Director of catering vs food and beverage manager

The differences between directors of catering and food and beverage managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a director of catering and a food and beverage manager. Additionally, a director of catering has an average salary of $65,732, which is higher than the $53,013 average annual salary of a food and beverage manager.

The top three skills for a director of catering include booking, customer service and culinary. The most important skills for a food and beverage manager are customer service, wine, and POS.

Director of catering vs food and beverage manager overview

	Director Of Catering	Food And Beverage Manager
Yearly salary	$65,732	$53,013
Hourly rate	$31.60	$25.49
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	54,263	159,775
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	39	39
Years of experience	4	4

What does a director of catering do?

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.

What does a food and beverage manager do?

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.

Director of catering vs food and beverage manager salary

Directors of catering and food and beverage managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Director Of Catering	Food And Beverage Manager
Average salary	$65,732	$53,013
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $98,000	Between $38,000 And $72,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	New York, NY
Highest paying state	California	New York
Best paying company	J.F. Shea Co	Google
Best paying industry	Hospitality	Government

Differences between director of catering and food and beverage manager education

There are a few differences between a director of catering and a food and beverage manager in terms of educational background:

	Director Of Catering	Food And Beverage Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Cornell University	Cornell University

Director of catering vs food and beverage manager demographics

Here are the differences between directors of catering' and food and beverage managers' demographics:

	Director Of Catering	Food And Beverage Manager
Average age	39	39
Gender ratio	Male, 35.3% Female, 64.7%	Male, 59.8% Female, 40.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 8.4% White, 58.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 8.4% White, 56.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between director of catering and food and beverage manager duties and responsibilities

Director of catering example responsibilities.

Manage and execute every aspect of the planning process, creating BEOs and managing banquet staff.
Prepare and manage BEOs to client specifications including auto-visual requirements.
Revamp BEO writing process with training.
Direct the catering, conference service and banquet departments for two five star, five diamond resorts and two country clubs.
Monitor daily activities to ensure quality food and cleanliness standards.
Foster a positive work/customer atmosphere by ensuring facility cleanliness and compliance with health department regulations.

Food and beverage manager example responsibilities.

Schedule, plan, organize and manage events.- Assist with staff scheduling and bartending service.
Manage a small team of people in the caf /gift shop area to improve sales and minimize costs.
Manage daily operations of restaurant, in-room dining, lounge, pool, cater events and all bar venues.
Manage all FOH positions, including scheduling, developing and coaching employees, motivating the team and continuing to drive sales.
Coordinate weekly schedules and manage payroll processing functions including monitoring meal break compliance, labor productivity and attendance.
Manage subordinate managers and supervisors, manage various personnel functions including payroll, hiring, disciplinary actions, grievances and promotions.

Director of catering vs food and beverage manager skills

Common director of catering skills

Booking, 10%
Customer Service, 10%
Culinary, 10%
Event Planning, 8%
Food Preparation, 6%
Menu Planning, 5%

Common food and beverage manager skills

Customer Service, 10%
Wine, 6%
POS, 6%
Guest Satisfaction, 5%
Food Service, 4%
Guest Service, 4%

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Director Of Catering
Director Of Catering vs Food And Beverage Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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