What does a catering manager do?
Catering managers are responsible for managing the daily catering operations and services in hotels, restaurants, and resorts. They monitor the quality of food and service provided by their outlets as well as make sure they are presented well. Their goals include achieving high customer satisfaction, producing excellent quality food, and maintaining that sanitary protocols are strictly followed. A degree is not a standard requirement for this job; however, employers do value those who have relevant qualifications with food, home, hotel, and hospitality management.
Catering manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real catering manager resumes:
- Prepare and manage BEOs to client specifications including auto-visual requirements.
- Assist patients by test tasting food for allergies and accuracy.
- Design and consult members on d cor, menu and wine selection for private events.
- Ensure that those with food allergies or restrict diets have appropriate safe dishes to consume at meal times.
- Work closely with culinary, stewarding and banquet department on specialty menus and customize events.
- Full responsibility for all operations of several bars during service time including reporting and finance management.
- Enhance the professional development of newly hire bartenders and wait staff and addressed any discrepancies between expect performance and actual performance.
- Create facebook and twitter pages for the business.
- Used Marriott computer applications to manage and administer events.
Catering manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 25% of Catering Managers are proficient in Customer Service, Culinary, and Food Service. They’re also known for soft skills such as Business skills, Detail oriented, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Catering Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 25%
Identify and delegate responsibilities to catering staff to ensure objectives are met and excellent customer service is consistently achieved.
- Culinary, 10%
Collaborated with culinary staff in special event menu planning and actively involved in planning and development of new catering business.
- Food Service, 10%
Supervised and marketed retail food service operations in three separate dining locations.
- Excellent Client, 6%
Trained and supervised staff ensuring clear direction and employee competence Responsible for invoicing clients and maintaining excellent client relations.
- Booking, 4%
Coordinated scheduling, booking details and executed events with corporate planners.
- Customer Satisfaction, 4%
Shortened length of contracts by eliminating largely irrelevant information, which reduced customer confusion and improved customer satisfaction.
"customer service," "culinary," and "food service" are among the most common skills that catering managers use at work. You can find even more catering manager responsibilities below, including:
Business skills. One of the key soft skills for a catering manager to have is business skills. You can see how this relates to what catering managers do because "food service managers must understand all aspects of the restaurant business, including how to budget for supplies, comply with regulations, and manage workers." Additionally, a catering manager resume shows how catering managers use business skills: "managed primarily the corporate market, including working closely will local businesses to produce large scare fundraisers/events. "
Organizational skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of catering managers is organizational skills. This skill is critical to many everyday catering manager duties, as "managers have many different responsibilities, including scheduling and overseeing staff, budgeting, and maintaining financial records." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "detail oriented with excellent organizational skills with the drive to exceed client expectations and company goals. "
Physical stamina. catering manager responsibilities often require "physical stamina." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "managers often work long shifts and sometimes spend entire evenings actively helping to serve customers." This resume example shows what catering managers do with physical stamina on a typical day: "oversee accurate records keeping, physical inventory, processing of time card and payroll. "
Problem-solving skills. A commonly-found skill in catering manager job descriptions, "problem-solving skills" is essential to what catering managers do. Catering manager responsibilities rely on this skill because "managers need to be able to resolve personnel issues and customer-related problems." You can also see how catering manager duties rely on problem-solving skills in this resume example: "guaranteed positive customer experiences and resolved all customer complaints"
Communication skills. Lastly, "communication skills" is an important element of what a catering manager does. Catering manager responsibilities require this skill because "food service managers must give clear orders to staff and be able to convey information effectively to employees and customers." This resume example highlights how catering manager duties rely on this skill: "learned and honed barista skills excelled in personal customer relationships advanced communication skills in all catering orders and events"
The three companies that hire the most catering managers are:
- Compass Group USA123 catering managers jobs
- Aramark48 catering managers jobs
- Sodexo Management, Inc.39 catering managers jobs
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Compare different catering managers
Catering manager vs. Director of catering
A director of catering spearheads and oversees catering services and programs, from planning to execution. They usually lead the hiring and training procedures, establishing goals and timelines, managing budgets and controlling costs, setting protocols and guidelines, coordinating managers and teams, and negotiating with suppliers, building positive relationships in the process. They may also participate in developing marketing plans, meeting with clients to identify their needs and preferences, monitoring inventories, solving issues and concerns, and supervising catering services to ensure operations run smoothly and efficiently.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between catering managers and director of catering. For instance, catering manager responsibilities require skills such as "excellent client," "safety regulations," "payroll," and "food production." Whereas a director of catering is skilled in "menu planning," "wine," "service techniques," and "guest rooms." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Directors of catering earn the highest salaries when working in the hospitality industry, with an average yearly salary of $60,555. On the other hand, catering managers are paid more in the hospitality industry with an average salary of $51,857.The education levels that directors of catering earn slightly differ from catering managers. In particular, directors of catering are 1.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a catering manager. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Catering manager vs. Food and beverage manager
A food and beverage manager is an individual responsible for ensuring that quality food and drinks are being served at a restaurant or hotel. Food and beverage managers are required to be excellent with customers and should have great management skills to meet the organization's labor and financial goals. They create food and drink menus and guarantee customers that they comply with their food and safety regulations. They are also required to negotiate with suppliers to arrange the delivery of food and beverage products.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that catering manager responsibilities requires skills like "excellent client," "booking," "safety regulations," and "food production." But a food and beverage manager might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "wine," "guest service," "excellent time management," and "banquet events."
Food and beverage managers earn a higher average salary than catering managers. But food and beverage managers earn the highest pay in the government industry, with an average salary of $56,929. Additionally, catering managers earn the highest salaries in the hospitality with average pay of $51,857 annually.food and beverage managers earn similar levels of education than catering managers in general. They're 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Catering manager vs. Food manager
A food manager oversees the operations at various dining establishments, ensuring efficient food services and client satisfaction. Their responsibilities typically include managing the staff, setting schedules and guidelines, establishing objectives and budgets, liaising with vendors and suppliers, delegating tasks, and developing strategies to optimize overall operations. There are also instances where they may assist customers, arrange reservations, process payments, prepare and organize documents, hire and train new members of the workforce, and resolve issues and concerns. Moreover, as a food manager, they must lead and encourage the staff to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, catering managers are more likely to have skills like "culinary," "food service," "excellent client," and "booking." But a food manager is more likely to have skills like "food handling," "cleanliness," "cash control," and "non."
Food managers earn the highest salary when working in the manufacturing industry, where they receive an average salary of $38,631. Comparatively, catering managers have the highest earning potential in the hospitality industry, with an average salary of $51,857.When it comes to education, food managers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to catering managers. In fact, they're 0.9% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Catering manager vs. Restaurant manager
A restaurant manager is responsible for handling the overall restaurant operations. These include monitoring revenues and daily restaurant sales, checking inventories and supplies, negotiating with third-party vendors, and managing customers' inquiries and complaints. Other duties include creating promotional offers, developing and improving sales strategies, organizing staff duties, maintaining the highest sanitary standards for everyone's strict compliance, and controlling operational expenses. A restaurant manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills and exceptional knowledge of food industry management.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between catering managers and restaurant managers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a catering manager might have more use for skills like "excellent client," "booking," "event planning," and "payroll." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of restaurant managers require skills like "food handling," "cleanliness," "restaurant management," and "guest service. "
Restaurant managers enjoy the best pay in the hospitality industry, with an average salary of $51,432. For comparison, catering managers earn the highest salary in the hospitality industry.In general, restaurant managers hold similar degree levels compared to catering managers. Restaurant managers are 1.0% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of catering manager
Updated January 8, 2025
