Skills for a Banquet Manager
Banquets bring people together for food, drink and conversation, whether it's a wedding celebration, business gathering or holiday event. Clients generally book banquets through venues, which help organize food, beverages, table settings and entertainment in some cases. This can be a major undertaking for larger events, and even small events require someone to coordinate the details. Banquet managers serve as the liaison between customers and venue staff, working to time cocktail hours, dining and socializing so that events wind down without a hitch. Banquet managers can increase their chances of success by acquiring certain skills.
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Dining Knowledge
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Banquet managers should be skilled at evaluating menus and beverage options to determine which may be best presented to clients as banquet ideas. Knowledge of seasonal foods, food and wine pairings, liquor laws and ingredient lists helps banquet managers suggest appropriate menus to clients. Banquet managers coordinate with kitchen staff to prepare special menu items, including options for vegetarians, people with food allergies or clients requesting specific items. People in this position are also responsible for overseeing dining room setup, decoration and breakdown to ensure cleanliness and aesthetic appeal. They also offer skilled advice and suggestions for elegant food presentation.
Financial Skills
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The financial skills of banquet managers help keep venues profitable. Banquet managers need to be comfortable reading and keeping budgets, staying on top of accounting and bookkeeping responsibilities and forecasting revenues. Banquet managers may also be involved in the venue's purchasing department for food, linens, table settings, glassware and decorations. Additionally, a banquet manager needs to understand how to sell higher-priced alternatives to banquet customers to increase profits with up-sell items including wines, flower arrangements, live entertainment and open bars.
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Communication
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Communication skills are vital for banquet managers, who must oversee employee staffs, coordinate with outside vendors and schmooze with clients. Presenting banquet options in a warm, articulate manner sets customers at ease. Establishing reliable, professional relationships with vendors ensures dependable service and quality products. Running employee meetings, smoothing over tension between coworkers, recognizing standout employee performance and establishing effective staff retention programs require excellent communication skills. Banquet managers should also have good written communication skills for writing to clients and creating training manuals.
Multitasking
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Multitasking skills help banquet managers juggle dozens of deadline-oriented activities. On a given day, banquet managers may be involved in helping coordinate event dates with clients and venue administrators, negotiating contracts among numerous vendors for different clients, tracking inventory and checking customer service satisfaction by reviewing feedback forms or initiating informal conversations with recent clients.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Banquet Table With Grass Centerpieces on Plates image by NorthEnder from Fotolia.com
