Executive Chef CV Guide + Tips + Example
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A well-written CV is a great place to start if you seek an executive chef position. Not sure where to begin? Don’t worry! Our guide to crafting a great executive chef CV will help you make the most of your management skills and creativity so you can get the job you want.
Start by editing this executive chef CV template or explore our 40+ CV templates to find the best one for you.
Executive chef CV example (text version)
Melissa Lang
Pasadena, CA 91101
(555) 555-5555
example@example.com
Summary Statement
Attentive executive chef with over 10 years of experience working in culinary environments. Well-versed in managing kitchens that serve up to 70 tables. Credentials include the ability to motivate staff and ensure cohesive kitchen operations. Emphasis on creating innovative dishes, using fresh, seasonal produce and meeting a wide range of dietary limitations.
Core Qualifications
- Kitchen equipment operation
- Recipes and menu planning
- Vendor management
- Strategic planning
- Food plating and presentation
- Business operations
- Creativity
- Critical thinking
Education
- California State University – Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
Bachelor of Science Hospitality - Hospitality, Wellness and Leisure Services
- Institute of Culinary Education Los Angeles, CA
Associate of Arts Culinary Arts & Management
Work Experience
January 2021 – Current
The Langham Hotel – Pasadena, CA
Executive Chef
- Supervise day-to-day kitchen operations, including a staff of 15 and 70 tables.
- Streamline inventory process to speed up deliveries and cut down on supply turnover by 25%.
- Redesign the menu in 2021 with a focus on more pictures, enhancing dining revenue by 75%.
- Collaborate with a marketing specialist to produce videos and blog posts about Italian cooking tricks and tips.
- Recruit, hire and train all staff members.
September 2015 – December 2020
Eataly – Pasadena, CA
Sous Chef
- Served as second-in-command at a cozy neighborhood Italian restaurant.
- Worked with the executive chef to improve dishes and to train staffers.
- Served as point person for lunch operations during the week.
- Helped set up and run an online and phone ordering program that increased revenues by 30%.
- Conducted mini-workshops at schools of all levels.
June 2011 – August 2015
Magnolia House – Pasadena, CA
Commis chef
- Created a top-selling pasta dish with seafood.
- Sharpened knives, chopped vegetables and tidied kitchens for an American cuisine restaurant.
- Reported to the sous chef and assisted in food order completion as necessary.
- Maintained a clean work area that met hygiene standards.
- Supervised Monday lunch periods on occasion, serving an average of 200 plates per shift.
Conference Presentations
- Kitchen, Budgets and Management Conference – (2022)
- Creativity, Recipes and Food Presentation – (2021)
- Kitchen 101: Food Safety – (2018)
Conference Attendance
- World Food Summit 2022, Los Angeles, CA – (2023)
- Food Bowl 2022, Los Angeles, CA – (2022)
- Plant-Based Innovation, No Limitation, Virtual – (2022)
- LA Chef Conference – (2021)
Honors and Awards
- Featured in The Roanoke Times article, “Italian cuisine that’ll make your taste buds sing.” – (2022)
- Sharing the Spirit Award finalist, Culinary Institute of America – (2021)
- Recognized for best recipe, plating and food presentation – (2017)
Professional Affiliations and Memberships
- American Culinary Federation – (2022)
- International Association of Culinary Professionals – (2021)
- American Institute of Wine & Food – (2021)
- Los Angeles- American Culinary Federation – (2019)
Certifications and Licenses
- Food Handler’s certification – (Updated 2022)
- Food Prepping and Serving License – (Updated 2021)
- Certified Foodservice Professional (CFSP), North American
- Association of Food Equipment Manufacturers (NAFEM) – (2018)
Training
- Artisan Bread Making, Institute of Culinary Education (ICE), Pasadena, CA – (2022)
- The Art of Cake Decorating, Institute of Culinary Education (ICE), Los Angeles, CA – (2021)
Profession Relevant Skills
- Proficiency in programs such as IPro Restaurant Inventory, Culinary Software Services ChefTec and Microsoft Excel.
- Well-versed in video development, blogging and podcasting.
- Ability to collaborate with kitchen staff, dining room staff and outside vendors
- Adept at strictly monitoring kitchen activities and meeting health code standards.
- Excellent communication, leadership and problem-solving skills.
- Attentive to detail while remaining flexible to changing circumstances and requirements.
Languages
- English
Native or Bilingual - Italian
Full Professional - French
Professional Working
Hobbies and Interests
Not surprisingly, I love to cook for my family. I also volunteer at a homeless shelter twice a month to make food a bit more delicious. Physical passions include hiking and geocaching.
5 essentials of a top executive chef CV
Contact details
Create a section at the top of your CV for your contact information. This section is vital because the recruiter or hiring manager can not reach you for an interview without it. The standard way to display your contact information is as follows: Your full name, then your city, state and ZIP code, followed by your phone number and professional email address. If you have a LinkedIn profile and professional website, add those last.
Personal statement
A personal statement, also called a professional summary, is where you introduce yourself to the hiring manager and pitch your best skills and related work experience. An executive chef CV personal statement must include job-relevant skills, how long you have been in the industry, and one or two of your most notable professional accomplishments. In general, your personal statement must be compelling and be no longer than five succinct sentences to grab the hiring manager’s attention. CV examples for executive chefs can show you how to write an impressive summary.
Skills
Every hiring manager wants to know what skills you bring to the table. Create a separate section for your job-relevant skills and display them with bullet points to make them easy to read. Include a mixture of hard and soft skills that range from business operations software to your impeccable ability to work with people, as demonstrated by our executive chef CV sample. If you are applying for your first manager job, include transferable skills. They are a must-have addition to a first-time executive chef CV.
Work history
Whether or not you have work experience as an executive chef, your CV must have a detailed employment history section. List current and previous employers in reverse-chronological order and provide company names, locations and the dates you worked for each. Add three bullet points of measurable achievements for every job you list. If you don’t have work experience in the field or if this is your first job application, display extracurricular activities, volunteer experience, community service, and professional and personal projects — anything that shows you have relevant work experience.
Education
Hiring managers want to see your education credentials, so a CV for an executive chef job must include an education section. Add all the educational institutions you’ve attended after high school. Use bullet points for each school and display the name of the school and the year you graduated. You should omit the year if you graduated more than 10 years ago. List your high school information and any post-high school classes taken if you did not attend college.
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Action words for a stand-out executive chef CV
Action words convey confidence and strengthen CVs because they tell the hiring manager exactly what you did. They pack a punch when combined with numbers.
Here’s a short list of perfect action words for an executive chef CV:
- Evaluate
- Train
- Develop
- Create
- Spearhead
- Resolve
- Confer
- Supervise
- Mentor
- Motivate
- Inform
- Lead
- Facilitate
- Collaborate
- Recruit
- Serve
- Maintain
Want more inspiration? We have more than 300 CV examples to help you create the perfect executive chef CV.
Need the perfect CV for an executive chef job now? Our CV Maker has all the tools you need to craft a professional CV in minutes! You can make edits on the fly, download your finished CV and save it as a PDF, .doc or plain text. It just doesn’t get any easier!
Top skills for an executive chef CV
Review the job description carefully and match the required skills to the skills and traits that fit you.
Your skills might include the following:
- Delegation
- Prioritization
- Attention to detail
- Strategic planning
- Patience
- Flexibility
- Business strategy
- Interpersonal communication
- Problem-solving
- Time management
- Team building
- Business operations
- Vendor management
- Conflict resolution
- Mental agility
- Critical thinking
- Customer service
- Conflict resolution
- Menu planning
- Leadership
- Management
Certifications for an executive chef CV
You don’t have to be certified for a job as an executive chef. Still, a CV for an executive chef that lists at least one certification stands out from the rest, so consider adding one to your professional toolkit.
There are several certification options for executive chefs, such as the following:
Pair your CV with a matching cover letter
Executive chef CV FAQ
What to include in a CV for an executive chef job?
