Chef to head chef
A chef already meets 58% of what the head chef role asks for. The move turns on 13 required skills not yet in the profile.
52.1/ 100
1 How much of what a head chef is expected to do is already part of a chef’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the head chef role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A head chef role treats 19 of its required skills as things a chef already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- assist customers
- compile cooking recipes
- comply with food safety and hygiene
- control of expenses
- develop food waste reduction strategies
- food waste monitoring systems
What stands in the way is 13 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 29 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A head chef role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a chef background worth leading with.
- already held prepare flambeed dishes assisting and caring
- already held compile cooking recipes communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held set prices of menu items information skills
- already held cook pastry products assisting and caring
- already held think creatively about food and beverages communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held types of whisks services
All 29 carried skills, including the 19 the head chef role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 23 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn manage budgets required
- still to learn manage hospitality revenue required
- still to learn manage stock rotation required
- still to learn recruit employees required
- optional, not held identify suppliers optional
- optional, not held manage medium term objectives optional
- optional, not held plan medium to long term objectives optional
- still to learn monitor the use of kitchen equipment required
- still to learn supervise food quality required
- still to learn maintain a safe, hygienic and secure working environment required
- still to learn train staff to reduce food waste required
- still to learn handle customer complaints required
- optional, not held advise guests on menus for special events optional
- optional, not held manage contract disputes optional
- optional, not held negotiate supplier arrangements optional
- optional, not held upsell products optional
- still to learn keep up with eating out trends required
- still to learn estimate costs of required supplies required
- optional, not held forecast future levels of business optional
- optional, not held manage inspections of equipment optional
- still to learn ensure maintenance of kitchen equipment required
- optional, not held attend to detail regarding food and beverages optional
- still to learn food storage required
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a head chef role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 food storage study this
- 02 keep up with eating out trends practise this
- 03 monitor the use of kitchen equipment practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 29 skills that carry over
- already held assist customers skill
- already held compile cooking recipes skill
- already held comply with food safety and hygiene skill
- already held control of expenses skill
- already held develop food waste reduction strategies skill
- already held food waste monitoring systems knowledge
- already held handover the food preparation area skill
- already held manage staff skill
- already held perform procurement processes skill
- already held plan menus skill
- already held plan shifts of employees skill
- already held set prices of menu items skill
- already held train employees skill
- already held types of whisks knowledge
- already held use cooking techniques skill
- already held use culinary finishing techniques skill
- already held use food preparation techniques skill
- already held use reheating techniques skill
- already held use resource-efficient technologies in hospitality skill
- already held check deliveries on receipt skill
- already held conduct research on food waste prevention skill
- already held cook pastry products skill
- already held create decorative food displays skill
- already held design indicators for food waste reduction skill
- already held execute chilling processes to food products skill
- already held handle chemical cleaning agents skill
- already held molecular gastronomy knowledge
- already held prepare flambeed dishes skill
- already held think creatively about food and beverages skill
10 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held advise guests on menus for special events optional
- optional, not held attend to detail regarding food and beverages optional
- optional, not held forecast future levels of business optional
- optional, not held identify suppliers optional
- optional, not held manage contract disputes optional
- optional, not held manage inspections of equipment optional
- optional, not held manage medium term objectives optional
- optional, not held negotiate supplier arrangements optional
- optional, not held plan medium to long term objectives optional
- optional, not held upsell products optional
20 held skills the head chef role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role cook dairy products skill
- not needed by the target role cook fish skill
- not needed by the target role cook meat dishes skill
- not needed by the target role cook sauce products skill
- not needed by the target role cook seafood skill
- not needed by the target role cook vegetable products skill
- not needed by the target role ensure cleanliness of food preparation area skill
- not needed by the target role identify nutritional properties of food skill
- not needed by the target role instruct kitchen personnel skill
- not needed by the target role maintain customer service skill
- not needed by the target role maintain kitchen equipment at correct temperature skill
- not needed by the target role manage waste skill
- not needed by the target role order supplies skill
- not needed by the target role prepare canapés skill
- not needed by the target role prepare desserts skill
- not needed by the target role prepare salad dressings skill
- not needed by the target role prepare sandwiches skill
- not needed by the target role store raw food materials skill
- not needed by the target role use food cutting tools skill
- not needed by the target role work in a hospitality team skill
1 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn food storage required
Other moves recorded from chef
Common questions about this move
Can a chef become a head chef?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A chef already covers 58% of what a head chef is expected to do: 29 skills carry over, 19 of which the head chef role treats as required.
What skills does a chef need to become a head chef?
13 required skills are missing, plus 10 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is food storage.
How hard is the move from chef to head chef?
Its learning distance is 52.1 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.