COPYRIGHT AND CITATION CONSIDERATIONS FOR THIS THESIS/ DISSERTATION o Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. o NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. o ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. How to cite this thesis Surname, Initial(s). (2012). Title of the thesis or dissertation (Doctoral Thesis / Master’s Dissertation). Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/102000/0002 (Accessed: 22 August 2017). PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF EXECUTIVE HOTEL CHEFS IN SOUTH AFRICA by GERARD VINGERLING A dissertation submitted in fulfilment for the Degree of Master in Tourism and Hospitality Management at the College of Business and Economics UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG Supervisor: D.S. Hewson Co-supervisor: C.H. Mabaso MARCH 2020 PLAGIARISM DECLARATION I declare that this dissertation is my own original work, conducted under the supervision of Ms Daryl Hewson and Ms Cynthia Mabaso. It is submitted for the degree of Masters: Tourism and Hospitality in the College of Business and Economics at the University of Johannesburg. This work has not been submitted as part of a degree at another institution but it has informed the production of journal articles written by the same author. I know that plagiarism is wrong. Plagiarism is to use another’s work and to pretend that it is one’s own. • I have used the Harvard Method for citation and referencing. Each contribution to, and quotation in, this essay/assignment from the work(s) of other people has been attributed and has been cited and referenced. • This essay/assignment is my own work, and it has not been partially or wholly copied from another. • I have not allowed, and will not allow, anyone, to copy my work with the intention of passing it off as his, or her, own work. • I acknowledge that copying someone else’s assignment or essay, or part of it, is wrong, and declare that this is my own work. Signature: _______________________ Date: 3rd April 2020 GERARD VINGERLING Student no. 809433976 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to express my sincere appreciation to my principal supervisor, Ms Daryl Hewson, my co-supervisor Ms Cynthia Mabaso, who have been extremely helpful, and who have offered their unwavering assistance, support and guidance during this journey. Their in-depth knowledge and experience have helped me, and it has made this research a success. In addition, I wish to thank the following for their contribution towards the completion of this study: • The Tsogo Sun Hotel Group, for allowing the use of their facilities for data collection. • All the Executive Chefs and Executive Sous Chefs that helped make this study possible. iii DEDICATION I would like to dedicate my thesis to the following people in my life, without whom this thesis would not have happened: • Mrs Daryl Hewson, my lecturer of 26 years ago who was one of my subject lecturers for my diploma in Food Service Management, and recently, my supervisor that helped me with my Degree thesis and now my Master’s thesis. Her passion for the cheffing industry spurred me on to take on my Master’s and write my dissertation on this topic. I am very grateful to her for her guidance, advice, knowledge and support throughout it all. • My wife and greatest supporter, Rose, without whom I do not know if I would have reached this point. Thank you for being the ‘wind in my sails’, for pushing me to achieve my dreams and for allowing me the latitude to give this thesis my all. • My daughter, Jennifer, whose PowerPoint skills I marvel at. She is the ‘true Queen’ of PowerPoint in our family. Thank you for having done the graphics needed for my thesis. iv ABSTRACT The initial establishment of culinary arts as a vocational or semi-professional occupation has created problems for later models for the culinary training within the industry, and this has led to ongoing tensions within the industry that are evident today. The culinary occupation relies on many different industry stakeholders in the development of culinary arts, skills, and knowledge training for chefs today. The chef has no control over the formal education and industry preferences on what culinary skills and knowledge should be taught. This has led to the steady erosion of curricular control by chefs, industry and educational facilities. The different fields in the culinary profession inform one another and create modes of collective action, modernising the culinary field. In doing so, they inform the industry on how to develop Executive and Executive Sous Chefs professionally to cope with the changing and challenging modern demands now placed on them. Key words: Culinary skills, Executive Chef, knowledge, professional development v TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM