HOUSTON & HAWKES SUPPORT FOOD SERVICE CIRCLE: BLOG TOM GILBEY

Founder of The Vintner, Tom Gilbey, shares his thoughts regarding peoples’ return to work preparations.

Staying engaged and maintaining a strong team ethos is harder now, but it is still possible. Finding different ways to get together to build that team spirit is really important and as a business, we’ve adopted loads of ways to do this. Some ideas that might work for you are online cooking demos, wine clubs, cook-alongs, baking groups – they’re all easy to setup and a great way to keep people talking and engaged.

I encourage people to get together and use your time wisely to learn and share experiences. Use this time to build your skills and it doesn’t have to be in food and bev. I know a chef who’s learning to be plumber – that’s amazing and what a great initiative. He’s excited about the future as he’s keeping himself busy and motivated.

Making your CV jump out is important because it is crowded out there. CVs are more than just about listing experiences and skills. I want to read a story (an honest, short, punchy one) and learn how people have overcome challenges. Fast-forward a year, “what did you do during lockdown” - I want to see how they adapted and used their time to broaden themselves as individuals.

You can never stop learning in our world and there are some great resources out there. If you’re keen to brush up your wine knowledge whilst you may have some spare time, I’d recommend Wine Folly (www.winefolly.com). Another thing I’ve done is subscribe to an iPhone photography course – we all use it, most of us are on social media so I just thought I’d sharpen up my skills. It’s really fun and I’m learning loads.

COVID’s been a big leveller – whether you’re a Chairman, a chef, a waiter or anyone else – so don’t be afraid to pick up the phone and speak to people. Invite them to a wine course, a baking group, whatever. Just keep talking, sharing ideas and helping each other.

My top three tips to those looking to get back to work:

1. CV – be honest, be passionate, talk about what you’ve learnt, highlight ‘balls ups’ and describe how you’ve overcome them

2. Be personal – make contact with who you’re due to meet beforehand. Tell them how excited you are to meet them. Do your research. Be yourself. Be honest.

3. Follow up – write a letter (an old school hand-written one - scan it to them if you have to). Show your excitement and passion for the opportunity. You will stand out and you’ll be more likely to get that job.

We’d love for you to keep in touch and if there’s anything we can do to support, you know where we are.