Chefs, Innovators and Agents of Change
https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/work-of-art/le-chef-de-lhotel-chatham-paris
A pivotal position within the hospitality is that of the chef, the role has changed over the centuries and many books have been written about their accomplishments such as chefs which have invented dishes or introduced new food trends.
Whilst it is generally accepted that chefs are creative and this is a highly sought after competency required to fill the role of a chef, what other competencies does a chef need.
It should also be considered that chefs are also intrinsically innovative to both in their approach to ingredients, methods of cookery, technology and application of management processes of production. The personnel management of their brigades also requires innovation. It is from this, that I intend to review the chefs approach from a innovative viewpoint and as agents of social change.
“The pleasures of the table belong to all times and all ages, to every country and every day; they go hand in hand with all our other pleasures, outlast them and remain to console us for their loss.”
(Jean Anthelme de Brillat-Savarin 1775-1826)
Chefs as Innovators
Chefs have always had to use innovative approaches to the management of kitchens over the years, staff and skill shortages are one thing, to be honest possibly the main thing, but others things also come into play. Such as the application of the latest culinary trends and cookery methods of the day all whilst using the technology available at the that point in time.
Although not greatly recognised today even within hospitality, one of the most innovative chefs was Alexis Benoit Soyer (1810-1858), Relish, which is an excellent biography by Ruth Cowen of this now forgotten chef is worth reading, Soyer who was a working class French man who rose through the great kitchens in France and England to become the Head Chef of The Reform Club (www.reform-club.co.uk). Soyer created Lamb Cutlets Reform, a dish which is still served in the club today. In the 1840‘s Soyer also set up soup kitchens in Ireland serving wholesome nutritious food for famine relief of the masses .
The systems of work he established which included a conveyor belt type of production would now be recognised of that of a Central Production Unit (CPU).
The National Food Service Management Institute in regards to CPU’s stated;
‘there are a multitude of factors that must be considered to ensure its efficiency and effectiveness’
This shows that Soyer’s applied critical application of labour and process flow models in order to deliver a effective system of work.
Soyer also served the British Government (for no pay) alongside Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) during The Crimean War (1853-1856) raising the standards of cookery in The British Army. The quality of food served was a vast improvement (Volant F. Warren J.R. 1859) this was through a more industrial application process of cooking, alongside applied nutrition combined with using less fuel which in those days was wood.
In 1858, the Morning Chronicle reported that Soyer ever the innovator demonstrated his new systems of cooking to the British Army
Although Mary Nightingale and her nurses are remembered for raising the quality of nursing care to the wounded, it also needs to be recognised that Soyer in his role as a chef, through innovative applications of food production made invaluable contributions to cookery and nutrition which still resonate in society today. His critical thinking reached beyond just cooking a meal. The plaudits should certainly hold Nightingale as beacon of radical modernisation but Soyer, a chef is should also be due the same respect in the history books.
Cross, M. and MacDonald, B. (2009) state in Armed forces in Nutrition in Institutions that Nightingale wrote upon his death;
‘His death is a great disaster, Others have studied cooking for the purpose of gormandising, some for show, but none but he for the purpose of cooking large quantities of food in the most nutritious manner for great number of men.’
From a modern viewpoint the challenges faced by Alexis Soyer were solved by his innovative thinking towards what we now know as manufacturing processes, food safety, application of nutrition.
Many chefs have these qualities and the technology supporting kitchen production has never been better. We are standing on the shoulders of giants.
Chefs as Agents of Change
There are days…..
The post industrialised society which developed in the late twentieth century led to many pupils at school being educated to become knowledge or information workers rather than craft based workers. There is no better illustration of this than the fact that many people cannot cook, as school cookery lessons (blue collar) became food technology lessons (white collar) where pupils have no knowledge of food or where it comes from but can design a pizza box, or drinks carton graphics to place their product into. The Education Act of 1980 under Margret Thatcher’s government allowed the free market to provide school meals, the state had since the 1944 Education Act stipulated that Local Education Authorities (LEA’s) provide this as a public service in the school, therefore part of children's education needs. (Corporate Watch 2005)
This lead to a free market economy in educational meal provision which drove down quality and staff being left undervalued. Like Soyer before him Jamie Oliver approached a challenging situation with innovation, nutritional application to food and embracing technology of the day. The difference between the two is, whereas Soyer was seen as a maverick and relied upon benefactors from the aristocracy. Oliver was seen a social agitator by the large corporates which had the free market in school meal provision and Oliver’s use of social media was put into great effect as reported by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) 2006;
The Feed Me Better campaign attracted 271,677 signatures of support for Oliver's petition to improve the state of school meals
A force for good
It is interesting to compare the two chefs, as both have been innovative, both in their approaches to very similar problems with regard to poor dietary standards and application of technology. Whereas Soyer was beheld to his benefactors, Oliver is often portrayed as his ‘own man’ whilst dealing with very similar issues and has been quoted as saying his business success relies upon continuous innovation and has made frequent calls for business’s to have courage to question existing practices/processes.
In an interview given to the European Union review for Regional Policy 11, Oliver explained that:
“very few companies as well as governments of course in some way, need to either inspire existing staff to be creative or bring in staff that can be creative and shake things up a bit. Be bold and don’t be afraid to experiment with new ideas.”
Both examples given, show that innovation drove the success and creativity was allowed to flourish, in order to become agents of change, different methods were used and these critical strategic decisions empowered the chef to deliver the results.
Both examples, historical and modern show that a chef can be creative and an innovative leader in hospitality. This can have a far reaching effect on the social well being of the public and by using the technology and media available to both chefs, the message was maximised to deliver change and positive results.
It also shows that technology can lead to a paradox with staff both embracing it as it eases the pressure but also deskills the chef, therefore motivation and pride in your career choice can be very limited.
Government recognises the contribution of Hospitality and Tourism to Great Britain (GB) and many factors have been researched but the knowledge based workforce model needs to be realigned and important skills in the trades or shop class industries supported. If one accepts that premise, that the attraction of being a chef is the creativity and ownership of innovation, the greater the investment in chefs education in both cookery and the application of management process for business, financial performance will lead to a chef who is an educated professional in a highly changing industry which can only lead to more Alexis Soyer’s and Jamie Oliver’s
Further Info
https://calculating.wordpress.com/2012/09/21/forgotten-history-soyers-stoves/
http://sdg2advocacyhub.org/chefs-manifesto/actions/london-action-hub-launch
https://craftguildofchefs.org