DECLARATION ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii DEDICATION iv ABSTRACT v LIST OF TABLES x LIST OF FIGURES xi LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS xii CHAPTER ONE: STUDY ORIENTATION 1 1.1 Introduction to the hospitality industry 1 1.2 The Executive Chef 2 1.3 Culinary education environment 4 1.4 Statement of the problem 6 1.4.1 Questions 6 1.5 Purpose and scope of the proposed study 7 1.6 Study motivation 7 1.7 Research aim and objectives 11 1.8 Significance of the study 12 1.9 Study structure 13 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 15 2.1 Introduction 15 2.2 Professional development 16 2.3 Profession 16 2.4 Professionalism 16 2.5 Hybrid professionalism 18 2.6 The chef profession 18 2.7 Gender 19 2.8 Age 20 2.9 Race 20 2.10 Workplace experience 20 2.11 International experience 21 2.12 Lifelong learning 21 2.13 Mentoring 21 2.14 Leadership 22 2.15 Professional development in chefs 23 2.15.1 History of the professional development of chefs 23 2.15.2 History of the kitchen brigade 24 2.15.3 The modern kitchen brigade 25 vi 2.15.4 Division of labour 26 2.15.5 Chefs’ titles in the kitchen brigade system 27 2.15.6 Chefs’ identity 28 2.15.7 Professional cooks/chefs 28 2.15.8 Chefs’ professionalisation 29 2.15.9 Professional competence 30 2.15.9.1 Job satisfaction 30 2.15.9.2 Career development 30 2.15.10 Apprenticeships 32 2.15.11 Past and present institutional qualifications 33 2.15.11.1 Certificates 35 2.15.11.2 Diplomas 35 2.15.11.3 Degrees 36 2.16 South African National Qualifications Framework 37 2.16.1 Unemployment 38 2.17 South African Qualifications Authority 39 2.17.1 National qualifications framework 40 2.17.2 Qualifications sub-frameworks 40 2.18 The National Skills Development Authority 42 2.19 Government department of tourism associations 42 2.20 Quality Council for Trades and Occupations 43 2.21 Professional qualifications structure 44 2.21.1 Certification of non-qualified chefs 44 2.21.2 Certification of professional titles without a formal qualification 44 2.21.3 Certification of professional titles with formal qualification 45 2.22 Labour market 46 2.23 Proposed conceptual framework 46 2.24 Production of knowledge 51 2.25 Chefs’ structure and competencies 52 2.26 Process of professional development 58 2.27 Continuous professional development in chefs 60 2.28 Model of a chef’s career 61 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 64 3.1 Introduction 64 3.2 Research questions 64 3.3 Case study design 64 3.4 Ethical considerations 65 3.5 The research design 66 3.5.1 Sample population, size and procedure 68 vii 3.5.2 Sample selection and size 68 3.5.3 Sample procedure 69 3.6 Data collection 70 3.6.1 Curriculum vitae data analysis 70 3.6.2 LinkedIn 71 3.6.3 Using curriculum vitae data 72 3.7 Data analysis 73 3.8 Validity and reliability in research 74 3.9 Chapter summary 74 CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 76 4.1 Introduction 76 4.2 Research aim and objectives 76 4.3 Quantitative findings – biographic Information 77 4.3.1 Gender profile 77 4.3.2 Age profile 77 4.3.3 Racial profile 77 4.3.4 Number of Executive Chefs and Executive Sous Chefs 78 4.3.5 Respondent grade level passed 78 4.3.6 Respondents’ National Qualifications Framework level of education 78 4.3.7 Years of study in higher education 79 4.3.8 Respondents working in 4- and 5-star hotels 79 4.3.9 Type of culinary establishments worked 80 4.3.10 Average number of years of experience 80 4.3.11 Average number of years of international experience 81 4.3.12 Average number of years in different positions in the kitchen brigade structure 81 4.3.13 Conclusion 82 4.4 Qualitative Findings: Chefs’ Professional Development 82 4.4.1 Introduction 82 4.4.2 Categories and themes 83 4.4.3 Workplace learning (the chef) 84 4.4.4 Conclusion 91 4.5 Workplace Skills (Chefs’ Education) 91 4.5.1 Conclusion 96 4.6 Career education (company training) 96 4.6.1 Conclusion 103 4.7 Mentoring and leadership (the Executive Chef) 103 4.7.1 Conclusion 107 4.8 Human Resource, Company Training and Industry Professional Body outcome 107 4.8.1 Conclusion 113 viii CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 114 5.1 Introduction 114 5.2 Conclusions based on the study objectives 114 5.2.1 Summary of respondents’ profiles 115 5.2.2 Conclusions based on the first study objective 115 5.2.3 Conclusions based on the second study objective 116 5.2.4 Conclusions based on the third study objective 120 5.2.4.1 Access 120 5.2.4.2 Stages 121 5.2.4.3 Progression 121 5.2.4.4 Mentoring 122 5.2.4.5 Leadership 122 5.2.4.6 Transformation and development 122 5.3 Recommendations 123 5.4 Limitations of the study 124 5.5 Concluding remarks 125 REFERENCES 126 APPENDIX A: ETHICAL CLEARANCE TO CONDUCT RESEARCH.