Career Advice for a Restaurant Manager

When you become a Restaurant Manager, you will be responsible for hiring and training staff, managing budgets, and ensuring the smooth running of the restaurant.

Quick Links

How to Become a Restaurant Manager

Choosing your career path and learning how to become the person you aspire to be is not always straight forward; getting a job in your chosen industry will take dedication, focus and the right qualifications.

When you have chosen the career path you wish to follow, you will need to learn how to become a Restaurant Manager

Should you wish to work as a Restaurant Manager you will need to evaluate what courses are required, their cost and what qualifications you need. It is important that you also assess whether you have the right credentials from a personality point of view, what the demands of the job are and whether they complement the lifestyle that you desire.

Another factor to consider, should you wish to fulfil your career aspirations, is the number of jobs you will need to have to reach your ultimate job, and the length of time it will take to reach this goal.

Common Qualifications for a Restaurant Manager

  • Knowledge of Microsoft Office and bookkeeping software.
  • A Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management.
  • Level 4 Diploma in Hospitality Leadership.
  • Level 3 Diploma in Hospitality Supervision and Leadership.
  • 2 A Levels.
  • 4 GCSES.
  • Food Hygiene Certificate.
  • Enhanced background check.

Key Responsibilities for a Restaurant Manager

  • Hiring and training kitchen and front of house staff.
  • Ordering supplies, ingredients, stock, and equipment.
  • Creating and editing menus.
  • Managing budgets and restaurant expenditures.
  • Opening and closing the restaurant.
  • Receiving customer feedback and managing complaints.
  • Setting employee schedules and motivating the team.

What to expect as a Restaurant Manager

Working as a Restaurant Manager, you will work in a restaurant and may need to wear a uniform. The working environment can be hot, physically demanding, and stressful. You will need an excellent grasp of food hygiene and safety coupled with business management, finance, and marketing skills.

Recommended Restaurant Manager Jobs

Loading Jobs...

How to get Restaurant Manager Jobs

Our advice on how to get a Restaurant Manager job is to focus on preparation and personalisation.

Preparation

This occurs before you write a CV cover letter or complete a Restaurant Manager application. If you have not held a Restaurant Manager position before, it will help to research the industry and review what a typical career path might look like. If you have held a Restaurant Manager role, focus your research on the company where you are seeking employment.

Valuable resources that will help you learn about the employer include the company’s career page, social media page, blog, job ad, and job description. Helpful information will consist of the company’s mission statement, values, and vision. You could also use an employer review site to gain insights on average salaries, what current employees say about the company culture, and what it is like to work for the organisation.

Personalisation

You are now in a position to use what you have learned in your Restaurant Manager CV, cover letter, and application. You should personalise each Restaurant Manager application, cover letter, and CV; prioritising job skills and relevant experience and providing examples that show you have similar values and goals.

This pre-application stage is a crucial step in how to become a Restaurant Manager in the UK. It puts you in a superbly informed state, ready for forthcoming telephone, video, or in-person interviews.

Students: How to Become a Restaurant Manager 

As with all professions, choose your study topics carefully. Review the qualifications needed to be a Restaurant Manager and the subjects you will need to enrol in certification courses, higher education, or online courses. 

Aligning your study subjects

The more closely you align your study subjects with your career path, the more likely you will be to have projects and modules that you can refer to and show a prospective employer that you have practical or theoretical Restaurant Manager experience.

How to get Restaurant Manager Experience

What does it take to be a Restaurant Manager? The best way to find out is to get work experience, which will be invaluable when applying for Restaurant Manager jobs. You can learn how to be a successful Restaurant Manager through internships, apprenticeships, or volunteering for a local business.

How to be a Restaurant Manager Part-Time 

If you are wondering how to get into Restaurant Manager part-time, there are several possibilities. You might find a new employer looking for a part-time Restaurant Manager or find your existing employer is amenable. Often companies recognise the value of flexible hours and having more staff at work during busy times of the day. 

Restaurant Manager freelance work

If you have impressive Restaurant Manager qualifications and experience, you could take on the challenges of working freelance with control over your schedule.

Making a Career Change

How to start a career in this profession if you work in another industry may require studying for qualifications online and focusing on transferable skills when writing your CV and attending job interviews.