Working in an industry that many people believe offers few career advancement opportunities can provide access to many possibilities.
Most people view food service jobs as jobs only for those with limited education and abilities. Foodservice jobs are considered “dead-end” jobs and are often called “burger flipping” jobs. Consequently, one would think that such jobs hold few opportunities for personal advancement beyond management and corporate positions within the company. I can say this isn’t true. There is always a chance for a food service business to make money on any given day. Opportunity knocks in the form of its suppliers.
Food Service Suppliers
All eateries receive their supplies from outside sources. Several thousand such companies across America serve the foodservice industry. They include providers of meat, produce, bakery items, canned goods, and other operations supplies. Each supplier will provide two points of contact to a given restaurant. The first contact is the salesperson who takes the order for specific stores. The second contact is the delivery person. The sales and delivery personnel are among the first to know of positions available within their respective companies.
I bet you have spoken with these people when they come to your company. Knowing this, it would be advantageous to develop a relationship with these people, thereby giving you someone on the “inside.” Your goal, over some time, is to make such people aware of your previous, current, and future fields of study, career interests, and accomplishments with your present organization. For example, suppose you are ambitious and have a reputation within your company as a hard-working and dedicated individual. In that case, you are the type of person the successful and effective sales and delivery people with your suppliers will want to know.
Suppliers Can Provide Job Contacts
The salesperson and the driver can inform you about newly available positions, often before such works are published to the broader public. Additionally, they can provide you with the name of someone in their human resource or personnel departments, allowing you to contact these people personally or direct your resume to them by name. This information may help you over someone submitting a resume to someone who doesn’t know their name. Moreover, in these difficult times when such people are inundated with resumes for posted positions, a strong recommendation from a highly regarded salesperson or delivery person could help you get an interview or perhaps the work itself.
You should also know that the companies that supply goods to your business also have suppliers at risk of being redundant. Like the companies that provide supplies to your company, many of these companies are medium to large-sized organizations that often employ hundreds of people. Most have several departments within them and constantly need good people to fill a steady stream of openings. So again, a recommendation from someone working within that organization on your behalf will carry a lot of weight.
Yes, no matter what type of organization you work for, there are suppliers of goods and services. These firms’ employees may open doors to various possibilities. This gate opens every time a salesperson or delivery driver comes through your workplace door. To avail yourself of these opportunities, you need to take a little time to get to know these people and allow them to get to know you. So continue your hard work, continue with your learning, shake some hands and be prepared to enter the gateway.
