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The differences between kitchen leads and catering coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a kitchen lead has an average salary of $35,678, which is higher than the $34,576 average annual salary of a catering coordinator.
The top three skills for a kitchen lead include customer service, culinary and food products. The most important skills for a catering coordinator are food service, customer service, and food preparation.
| Kitchen Lead | Catering Coordinator | |
| Yearly salary | $35,678 | $34,576 |
| Hourly rate | $17.15 | $16.62 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 56,300 | 19,607 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 37% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A kitchen manager acts as the overseer of food preparation and cooking. They ensure that all staff are working efficiently. They maintain the cleanliness of workstations and monitor all supplies used. To avoid lapses, they monitor the staff during cooking to ensure that the kitchen serves the best quality of food. Also, they create reports on the monthly expenses of supplies.
A catering coordinator's role is to oversee and manage food services in gatherings for special events, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. Their responsibilities revolve around planning and meeting with clients to learn their preferences, liaising with suppliers, managing schedules and inventory, and providing cost estimates. On the actual event, a catering coordinator is also responsible for welcoming guests, responding to any inquiries and concerns, resolving issues and urgent matters, and ensuring that everything is running smoothly. Furthermore, it is essential to lead and encourage the catering team while implementing all food and health policies and standards.
Kitchen leads and catering coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Kitchen Lead | Catering Coordinator | |
| Average salary | $35,678 | $34,576 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $45,000 | Between $27,000 And $43,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redmond, WA | Bay Shore, NY |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New York |
| Best paying company | Zoës Kitchen | St. Jude Children's Research Hospital |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Hospitality |
There are a few differences between a kitchen lead and a catering coordinator in terms of educational background:
| Kitchen Lead | Catering Coordinator | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 37% | Bachelor's Degree, 56% |
| Most common major | Culinary Arts | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between kitchen leads' and catering coordinators' demographics:
| Kitchen Lead | Catering Coordinator | |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 67.1% Female, 32.9% | Male, 23.9% Female, 76.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 7.0% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 6.3% White, 57.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |