Chapter Ten
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Control procedures must be used to ensure
that actual performance is in line with
planned performance
The control cycle begins when a potential
client considers booking business at your
property and it does not end until the catered
function is completed to everyone's
satisfaction
Before a control system can be implemented,
you must set standards of performance
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If you book a beverage function and expect
each bottle of liquor to yield approx 15
drinks, the actual number of drinks served
per container must be consistent with this
standard
If your bartenders pour more or less than
fifteen drinks per container, you may have a
control problem
If they pour too many drinks per container,
usually the customers are receiving a reduced
portion size
If they pour too few drinks per container,
chances are there is excessive waste or
customers are receiving excessive portion
sizes.
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It’s management's duty to set required
standards and policies by which all catered
events will be run
All operational procedures -- from booking
the business, to purchasing, receiving,
storing, issuing, producing, and serving the
finished products, to function-room selection
and setup, to final bill tabulation and
collection -- must be standardized
If employees follow SOP, chances are you will
reach your cost-control and quality-control
goals with minimal difficulty.
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One of management's primary responsibilities
is to see to it that actual results are in line
with the standards
Management must develop data-gathering
and data-analysis procedures that can be
used to compute actual results and compare
them to the standards
If there are variances between the standards
and the actual results, management must
move to identify and solve the underlying
problem(s).
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Another difficult aspect of the control process
is the potential to over-control everything
There comes a point where some controls are
not cost effective
Computerized automatic liquor-dispensing
units will increase your ability to control drink
service
Unfortunately, the expensive investment in
these systems may never be recovered in a
reasonable period of time.
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Also called Function Sheet or Event Order
Basis of internal communication between
departments
A BEO is prepared for each event and copies
are sent to relevant departments
BEOs are usually numbered sequentially for
easy reference
Usually distributed one week in advance of
event.
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BEO number
Function day(s)/date(s)
Type of function.
Client name/signature
line
Client address
Contact person
Authorized signature(s).
Name of function room.
Start time of function.
Expected ending time
Number of guests
Number of guests to
prepare for.
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Menus
Style of service
Function-room setup.
Special instructions
Prices charged.
Master billing account
number.
Billing instructions.
Reference to other
BEOs or other relevant
records.
Date BEO completed.
Signature of person
preparing (or
approving) the BEO.
List of departments
receiving copy of BEO.
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Some catering companies inform all
departments well in advance of future
catering activity
They want everyone to have a good idea of
the amount and types of catering business
booked for next month
This can be done with a monthly pre-function
sheet that briefly notes the types of groups
and number of guests expected the following
month.
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Allows departments to plan staffing needs for
the long term
Kitchen and purchasing can plan tentative
ordering, pre-preparation, and preparation
schedules
The storeroom can plan its inventorymanagement procedures more effectively
Convention service and the steward departments
will have time to secure additional furniture,
equipment, and tableware
Housekeeping can plan its heavy-cleaning
routines much easier if it knows what to expect
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BEO addendum
Caterers or clients often make alterations to
booked functions
They may order changes in the menu one
week before the event is scheduled, switch
from table service to buffet service three days
before, or decide to add extra bars 24 hours
in advance.
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A property may use a three-color system:
◦ white – original BEO
◦ canary – revisions
◦ pink – guarantees
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If a change must be communicated, all
relevant departments will receive them on
canary or pink paper, update their original
BEOs, and reduce the paper flow so that only
one copy is retained
A similar system that is computerized can
further reduce the paper flow.
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Summary of function-room uses for a
particular convention or meeting
Normally used when a client books two or
more catered events to be held consecutively
If you book a one-week convention, and
there are 15 meal, beverage and businessmeeting functions, the convention resume
will highlight each function, when the
function rooms will be booked, and when
they will be dark.
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Function day(s)/date(s)
Types of functions
Client name/address
Contact person
Person who booked the
events with authorized
signature(s).
Beginning and ending
times of functions.
Number of guests
Furniture/equipment
Function room names.
Room setups.
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Special instructions.
Room charges.
Labor charges.
Equipment charges.
Master billing account
number.
Billing instructions.
Reference to other
relevant records.
Date resume was
completed.
Signature of person
preparing (or
approving) the resume.
List of departments
receiving a copy of the
resume.
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Caterers typically require clients to sign
formal catering contracts before the events
are scheduled to take place
Sometimes a property will forego the use of
formal contracts and instead rely on signed
BEOs or signed letters of agreement
These documents are as legally enforceable
as formal contracts
Signing an agreement is much less
threatening to most people, than signing a
contract.
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Contract date
Function day(s)/ date(s)
Function time(s).
Client and facility
signatures.
Function room(s)
tentatively assigned
Menus
Style(s) of service
Function-room setup(s)
Other client services.
Head-count guarantees
(and/or dollar amount
guarantees).
Estimated cost
summary
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F&B
Taxes
Gratuities
Room Charges
Deposits, etc.
Billing procedures
Change procedures
Catering policies
Client responsibilities
Other standard
contract language
◦ Person signing has
authority
◦ Contract is binding
◦ Client has read contract
◦ Etc.
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If a client is eligible for credit, the caterer’s
credit manager will evaluate the client's credit
rating and, if credit is approved, set up a
master account number
He or she will then detail the property's
deposit requirements and billing procedures
Credit terms can be a selling tool
A client may select your property because it
offers generous credit terms.
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Usually the deposit must be made at least
thirty days prior to service
If a contract is signed several months in
advance, you may extract a minimal earnestmoney deposit at that time of 5 percent
You then might require the client to increase
this deposit to 25 percent thirty days before
the booking date.
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It is important to review each event, in terms
of profitability, challenges and desirability of
rebooking
A sample post-convention report form is
available in the appendix of the book.
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Effective product-cost control is based on
standardized operating procedures
To ensure consistent, predictable business
results, top management must establish
budgetary standards, quality standards, labor
standards, layout and design standards -the list is endless
If there is one major, overriding problem
afflicting many businesses in the food and
beverage industry, it is the lack of standards.
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The food and beverage operation's cycle of
control begins with the purchasing function
It continues through receiving, storing,
issuing, production, and service
Checks and balances are inserted throughout
the cycle in order to pinpoint responsibility
and reveal any problems
The purpose of product-cost control is to
ensure that actual costs parallel standard,
budgeted costs.
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The most critical cost-control tool used by
the purchasing agent is the product
specification
Food and beverage costs, as well as the
quality of finished menu items, cannot be
predicted accurately unless you are using
standardized, consistent product
specifications
You must use the same ingredients time after
time or else the finished products' costs and
culinary qualities will vary unpredictably.
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Another major cost-control technique is to
identify appropriate suppliers who can handle
your needs adequately and include them on
an approved supplier list
When ordering, only these approved suppliers
should be used
Exceptions must be authorized by top
management.
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Compare delivery slip to purchase order
Compare products delivered with the invoice
and purchase order
Inspect quality of each item
Check quantity of each item
Arrange for credit from the supplier
Sigh invoice, send a copy to accounting
Arrange to store the shipment
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The major purpose of storage is to protect
the merchandise from theft and spoilage
Theft is minimized by keeping everything
under lock and key, restricting access to the
storeroom facilities, and using a standardized
issuing system whereby anyone wanting
merchandise from the storeroom must
complete and sign an authorized stock
requisition and take responsibility for the
products.
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Standardized Recipes
Standardized Production Plan
Supervise Portioning Procedures
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Plating should be done as close as possible to
service time to ensure culinary quality
Use an expeditor to coordinate production
and service
Food checkers should inspect quality of
finished menu items and keep a tally
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Seek long-term competitive bids from
suppliers
Qualify for quantity purchase price discounts
Other purchasing opportunities
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New products
Stock discontinuation sales
Trade outs
Use more raw ingredients
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Menu
Style of service
Guest count
Guest-arrival patterns
Facility layout and
design
Type of equipment
Employee tenure
Employee turnover
Local labor-market
conditions
Hours of operation
Union regulations
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Federal and state labor
regulations
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Minimum wage
Tip credit
Meal credit
Overtime premium pay
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Social security.
Medicare.
Unemployment insurance.
Workers compensation
insurance.
Payroll taxes.
Amount of other
employee benefits
◦ health insurance, holiday
pay, etc.)
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Improved guest service
Streamlined handling of paperwork and data
Improved control over day-to-day operations
Generation of complete, timely reports
Reduced cost of paper supplies
Increased sales revenue
Increased employee productivity
Reduction of clerical staff
Job enrichment, due to the reduction of
repetitive tasks
Ability to keep current sales and expense
data on file.