with restaurant management is that with adequate training and experience one can move into many different industries and careers including office management, sales or marketing management.
While the front managers take care of the floor and the bar, the back managers handle the kitchen affairs. The general manager concentrates on scheduling and overall performance of the restaurant with its shift systems. Despite the pressures, a restaurant management job is sheer fun with a good pay package for those with the right aptitude and attitude.
Restaurant manager career
A restaurant manager has to often work under high levels of pressure. A considerable amount of resilience, stamina and physical and mental energy and emotional endurance is called for. The restaurant manager should be able to find solutions to multifaceted problems without possibly disrupting other operations particularly in the serving of the customers. The manager may have to tackle stubborn staff and irate clients. A lot of patience is called for. A restaurant manger should be willing to work on weekends and late nights and weekends are the busiest times in restaurants.
Floor managers are responsible for chalking out wait staff and host schedules. Coordinating, promoting and welcoming and visiting guests at tables are the responsibility of a floor manager. Floor managers also help with liquor inventory and product ordering. They work in shift timings.
Bar managers as the title indicates manage the bar with schedules, assigning tasks, liquor inventory and liquor orders. Monitoring bar contests, promoting products and welcoming guests to the bar are additional responsibilities of a bar manager.
Kitchen manager is responsible for writing preparation sheets, food inventories in the kitchen, supply inventories, food orders and supply orders. Menu planning in consultation with executive chef is also the task of a kitchen manager. Kitchen manger also reviews each dish and finds out the cost of preparing them including overhead expenses.
Items on the menu are often decided well ahead of time to enable sufficient supplies to be bought for delivery. Grocery items and supplies including tableware, linens, cooking supplies, furniture and cleaning materials are regularly checked. Waste disposal and pest control measures are also taken by the management. Cleanliness and hygiene, food preparation, food cost analysis, control, physical verification of stock in the kitchen and stores are other primary duties of a kitchen manager.
The General Manager oversees all areas inclusive of running the shifts and schedules. The general manager is most effective at any of the shifts.
Restaurant management job
- Restaurant management calls for working with different types of people both as co workers or customers. Do I like to work with others?
- Are the work timings acceptable to me?
- Would I enjoy the work pressures of budget, staffing and managing daily operations?
- What is the kind of restaurant one is going into? Depending upon the size of the restaurant there are differences in fine dining, family style, fast food and sports bars. Different restaurants attract different employees and only fine dining establishments draw experienced, mature employees while a fast food restaurant or a sports bar may suit a younger one.
- What does one want to be - a front manager or a back manager or a general manager - as each of these positions call of certain well defined specific skills?
Restaurant management degree program
Students aiming for management positions in the field of restaurant and hospitality management can take degree programs available in management schools. A two-year degree program prepares the student for careers in food service industry, from service restaurants, cruise lines and hospitals to specialty shops and resorts. Such programs teach all essential skills with emphasis on safety, sanitation, team work, positive attitudes and job responsibilities. Colleges and Universities offer two to four year programs on restaurant related subjects such as
- food technology
- nutrition
- food planning and preparation
- accounting
Comprehensive training is imparted such that students develop quick and effective decision making skills and their human relations ability is considerably enhanced. A keen understanding of the skills necessary to run a successful hotel is also imparted to the students undergoing degree programs in hotel management.
Such hotel management degree programs often combine business management with culinary appreciation. Elements such as food display, plate presentation, buffet organization methods, history and study of specific cuisines and serving protocols are the program highlights.
Students seeking admissions into such hotel management degree programs must be high school graduates or hold a general education development certificate or an associate degree for admission. Those desiring to bolster the chances of becoming a restaurant manger can also acquire certification as a Food service management professional from the Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association. This can be obtained after one has successfully completed a series of food service management related courses and passed a written test having met certain requirements to perform based on experience.
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