An executive chef CV must always include five primary sections:
- Contact information
- Personal profile
- Skills
- Job history
- Education
After that, your CV can include any number of sections, such as the following:
- Professional memberships or associations
- Presentations
- Publications
- Certifications and licenses
- Volunteer experience
- Related hobbies and interests
The easiest way to determine what sections to add to your CV and how to fill them out is by reviewing the essential requirements of the job description. Match the job requirements to your qualifications and add them to your CV. If you’re unsure where to start, use the executive chef CV sample on this page for guidance.
What’s the best format for an executive chef CV?
A CV format for an executive chef should fit the industry, job and your work experience and goals. For instance, if you’re applying for your first executive chef job or are changing careers, it’s best to use a CV format that emphasizes your education or skills. However, if you have a steady career in retail management and have progressed through the ranks, you might want to showcase your work experience.
What are some tips for creating an excellent CV for an executive chef job?
Not all CVs are created equal. Here are our top tips for crafting a perfect executive chef CV:
- Review executive chef CV samples for inspiration.
- Use a CV template for an executive chef.
- Add separate sections for extra training, certifications, awards and honors.
- If you have given presentations or speeches at conferences, highlight those experiences in a separate section.
- Showcase volunteer and community service activities that focus on serving people.
- Create subcategories for your skills under the skills section of your CV. For example, you might have to group your soft and technical skills separately to let each type shine.
- Add a separate category for your managerial skills and give specific quantifiable examples of how you have used them in other jobs.
Do’s and don’ts for building an executive chef CV
- Use measurable achievements to describe your executive chef skills and experience.
- Use action words to make an impact on your executive chef CV.
- Tailor your CV to your target executive chef job.
- Use keywords from the job description throughout your executive chef CV.
- Format your executive chef CV so that it is easy to read by ATS software and human eyes.
- Lie about your executive chef experience and skills.
- Boast about your “incomparable” executive chef abilities.
- Include irrelevant personal information such as your ethnicity and age.
- Add skills and experience that do not pertain to being an executive chef.
- Forget to proofread. An executive chef CV with errors is unprofessional.
Top 4 tips for acing an executive chef interview
Learn about the company before your interview.
It’s vital to take the time to learn about the company’s history, goals, values and people before the interview. Being able to show that you have in-depth knowledge about your potential employer shows real interest, dedication and commitment — traits that hiring managers look for in every job candidate they talk to. Plus, having a glimpse of the company culture before you arrive will give you an idea of what to expect on arrival so that you can feel confident.
Practice at home.
Practice really does make perfect. To practice for your interview, start by reviewing the most common interview questions, such as:
- How Do You Determine Priorities?
- Describe a Time When You Had to Deal With a Stressful Scenario
- What Is the Biggest Mistake You’ve Made?What is the biggest mistake you’ve made?
Write down possible answers as you review potential questions, then ask a friend or relative to perform a mock interview with you so you can get comfortable with the questions and imprint the answers in your mind. Ask your interview partner for a review and work on improving your weaknesses. You’ll feel confident and ready when it’s time for the real thing.
Be proactive and ask questions.
Your interviewer will ask if you have any questions at the end of your session. You should always have at least three questions ready to ask; job candidates who don’t ask questions are not as likely to get hired because hiring managers assume they aren’t interested in the role or won’t put much thought into it.
Some questions you might ask for an executive chef job are:
- What are the prospects for growth in this position?
- What are the team’s strengths?
- What are the biggest challenges someone in this role can expect?
Gather references.
You’ll need professional references quickly if the hiring manager offers you the job after the interview. Having them ready will save you stress and time, so prepare a list of two former colleagues and a former manager who are willing to speak to your abilities to perform the job and who you know will give you a stellar review. Even better if they will write a letter of recommendation for you.
If you are applying for your first full-time job and don’t have former colleagues or a manager for reference, ask a former instructor, volunteer coordinator, classmate, or community leader who can vouch for your character and skills.
Resume examples for the next step in your culinary career
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Executive Chef CV Example
Kellie is a Certified Professional Resume Writer with extensive experience in digital media. She is passionate about helping job seekers navigate their careers. She earned a B.A. in English and writing from Temple University.
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