2026 Hiring Trends in Culinary & Food & Beverage Leadership

Ask a hotel general manager what they want from a new executive chef and the answer has moved. The food still has to be excellent, but it is no longer the whole brief. Across hotels, resorts, clubs and restaurant groups, the hiring conversation for culinary and food and beverage leadership in 2026 has widened, and operators who still write the job as a cook's job are filling it slower and less well.

Leaders are hired for the whole operation

An executive chef or F&B director used to be judged mostly at the pass. Today the same person is expected to own the numbers behind the plate: food cost, labor scheduling, purchasing discipline, waste. They are also expected to keep a brigade steady through a banquet season, a menu change and a short-handed holiday weekend. Operational discipline and strategic oversight have moved from nice to have to the center of the role. A chef who can cook a beautiful tasting menu but cannot read a variance report will struggle in most of the rooms that are hiring.

When you write the search, be honest about which of these the job really demands. A private club with a large banquet program needs someone comfortable running volume. A destination resort with several outlets needs someone who can manage other managers. A single fine-dining room needs someone who will still be on the line when it matters. Naming the real mix up front saves everyone a round of conversations that go nowhere.

What candidates weigh besides the offer

Strong candidates are not deciding on compensation alone. Work-life balance, the culture of the property, the support they will get from the person above them, and a believable path to grow all carry weight. A sous chef considering a first executive role will ask who they would report to and whether that person backs their decisions. A seasoned chef considering a move will ask what the schedule really looks like and what happens to the team they would inherit.

This changes how you present the role. A list of duties tells a chef what they would do. It does not tell them what it would be like to work there. The operators who get return calls are the ones who can describe the kitchen, the leadership above it and the direction of the property in plain terms, including the parts that are still unfinished. Candidates can tell when a description has been polished for recruiting and when it has been told straight.

Retention is now part of the resume screen

Organizations are paying closer attention to how long a candidate stayed and what they left behind. Turnover in a kitchen is costly in ways that never land on one line of the budget: the hours spent recruiting, the training, the drop in standards while a new chef finds their feet, and the cooks who leave because their chef did. A track record of longevity and of developing people, sous chefs who were promoted, cooks who stayed long enough to learn, is worth more than one impressive opening.

Read the pattern, not one line. A short stay at a seasonal property may mean nothing at all. Several short stays at year-round operations tell a different story. Ask what the kitchen looked like when they arrived and what it looked like when they left, and then ask someone who was there.

Competition for the best people is real

The most qualified chefs and F&B leaders usually have more than one opportunity in front of them, and they are selective about where they spend their time. Many are employed and content. They will not see your posting, and if they do, they may not answer it. That is why proactive recruiting matters more than it used to: going to the person rather than waiting for the person to come to you.

Proactive does not have to mean pushy. It means a direct, respectful conversation with someone who has a reason to listen, about a role that fits what they have said they want. The first message should be short, specific about the property and honest about the opening. The second should answer their questions rather than repeat the pitch.

Two things to get right

Strip the trends down and the advice is short. First, understand what today's candidates actually value, and be ready to talk about it without spin. Second, move quickly when the right person is identified. A strong chef who has agreed to talk to you is almost certainly talking to others. A slow calendar, silence after a tasting, or a committee that cannot agree will cost you the hire more often than the offer will.

If you are planning a leadership hire this year and want to think it through with a recruiter who trained as a Michelin chef, a 30-minute call with Sean J Lyons is an easy place to start.