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The differences between executive chefs and general managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an executive chef and a general manager. Additionally, a general manager has an average salary of $71,581, which is higher than the $59,416 average annual salary of an executive chef.
The top three skills for an executive chef include culinary, food preparation and customer service. The most important skills for a general manager are customer service, cleanliness, and food safety.
| Executive Chef | General Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $59,416 | $71,581 |
| Hourly rate | $28.57 | $34.41 |
| Growth rate | 15% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 83,085 | 442,690 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 4.25 |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Executive chefs are considered the lead chefs in a restaurant. They manage the restaurant's kitchen, including all other chefs employed by the restaurant. Executive chefs are in charge of creating menu items and ensuring that the restaurant's menu is in line with the restaurant's identity. They handle the management of the pantry and ensure that it is well-stocked. They also ensure that all kitchen equipment and fixtures are working well. Executive chefs are responsible for training new chefs on the job to ensure consistent food quality.
A general manager is responsible for handling the overall operations in the business. General managers manage the staff tasks efficiently, monitor the productivity and efficiency of the work environment, implement new strategies to improve the business performance, recognize the team's best efforts, and effective allocation of budget resources. A general manager must have excellent communication, decision-making, and critical-thinking skills to identify areas of improvement in handling customer complaints, connecting with vendors and other lines of businesses that will direct the company towards its successful objectives.
Executive chefs and general managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Executive Chef | General Manager | |
| Average salary | $59,416 | $71,581 |
| Salary range | Between $40,000 And $87,000 | Between $40,000 And $126,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | Bridgewater Associates | NVIDIA |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between an executive chef and a general manager in terms of educational background:
| Executive Chef | General Manager | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Most common major | Culinary Arts | Business |
| Most common college | Drexel University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between executive chefs' and general managers' demographics:
| Executive Chef | General Manager | |
| Average age | 42 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.5% Female, 12.5% | Male, 70.7% Female, 29.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 10.8% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 10% |