Head sommelier to venue director
A head sommelier already meets 28% of what the venue director role asks for. The move turns on 22 required skills not yet in the profile.
74.7/ 100
1 How much of what a venue director is expected to do is already part of a head sommelier’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 venue director role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A venue director role treats 8 of its required skills as things a head sommelier already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- comply with food safety and hygiene
- ensure maintenance of kitchen equipment
- maintain customer service
- manage stock rotation
- order supplies
- prepare tableware
What stands in the way is 22 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 11 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A venue director role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a head sommelier background worth leading with.
- already held compile wine lists communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held prepare tableware assisting and caring
- already held manage stock rotation management skills
- already held apply foreign languages in hospitality communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held ensure maintenance of kitchen equipment handling and moving
- already held monitor work for special events information skills
All 11 carried skills, including the 8 the venue director role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 25 missing skills fall into 7 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 restaurant service required
- still to learn oversee the printing of touristic publications required
- still to learn arrange special events required
- still to learn devise special promotions required
- still to learn oversee the design of touristic publications required
- still to learn supervise crew required
- still to learn supervise the work of staff on different shifts required
- optional, not held organise cultural events optional
- optional, not held manage budgets optional
- still to learn create decorative food displays required
- still to learn identify customer's needs required
- still to learn plan menus required
- still to learn think creatively about food and beverages required
- still to learn ensure infrastructure accessibility required
- still to learn handle customer complaints required
- still to learn maximise sales revenues required
- optional, not held contribute to the programmer's reflection process optional
- still to learn control of expenses required
- still to learn evaluate events required
- still to learn seek innovation in current practices required
- still to learn ensure portion control required
- still to learn inspect table settings required
- still to learn quality assurance methodologies required
- still to learn handle glassware required
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a venue director role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 create decorative food displays practise this
- 02 ensure portion control practise this
- 03 identify customer's needs 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 11 skills that carry over
- already held comply with food safety and hygiene skill
- already held ensure maintenance of kitchen equipment skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held manage stock rotation skill
- already held order supplies skill
- already held prepare tableware skill
- already held recruit employees skill
- already held train employees skill
- already held apply foreign languages in hospitality skill
- already held compile wine lists skill
- already held monitor work for special events skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
- still to learn hazard analysis and critical control points required
3 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held contribute to the programmer's reflection process optional
- optional, not held organise cultural events optional
- optional, not held manage budgets optional
17 held skills the venue director role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assist customers skill
- not needed by the target role check wine quality skill
- not needed by the target role coach employees skill
- not needed by the target role handle surveillance equipment skill
- not needed by the target role manage medium term objectives skill
- not needed by the target role organise wine cellar skill
- not needed by the target role plan shifts of employees skill
- not needed by the target role prepare alcoholic beverages skill
- not needed by the target role procure hospitality products skill
- not needed by the target role recommend wines skill
- not needed by the target role select glassware for serving skill
- not needed by the target role serve wines skill
- not needed by the target role sparkling wines knowledge
- not needed by the target role types of wine knowledge
- not needed by the target role upsell products skill
- not needed by the target role wine characteristics knowledge
- not needed by the target role wine related sciences knowledge
2 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 hazard analysis and critical control points required
- still to learn quality assurance methodologies required
Common questions about this move
Can a head sommelier become a venue director?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A head sommelier already covers 28% of what a venue director is expected to do: 11 skills carry over, 8 of which the venue director role treats as required.
What skills does a head sommelier need to become a venue director?
22 required skills are missing, plus 3 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is create decorative food displays.
How hard is the move from head sommelier to venue director?
Its learning distance is 74.7 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.