Copyright © 2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved CHAPTER 13. A WORD FROM INDUSTRY...

Copyright © 2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved

CHAPTER 13. A WORD FROM INDUSTRY

LEADERS


Learning Objective1.Read four interviews and identify the

interviewee’s career path, current job functions, advice for culinary students, and trends in the industry.


Lee Cockerell, Executive Vice President of Operations, Walt Disney World ® Resort. Career path:

College for hotel and restaurant administration for 2 years.

Hotel kitchen. Army and cook’s school. Hilton hotels (8 years): Banquet waiter, food and

beverage controller, management training program, assistant food and beverage director, food and beverage director.

Marriott Hotels (17 years): Director of restaurants, director of food and beverage, regional director of food and beverage, area vice president of food and beverage, vice president of food and beverage planning, general manager.


Lee Cockerell, Executive Vice President of Operations, Walt Disney World ® Resort.

Corporate director of food and beverage and quality assurance for Disneyland Resort in Paris

Promoted to vice president of operations for the 6 resort hotels in Paris

Promoted to senior vice president of operations for the resort hotels in Orlando at Walt Disney World ®

Promoted to senior vice president for parks and resorts and then executive vice president of operations for Walt Disney World ® Resort.

Moved 11 times


Lee Cockerell, Executive Vice President of Operations, Walt Disney World ® Resort. Responsible for all of the

operations, including the four theme parks, the resort hotels, shopping and dining complex, and sports and recreation.

Creates a happy, healthy environment where every Cast Member can achieve whatever they are capable of.

Also responsibility for the security, transportation, engineering and maintenance, textile service, etc.

Oversees 50,000 employees.

Walks the properties to greet Cast Members, guests, check on how things are going, inspect break rooms, etc.

Writes a weekly newspaper for all 50,000 Cast Members – used to inform and recognize Cast Members.


Advice for Culinary Students

You will need to gain a lot of hand-on culinary experience and technical skill.

Become a great manager. Be well organized. Have a system in place for planning your day and

following up. Know the difference between urgent, vital, important,

and limited-value tasks, and do them in the right order. Keep up with technological advances so you know

how to apply technology to your business.


Advice for Culinary Students

Be a great leader. You need to be able to lead and inspire others. Do 4 things with your fellow employees: Make your employees feel special. Treat your employees as individuals. Treat everyone with respect. Develop your employees, teach them, and know their jobs.

Have a positive attitude – you are the key to your success. When someone asks you to do something, say yes. Keep a balance between your profession and your personal

life. Make time to be involved in your community.


John Doherty, Executive Chef, Waldorf Astoria Hotel.

Job functions: Oversees food operations

including banquets, two restaurants (a casual American brasserie and a steakhouse), and room service.

Supervises 130 culinary staff including 7 chefs and 13 sous chefs.

Member of the hotel’s executive committee.

Financial responsibility: controls expenses, payroll, food cost.


John Doherty, Executive Chef, Waldorf Astoria Hotel

Career path: Restaurants: busboy,

dishwasher, food prep, cooking.

Culinary school. Waldorf Astoria Hotel:

Externship to Executive Chef.



Advice for culinary students: Take the time to develop your culinary skills

and palate before you move up to positions such as sous chef when you will spend a lot of time working out operational problems.

Take advantage of opportunities to improve or fix something.

Take the initiative to make the food better. Don’t just complain.

Set your goals and make your own plan to get there.



Advice for culinary students Make thoughtful decisions that will help you

get where you want to be. Treat people with the same respect that you

want to be treated with. Be honest. Work hard and do a good job.


Edward G. Leonard, CMC, AAC, Executive Chef at Westchester Country Club, President of the American Culinary Federation, Manager of the 2004 and 2008 Culinary Olympics Team

Job functions: Oversees staff of 58 who work in culinary,

stewarding, and food and beverage operations.

Does daily round in the kitchens and talk to chefs.

Attends meetings, such as F & B meetings or staff meetings.

Reviews budgets, forecasts, business plans, expenses.

Develops menus, buffets, ice carvings, new menu items.


Edward G. Leonard, CMC, AAC, Executive Chef at Westchester Country

Club

Career path: Worked to positions

with more responsibility in kitchens in restaurants, country clubs, and hotels for about 6 years.

Then worked in operations, food and beverage management, and sales and marketing.

Executive chef at country club


Edward G. Leonard, CMC, AAC, Executive Chef at Westchester Country

Club

Advice for culinary students: Fine dining is popular but the hardest to work

in. Check out additional opportunities. Get a great education. Work hard. Find great chefs to work with. Take time to learn how to become a business

person. Have a five-year and a ten-year plan. You can always learn something new. Work on being a good leader.


L. Timothy Ryan, EdD, CMC, President, The Culinary Institute of

America Career path:

Restaurants: dishwasher, prep cook, cook. Culinary school. Restaurant chef. Culinary Olympics team member. Passed Certified Master Chef exam. Went to Culinary Institute of America: Opened American

Bounty restaurant, worked way up from faculty position to about six administrative jobs to President.

Completed Bachelor, Masters, and doctoral degrees



America

Job functions: Oversee CIA including

2,400 degree seeking students and 10,000 continuing education students a year.

Works with board of trustees.

Works with staff of 800



America Advice for culinary

students: Have a thirst for

knowledge. Have a desire to

constantly improve. Get an education Work on good

communication skills – including speaking

Trends: More chefs are thinking of

opening more than one restaurant.

More chefs are going into research and development.

The work ethic doesn’t allow for 12 to 14-hour days anymore.

You can’t learn everything in the kitchen – chefs can’t teach you cooking and all the management skills. There’s not enough time. You have to get an education.


Discussion Questions1. Where did their careers start?2. Did they all move around a lot?3. What characteristics do most of them

share?4. Why are they such wonderful leaders? 5. Why are they such wonderful managers?6. How would you sum up their advice?

Copyright © 2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved CHAPTER 13. A WORD FROM INDUSTRY...

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