How to hire a catering coordinator

How to hire a catering coordinator, step by step

Here's a step-by-step catering coordinator hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a catering coordinator job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new catering coordinator
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a catering coordinator do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the catering coordinator you need to hire. Certain catering coordinator roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a catering coordinator to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a catering coordinator that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of catering coordinators.

   Type of Catering Coordinator	Description	Hourly rate
   Catering Coordinator		$12-20
   Front Of House Manager	A front of house manager coordinates and supervises the front house team. Front of house managers make sure that every client receives a warm welcome... Show more	$12-29
   Shift Leader	Shift leaders are tenured or experienced employees who are assigned to oversee employees in specific work shifts. They manage team members who are assigned in their shift... Show more	$12-20

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Food Service
   • Customer Service
   • Food Preparation
   • Work Ethic
   • Reservations
   • Booking
   • Menu Planning
   • Banquet Event Orders
   • Culinary
   • Banquet Checks
   • BEOs
   • Event Planning
   • Punctuality
   • Exceptional Guest

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage the accuracy and the punctuality of deliveries.
   • Manage proposals, conduct red team reviews, and write RFP technical responses.
   • Manage RFP's; review contracts; and coordinate with select vendors from planning to implementation.
   • Obtain new and manage existing customers by building a reputation of knowledge, punctuality, and accountability.
   • Manage and prioritize restaurant reservations.
   • Create detailed BEOs to include food, beverage, audio visual, special request, setup and billing details.

   More catering coordinator duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the catering coordinator job description is a good way to get more applicants. A catering coordinator salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a catering coordinator in West Virginia may be lower than in New York, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level catering coordinator. Additionally, a catering coordinator with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average catering coordinator salary

   $16.62hourly

   $34,576 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level catering coordinator salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 18, 2026

   Average catering coordinator salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	New York	$47,107	$23
   2	California	$43,963	$21
   3	Washington	$42,184	$20
   4	Massachusetts	$40,153	$19
   5	Colorado	$39,198	$19
   6	District of Columbia	$37,245	$18
   7	Virginia	$35,673	$17
   8	Pennsylvania	$35,420	$17
   9	New Hampshire	$35,043	$17
   10	Maine	$34,715	$17
   11	Minnesota	$34,529	$17
   12	Tennessee	$33,927	$16
   13	Arizona	$33,225	$16
   14	Illinois	$32,712	$16
   15	Texas	$31,689	$15
   16	Indiana	$30,922	$15
   17	Ohio	$30,693	$15
   18	Georgia	$29,680	$14
   19	Wisconsin	$29,392	$14

   Average catering coordinator salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	St. Jude Children's Research Hospital	$43,552	$20.94
   2	NBCUniversal	$43,349	$20.84	4
   3	Bertucci's	$43,130	$20.74
   4	On The Border	$41,170	$19.79	2
   5	PLUM	$40,014	$19.24
   6	Root Insurance	$39,298	$18.89
   7	Soboba Casino Resort	$39,229	$18.86	1
   8	Blessing Hospital Emergency Room	$39,228	$18.86
   9	Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants	$38,086	$18.31	4
   10	Remote	$38,079	$18.31
   11	HEI Hotels & Resorts	$38,037	$18.29	11
   12	Hospital Service District No 3 of the Parish of Lafourche State of Louisiana	$37,988	$18.26
   13	VistaJet	$37,979	$18.26
   14	Gold Key Processing	$37,741	$18.14	2
   15	University of Wisconsin System	$37,612	$18.08	1
   16	Great Wolf Resorts	$37,556	$18.06	4
   17	Wynn Resorts	$37,425	$17.99	4
   18	Aimbridge Hospitality	$37,380	$17.97
   19	Stew Leonard's	$37,254	$17.91
   20	Columbia Sussex	$37,150	$17.86

4. Writing a catering coordinator job description

   A catering coordinator job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a catering coordinator job description:

   Catering coordinator job description example

   Sales and Catering Coordinator - (2200049B) Description What You'll Do
   The Kimpton Hotel Monaco Pittsburgh sales team is looking for an energetic, personable, and service oriented person to come on board as Sales and Catering Coordinator. This person will be able to handle and prioritize multiple tasks, be a forward thinker in anticipating needs of the clients and the Sales and Catering team, and be willing to learn all they can about the hotel industry, customer service, and sales and catering in order to help our team be the best in the industry!
   
   Point of Contact for all wedding blocks post contract-signing
   Keep tight timeline for checking in with clients to increase pick-up of contracted rooms
   Creation of custom booking link, intro emails, pick-up updates, cut-off warnings and suite management
   Tracking incoming package deliveries to hotel and distributing
   Responsible for compiling and sending out weekly reports to Sales Department and Executive Committee
   Sending out sales kits, brochures, client packages, as requested.
   Distributing contracts, files and forms
   Handle Invoices/Commissions for Sales department
   Maintenance of the sales expense checkbook
   Distributing leads by Market Assignment
   Processing gift certificates (purchased, auctions, giveaways, etc).
   Answering phones and help qualify client needs
   Order all supplies pertinent to the sales office
   Assist with obtaining parking variances for Group and Catering clients
   Special Projects as assigned by the Director of Sales, Director of Catering or sales team
   Process paperwork for all Sales Department VIP's and create personalized amenities for return guests
   Create and communicate group resume information through the proper channels of the Hotel (i.e., routing resumes, attending sales & staff meetings) to ensure meeting details and setups are properly maintained.
   Various administrative functions as assigned by Director of Sales or Director of Catering
   Become proficient on hotel systems: Delphi, MeetingBroker, Opera etc.
   
   What You'll Bring
   
   Knowledge of Microsoft Office/Word/Excel/PowerPoint
   Proficient with Social Media Platforms
   Database knowledge preferred
   Working Knowledge of Photoshop or Illustrator
   High school diploma or general education degree (GED); or one to two years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
   
   Be Yourself. Lead Yourself. Make it Count.
   We are People Pleasing People.
   Marcus Hotels & Resorts is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
   Primary Location: Pennsylvania-Pittsburgh-Kimpton Hotel MonacoWork Locations: Kimpton Hotel Monaco 620 William Penn Pl Pittsburgh 15219Job: Sales & MarketingJob Posting: Sep 19, 2022, 3:06:55 PM

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right catering coordinator for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your catering coordinator job on Zippia to find and recruit catering coordinator candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit catering coordinators, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new catering coordinator

   Once you have selected a candidate for the catering coordinator position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new catering coordinator first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a catering coordinator?