Selecting the right chef

Over the years, Westcana has developed a formula for a successful and profitable food services operation.

Windermere

Essential elements include the following:

a well-designed and nicely laid-out kitchen facility, with easy access for deliveries, adequate storage space and proper, well-maintained equipment
quality food product from reputable sources
consistent product (based on standardized recipes)
no “cookie cutter” menus; food tailored to specific population need and preference
qualified personnel, who work well as a team
access to ongoing training and upgrading programs for all staff

The must-have, key ingredient is having the right chef. In our industry, a chef’s scope of responsibilities is wide reaching, varied and multi-faceted, from developing and writing menus and overseeing all food preparation and presentation, to recruiting, training, coaching and managing staff, budgeting, dealing with suppliers and managing costs.
Although companies in general have similar requirements when recruiting and hiring a chef, it is unlikely that any one candidate will fulfil all your needs. For this reason, you may want to create a score sheet listing all your requirements and assigning each a value.

How you do this will depend on a number of factors. For example:

What is more important, the candidate’s credentials or whether you have the same values? This will depend on your company’s culture.
Are you able to delegate some of the responsibilities to someone else in the organization should the chef not have some of the skills required, e.g., administrative? This will depend on your staffing and budget.

We give particular weight to the Red Seal certification. Red Seal training is a hands-on apprenticeship program with qualified chefs. Chefs with several years of experience need a minimum of 8,100 hours worked at an approved establishment in order to be able to challenge the Red Seal exam.
Once you have shortlisted the candidates, you can score each candidate based on which requirements they are able to comply with and the value you assigned to each of these. The candidate with the highest total score is likely to best meet your needs. This will be the right chef for your organization.

Your score sheet may look something like this:

Professional experience and skills:	Value
Minimum five years’ proven experience as a chef in a qualified business	15
Ability to research and identify industry trends	15
Ability to develop, plan and write menus (appropriate for targeted clientele and adequately priced)	12
Ability to oversee, manage and conduct all cooking activities, including preparation, cooking, garnishing, presentation of food and timely service	15
Education and Training:
Red Seal, Certified Chef or other diploma from a qualified hospitality arts school	20
High school diploma	5
Financial:
Ability to budget, plan and control food and staffing costs (ensure sufficient product while minimizing waste; balance service levels and labour costs)	5
Human resources and people skills:
Ability to recruit, train, coach, develop and mentor staff	10
Ability to work effectively with various levels of staff including cooks, food director, executive administrator, home office and suppliers	10
Safety and standards:
Knowledge of food-safe and workplace materials (HACCP rules and procedures)	5
Knowledge and ability to monitor and maintain high-quality standards	10
Knowledge of first aid	5