Nick Scade, AFWS chairman
Front-of-house is a fantastic sector to work in – it’s people-based, fast-moving and offers employees the opportunity to progress very quickly if they are motivated and have the right skills.
Finding and retaining good people is always difficult, and I believe part of the solution lies in investing in staff training. This will not only give people the additional skills they need to perform their jobs effectively, but will improve loyalty to their employer, help them develop their careers and improve the industry’s retention levels.
There is a range of college-based government funded FOH training courses both full time and as part of apprenticeship programs, which run in colleges through out the country and often these are combined with chef programmes. But the great difficulty is that food and beverage service is rarely thought of as a real profession therefore 16 year-olds do not consider coming to college to study it as a starting point for their career.
In other countries recruits to front of house attend hospitality school for up to three years before they even speak to a customer – in the UK we expect new entrants to go straight out onto the restaurant floor and get on with it, often with a minimal amount of training.
This is why the Academy has developed an entry level course Licence to Work (L2W) in Hospitality Service, covering the basic craft and customer focus skills such as food service, wine service, customer care, health and safety, food hygiene and interpersonal skills. Such training should form part of an on-going development programme for staff – after all, those working front-of-house are the interface of every foodservice business, the link between the chefs in the kitchen and the diner. The success of a restaurant lies in a waiter or sommelier’s ability to ensure diners enjoy their experience, and sales depend on their skills.
Front-of-house staff need to be outgoing, confident and personable – but they also need training on the craft skills too – how to clear down a table, open and present a bottle of wine, take an order and carry plates. Only with these skills can they start to put down the building blocks they need to develop a career that in five years time might see them in charge of their own dining room, managing a large front-of-house team.
The importance of good training has never been more crucial. The Olympic Games in 2012 will put the spotlight on the UK and the hospitality sector needs to be ready for this, with enough well-trained staff to cope with extra demand.
Click here to find out more about the Academy of Food and Wine Service’s training programmes.
Nick Scade MBE, FIH, chairman
As one of the founders and current chairman of the AFWS, Nick Scade’s role is to oversee its efforts to train and educate food and beverage serving staff in the UK. Nick Scade has spent over 40 years in the hotel and restaurant industry, with 35 years specialising in food and beverage operations in the hotel, restaurant and casino businesses. In 1999 he was appointed MBE for his services to training and education within the hotel and restaurant industry.
