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Executive Chef skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
Quoted Experts
Aaron Guerra,
Stacey Schwartz
Executive Chef Example Skills
Below we've compiled a list of the most critical executive chef skills. We ranked the top skills for executive chefs based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 14.0% of executive chef resumes contained culinary as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills an executive chef needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 executive chef skills for your resume and career

1. Culinary

Here's how executive chefs use culinary:
  • Developed menus, conducted culinary training, spearheaded culinary competitions, developing chef hiring process, and overall culinary guidelines.
  • Developed curriculum for, non-credit culinary and hospitality programs, business training and team building across Northwest Arkansas.

2. Food Preparation

Here's how executive chefs use food preparation:
  • Ensured proper food preparation with exceptional taste and presentation and also ensure food preparation for residents with dietary needs and requirements.
  • Ensured customer service standards by identifying and resolving problems, identifying needed system improvements and implementing production and food preparation changes.

3. Customer Service

Customer service is the process of offering assistance to all the current and potential customers -- answering questions, fixing problems, and providing excellent service. The main goal of customer service is to build a strong relationship with the customers so that they keep coming back for more business.

Here's how executive chefs use customer service:
  • Trained employees in customer service and food preparation procedures in line with high-end establishment standards, effectively expedited dinner service.
  • Trained and micromanaged team workers to observe and implement training opportunities to meet customer service expectations and achieve profitability.

4. Kitchen Operations

Here's how executive chefs use kitchen operations:
  • Selected to execute reorganization of kitchen operations and staffing structure for local eatery specializing in California and Mediterranean style cuisine.
  • Directed kitchen operations in Mexican upscale restaurant, accountable for implementing creative recipes, developing menus and distinctive presentations.

5. Food Safety

Here's how executive chefs use food safety:
  • Received certification in food safety manager, Florida restaurant and lodging association and SafeStaff-contracted food safety provider.
  • Implemented a major food safety/sanitation compliance initiative that included the overhaul of back-of-the-house storage and food-preparation areas.

6. Food Service

The food service industry is a vast industry comprising of restaurants, caterers, cafeterias operating in institutions and any other business offering a meal not prepared at home. Foodservice operators require necessary utensils for preparing food for the consumers, foodservice distributors are the people who take care of this need for them.

Here's how executive chefs use food service:
  • Utilized proven food service industry expertise and entrepreneurial business skills to provide consultation to start up and established businesses.
  • Increased operational efficiency after headcount reduction by redesigning the kitchen and reorganizing the food service channels.

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7. Menu Development

Here's how executive chefs use menu development:
  • Directed product purchasing, budget and menu development, sanitation management, training associates, scheduling, and ensuring customer satisfaction.
  • Support Executive Chef in all aspects of food management including menu development, purchasing, inventory control and customer satisfaction.

8. Food Quality

Here's how executive chefs use food quality:
  • Directed general restaurant operations monitoring food quality and staffing requirements to ensure a positive and exceptional dining experience for every guest.
  • Doubled food and beverage revenues through increasing food quality/presentation to hotel and restaurant quality levels, resulting in boosting facility reputation.

9. Fine Dining

Here's how executive chefs use fine dining:
  • Developed creative, diverse menus incorporating the cuisine commonly associated with independent, fine dining restaurants.
  • Worked under Michelin Star recipient Michael Ellis to open Mediterranean/Coastal California fine dining restaurant.

10. Food Handling

Here's how executive chefs use food handling:
  • Implemented allergy awareness throughout the entire restaurant and developed appropriate food handling and preparation processes as necessary.
  • Ensured associates maintained required food handling and sanitation certifications; and performed related responsibilities as required.

11. Patients

Here's how executive chefs use patients:
  • Created and facilitated 30 day rotation of individualized menu plans and nutritional meals for patients and hospital cafeteria.
  • Keep organized temperatures files from patients and cafeteria.

12. Quality Standards

Quality standards are a specific level of standards of products that are set by the companies for the customers that have to be met and maintained throughout the process until the time of delivery. Quality standards are information that includes the customer's requirements, guidelines, and characteristics for the needed final product or service.

