So, you're attracted to a career in hospitality or catering - but how do you wedge that first foot in the door? If you have an NVQ, OND, HND or degree in business management, hospitality or catering backed by experience from part-time and holiday jobs, the door is wide open. And it won't be slammed shut on absolute beginners.
The industry is packed with general managers and head chefs who worked their way up from portering and potwashing. Like them, you can pick up qualifications from in-house or external courses while working in a real job and earning a wage. Suzanna Hunter, a director at recruitment consultants Chess Partnership, says: "Qualifications are valuable tools, but not absolutely essential. You can get to the top in this industry without qualifications, if you have got the hunger and the determination to fight for it. A qualification is like the engine of a car - it is up to you to make it a Mini or a Ferrari."
With fewer graduates entering the industry and staff turnover traditionally high, there are many opportunities to get a foot on the ladder. As a people-focused industry, experience and attitude are key. Impress potential employers with your good grooming, enthusiasm, commitment, willingness to learn, personal skills, competence and attention to detail.
"Decide as early on as possible where it is you want to be and put the building blocks in place to get yourself there," advises Stuart Howie, management consultant for hotels at Portfolio International. "If you want a career in five-star hotels, it will not be tremendously beneficial doing your training in the limited-service sector." Switching later to a higher-grade sector will probably mean a demotion.
If your path is unclear, consider dipping your toe in the water by temping with a recruitment agency - many will train raw recruits in basic waiting and kitchen skills, for instance. "Temping is a great way to get a taster of the vast range of roles and sectors out there and can lead to a permanent position," points out Hannah Bailey, chief operating officer and director at Chess.
Visiting careers fairs will also open your eyes to the spectrum of jobs and sectors and give you the chance to chat informally to potential employers.
Expect to earn between £8,000 and £14,000 in entry-level jobs as a commis chef, chambermaid or bar waiter, perhaps more as a trainee or assistant manager in the food service or restaurant sectors. Would-be hotel managers should try to join a two- to three-year company graduate programme that will expose them to different departments and arm them with a degree or HND.
Many jobseekers fail to adequately research the training programmes and career progression offered by their first employers (company websites, recruitment agencies, colleges and organisations such as Springboard and the Hospitality Training Foundation can all help). This can lead to serial job-hopping, which reflects badly on your CV - companies who invest in developing their staff seek signs of stability and commitment. While it is valuable for chefs to experience different types of restaurants and cuisines, try to stick with your first company for 12-18 months.
Boom markets
Big companies clearly offer speedier prospects for promotion. "There are more opportunities to advance quickly in boom markets such as themed restaurants, budget hotels and cruise lines," says George Robertson, cruise and seasonal team manager at Berkeley Scott. "It is more difficult to get promoted in the top-end, four- to five-star hotel market, because it is a smaller market with little movement in people at higher levels."
Once you've notched up some experience and an NVQ, it's time to take on a supervisory role - maybe as chef de partie, reception supervisor, or assistant manager of a hotel department, restaurant or catering unit. Pay will rise to £10,000-£18,000 or more, depending on company, sector and location.
Many promotion-seekers fail to interrogate their managers about internal opportunities. "You need to avoid just moving sideways or moving for the sake of it," warns David Goldfarb, director at Mayday Recruitment. "If you move from one supervisory job in a hotel to another, it must be a move up in terms of type of hotel or type of experience."
Learn all you can from inspirational role models who get results, and enquire into all aspects of the business. Some international experience that exposes you to different cultures and service standards will give you an added edge and hone your people and service skills.
After four years or so it's time to scale the ladder further as a restaurant general manager, sous chef, reception manager, or deputy general manager in a hotel, for instance. Wage packets will range from about £20,000 to £40,000-plus.
Seek advice about sprucing up your CV. Keep it brief but punchy and achievement-led, highlighting where you have added value and what budgets, staff or units you are responsible for.
Networking is essential, as many top-level moves are by word of mouth, especially among chefs. Get your name known by joining local associations and business forums, joining in high-profile industry initiatives, winning trade competitions - even writing letters to Caterer.
It's time to round off your skills, or learn new ones if you plan to change direction - you may choose to switch to sales or human resources, take your hotel food and beverage experience to a new sector or move from chef management to area management in contract catering.
Consider studying for a Master in Business Administration degree. It is gaining popularity as a gateway to management in all disciplines, although studying for 30 hours a week on top of your job represents a huge commitment.
You are now ready to reach for the upper rungs and earn between £30,000 and £100,000-plus as an area or operations manager, a head or executive chef or a hotel general manager.
"At this level, you are more likely to be promoted into the role internally than to be offered it by another company, unless you move across to a similar sector or drop a sector," advises Robertson.
Develop a relationship with one or two recruitment agencies rather than register with dozens. They will have your name in mind when told about upcoming, often unadvertised, senior vacancies.
Be prepared to provide evidence of leadership and innovations - perhaps you introduced new systems that benefited your employer or participated in extra activities beyond the call of duty.
Even at these heady heights, don't rest on your laurels. Persisting with industry-sponsored training will keep you ahead of developments and trends and help shoot you into the ether of executive and regional appointments.