Take One Entrepreneur:

Secrets of a Head Chef: Exploring Factors Influencing Success in Irish Kitchens

“…It is noteworthy that four of the top five traits on both scales are common: commitment to quality, ability to work hard, knowledge of HACCP, and knowledge of flavor. The top five traits are also found in the international literature on career success (Antun & Salazar, 2005;Balazs, 2001Balazs, , 2002Dreher & Bretz, 1991;Judge et al, 1995;Pratten, 2003;Zopiatis, 2010). Those variables that were rated lowest on the scales include networking, computer skills, and extraversion.…”

“…However, most managers rise through the ranks in the workplace (Jauhari, 2006), and many head chefs will have entered their profession at the bottom and worked their way up the occupational ladder (Berta, 2003;Hertzman & Maas, 2012). Balazs (2002) studied three-star Michelin chefs in France and found that they were extremely charismatic and attracted loyalty from their team, which was willing to work long hours, often for little or no pay, to feel part of something special. While there is a rising trend for attaining third level education (Allen & Mac Con Iomaire, 2016;Goyette, 2008), Mac Con Iomaire (2008) noted how in a UK context, Heston Blumenthal and Raymond Blanc achieved culinary greatness without following the traditional apprenticeship or college training.…”

“…Only four journal articles that examined competencies for success of chefs could be found from database searches (Balazs, 2001(Balazs, , 2002Birdir & Pearson, 2000;Zopiatis, 2010). The range of variables contributing to success varied greatly between studies, and therefore a broader search in the literature was carried out to identify all the possible variables associated with culinary career success.…”

“…Birdir and Pearson (2000) carried out a competencies based study on research chefs, however this sample population represents a small subgroup of the profession of chefs. Balazs' (2001Balazs' ( , 2002 qualitative study concentrated on three-starred Michelin chefs in France, examining lessons for leadership. Again, this was a very narrowly defined study, presenting more of a narrative on leadership rather than what it takes to succeed, where the scope of the study was different to the current aim of this study.…”

Changes in Professionalism: The Case of Estonian Chefs

“…Several researchers have pointed out the open-context expertise necessary for a chef, including communication skills (Surlemont, Chantrain, Nlemvo, & Johnson, 2005, Heikkinen, 2004, language and public speaking skills, creativity (Ottenbacher & Harrington, 2007;Sandwith, 1993), innovation (Hegarty & O'Mahony, 2001, Zopiatis, 2010Bissett, Cheng, Brannan, 2010), creativity (Robinson & Beesley, 2010) creating a "good spirit" (Balazs, 2002;Kang, Twigg and Hertzman, 2010) and putting them all into practice (Turpeinen, 2006;Turpeinen, 2009), as well as flexibility, collaboration skills, readiness to change (Koponen, 2006), ability to help others and to keep one's ego and emotions under control (Birdir & Pearson, 2000) and entrepreneurial ability (Johnson, Surlemont, Nicod & Revaz, 2005;Svejenova, Planellas & Vive, 2010). In managerial terms, the chef, sous-chef, maitre d'hotel and chef-sommelier constitute the "top management team" of the restaurant.…”