Here's how executive chefs use quality standards:
  • Coordinated the overall preparation and presentation of food while maintaining quality standards and maintaining the highest level of customer satisfaction.
  • Served on distinguished culinary task force that spearheaded improvement in food quality standards for revenue growth and customer satisfaction.

13. Cleanliness

Here's how executive chefs use cleanliness:
  • Passed all health department inspections/certifications with zero deficiencies as ServSafe Certified professional conducting daily inspections for food temperatures and cleanliness.
  • Decreased food costs, streamlined operations and successfully implemented new sanitation program to improve cleanliness and group participation.

14. Wine

Here's how executive chefs use wine:
  • Developed and oversaw Avenue Communities exclusive food and wine amenity program
  • Executed exclusive wine pairings for elite international clientele.

15. Cuisine

Cuisine refers to a certain style, method, or manner of preparing food peculiar to a particular country, region, or establishment. It is often characterized by distinctive techniques, ingredients, and dishes that are usually associated with a specific geographic region or culture. Examples include New Mexico Chile in New Mexican cuisine and Japanese rice in Japanese cuisine.

Here's how executive chefs use cuisine:
  • Developed seasonal menus focusing on classical French cuisine with consideration to customer base, product availability and cost.
  • Created unique and diverse menus incorporating different aspects of international cuisine with emphasis on French and Italian.
top-skills

What skills help Executive Chefs find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on Executive Chef resumes?

Aaron GuerraAaron Guerra LinkedIn Profile

Tenured Professor of Cuisine Management, Department Head, Clark College

ServSafe 5 year certification as a student; basics of any quality student: good attendance, substantial grades, evidence of incorporating and demonstrating hard skills like plating and organization as well as soft skills like the ability to cost recipes correctly, produce accurate production sheet, and execute events; portfolios and management project binder that illustrate previous skills (Our students must provide a portfolio at the end of the program with their 120-hour externship paperwork and develop a small business plan/Restaurant management project that includes menu, full costing including q factor and budgeted yield percentage, profit and loss sheets, equipment depreciation, dining area and kitchen floor plans, business prospectus including demographics, marketing, and specified segmentation.

What Executive Chef skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Stacey SchwartzStacey Schwartz LinkedIn Profile

Chef Instructor, Edmonds Community College

If a student needs to take a gap year, a good way to spend it would be immersing themselves in culinary literature and information, familiarizing themselves with the basics, eating diverse foods, and exploring unique ingredients. This would be a wonderful way to start!

What type of skills will young Executive Chefs need?

R. Earl FrederickR. Earl Frederick LinkedIn Profile

Tenured Professor of Cuisine Management, Clark College

Graduates entering the workforce need to have the ability to multitask, communicate well, think critically in high-pressure situations, and be reliable. For years, the margins for restaurants and most food service establishments have been skinny. The coronavirus pandemic has shown that the most successful businesses have pivoted and learned to adapt to thrive. This same attitude is what we instill in our students so that they can be successful.
Do you want to know more?
Read more about what experts have to say about Executive Chef

List of executive chef skills to add to your resume

Executive Chef Skills

The most important skills for an executive chef resume and required skills for an executive chef to have include:

  • Culinary
  • Food Preparation
  • Customer Service
  • Kitchen Operations
  • Food Safety
  • Food Service
  • Menu Development
  • Food Quality
  • Fine Dining
  • Food Handling
  • Patients
  • Quality Standards
  • Cleanliness
  • Wine
  • Cuisine
  • Menu Planning
  • Worksheets
  • Food Production
  • Food Cost
  • Labor Costs
  • PET
  • Sanitation Standards
  • Kitchen Equipment
  • Guest Satisfaction
  • Customer Satisfaction
  • Culinary Operations
  • Sous Chefs
  • HACCP
  • Exceptional Guest
  • Banquet Facility
  • Cost Control
  • Recipe Development
  • Room Service
  • Beverage Operations
  • Inventory Control
  • Bistro
  • Beverage Management
  • Inventory Management
  • Private Dining
  • Portion Control
  • Staff Training
  • Garnishing
  • Menu Design
  • BOH
  • Line Cooks
  • Wine Dinners
  • Caf
  • La Carte
  • Menu Creation

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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