Supervise food production operations

This standard is about supervising food production to ensure that the customer receives their order within reasonable timescales and to quality standards and is likely to be used by a supervisor responsible for the activities within the area of work on a daily basis under the direction of the relevant manager.
In many ways, getting the detail right is an essential part of an efficient food production service. You need to focus your personal attention on making sure the different stages of food production follow relevant legislation and organisational policies and that any potential hazards are identified and catered for. You also need to make sure and that your staff understand their roles in the process and have the skills and knowledge to deliver.

The standard covers the key areas important to supervising an effective food production service.

A holistic approach to food safety is an essential aspect of this quality and this is addressed in detail in Unit HSL30.

When you have completed this standard you will be able to demonstrate your understanding of and ability to:

• Supervise food production operations

1. Carry out and record regular checks to make sure your staff follow planned food production procedures
2. Ensure the stages of the food production comply with relevant legal requirements,  industry regulations, professional codes and organisational policies
3. Ensure staff know what is expected of them and have the skills, resources and information required to produce food in line with the required standard; encourage staff to ask questions if there is information they don't understand
4. Identify potential risks and implement procedures to meet control points following relevant legislation and organisational policy
5. Lead by example and brief staff to look for and report problems with the control points
6. Monitor the quality of work and progress against plans and take effective action to manage problems that may disrupt food production operations when they occur, finding practical ways to overcome barriers
7. Control costs by ensuring that staff follow food production specifications and procedures
8. Monitor and review food production procedures to ensure targets are achieved and suggest ways of improving efficiency
9. Collect feedback that may help to identify any problems with procedures
10. Give feedback to staff to help them improve their performance where appropriate
11. Use effective methods to gather, store and retrieve information, accurately complete the required records and report on performance to support the food production according to your organisational procedures

1. Relevant legislation and other industry specific regulations and codes of practice
2. The different roles and responsibilities of people in your area of responsibility and in other parts of the organisation that are relevant to food production
3. What the food production timescales are
4. How to organise your team and manage their time so that food production operations are efficient
5. What skills are required to implement your organisation's procedures for food production and how these compare with the skills that are available to you
6. How to estimate the resources you need for food production operations and who to approach to get approval for additional resources
7. How to motivate staff to achieve the required standards of quality
8. The main principles of portion control and why portion control is essential in food production operations
9. How to minimise wastage and make the best use of available resources
10. When it is appropriate to use spoken or written instructions or demonstrations and pictures/diagrams
11. Why confidentiality is important and how to ensure that confidential information is secure
12. The acceptable format for presenting and storing information in your area of responsibility
13. Why quality is important to the success of the food production operation and how to assess the quality of your own and other people's work
14. How to monitor activities and performance against organisational standards and targets, what to do when performance does not match up to standards and targets and how and when to provide information to management
15. How to give feedback to your staff to help them improve their performance

The following behaviours are provided as guidance to underpin effective performance of a hospitality supervisor

1. You protect your own and others' work against negative impacts
2. You take pride in high quality, accurate work
3. You focus personal attention on specific details that are critical to achieving successful results
4. You identify the implications or consequences of a situation
5. You are vigilant for possible hazards
6. You clearly agree what is expected of others and hold them to account
7. You keep confidential information secure
8. You encourage others to share information and knowledge efficiently within the constraints of confidentiality

It is strongly recommended that HSL30 which covers food safety hygiene in the preparation and serving of food and drink is undertaken in conjunction with this standard.
This standard is a sector specific standard and has particular links with the following standards in the Hospitality Supervision & Leadership suite of standards:

• HSL1-5
• HSL9
• HSL12
• HSL16
• HSL19
• HSL25
• HSL28