The hospitality industry is an extremely rewarding yet competitive industry. If you are struggling to progress in your hospitality career, or you want to take the next step on your hospitality career path, completing a food safety course can help. Here’s how:
1. Proves you are capable and responsible
In most hospitality businesses, a food safety supervisor must be nominated to ensure food is handled safely and all regulations are being followed correctly. By taking a food safety supervisor course, you are preparing yourself for a future role as a food safety supervisor, so that if a vacant supervisory position arises, you will be able to put yourself forward and be able to instantly prove you are capable and qualified to step up to the mark.
2. Provides evidence you are ready for a promotion
If your employer is reluctant to promote you to a higher position, perhaps due to your lack of experience, taking a food safety course can provide you with the transferable skills and knowledge you need to show your employer you are ready for the next step in your career. Taking on additional food safety responsibilities and helping to maintain food safety standards will prove to your employer that you are responsible and proactive.
3. Future-proofs your career
You may currently be working within a hospitality role that is customer-facing, such as working as part of a customer service team, and believe a food safety course has no relevance to you. In reality, however, taking a food safety course can help to future-proof your career and ensure that if the opportunity does arrive for you to work with food within the hospitality industry, you will be more than prepared for the role. Many people mistakenly think only chefs need to be qualified and understand food safety when, in reality, every individual working within the hospitality industry could benefit from understanding food safety in detail.
4. Secures your reputation
Many careers in the hospitality industry are made by recommendations and word of mouth reviews. It is essential, therefore, than you maintain an excellent reputation and do not allow an incident to occur that could harm your reputation and career, such as food poisoning. If your team or the business you currently work at is responsible for causing food poisoning, it will be hard to shake that reputation as you try to progress in the hospitality industry. A food safety course can ensure you have the knowledge and expertise to prevent such an incident from occurring.
5. Helps you become a better team player
A food safety course will not only help you understand food handling processes more clearly, but it will also teach you about reducing waste in the workplace by managing quality control more effectively. Reducing waste can help to improve your company profits and prove to your superiors that you are an invaluable team member. If you are considered invaluable, your managers may be more willing to offer you a promotion or pay rise to ensure you remain at the same company and they can continue to benefit from your expertise. Proving you deserve a promotion or pay rise is much more effective than simply asking for one.
6. Helps you present yourself in compliance with the standards
It is a common phrase, ‘dress for the job you want’, but for the hospitality industry, this phrase can have a real impact. A food safety course can provide you with all the information you need about how to present yourself when handling food, such as having your hair pulled back and maintaining neat, short nails. If you make a concerted effort to ensure you comply with these standards on a day to day basis, it will prove to your employer you are serious about your responsibilities and future, proving that you are able to advance to a more food handling-focused role.
Are you considering taking a food safety course?
The Australian Institute of Accreditation has multiple courses relating to food safety from level 1 food handling to food safety supervisor courses. If you currently work in the hospitality industry within a kitchen, our courses are perfect for you and can help you begin to progress and advance your career in hospitality. All of our courses are available online and so can be completed flexibly within your schedule. To learn more about our courses and how they could benefit you and your career, do not hesitate to view our course page or get in touch with an expert member of the Australian Institute of Accreditation today.