Professional Catering Entrepreneur Program

Our online Professional Catering Entrepreneur Program will focus on teaching you the skills and techniques you need to build and grow a successful catering business. This program will take you through all the steps involved in operating a successful catering business while teaching you how to start and grow your own business.

Professional Catering

Our comprehensive Professional Catering course will take you through all the steps involved in operating a successful catering business. From planning an event step-by-step, to developing a full menu, to managing your clients and employees, this course offers solutions and considerations for all types of related issues that may arise. Learn the skills and techniques you need to build and grow a successful catering business today!

Prerequisite(s): None

Start Your Own Business

Have you ever eaten a Mrs. Fields cookie? Used an Apple computer? Listened to a hip-hop CD? Entrepreneurs brought these products to your world. People that start their own businesses and work for themselves are called entrepreneurs. For an entrepreneur the sky is the limit as far as earnings are concerned. An entrepreneur is someone who has recognized an opportunity to start a business that other people may not have noticed -- and jumps at it skillfully. Entrepreneurs can shape and create an opportunity where others see little or nothing -- or see it too early or too late.

This Start Your Own Business class will help you create the business you want. Throughout this course you will be working on your business plan and creating a quick comprehensive overview of the elements you want in your new business.

Prerequisite: None

Professional Catering

Professional Catering Module 1
Introduction to Catering

• Types of Catering
• Catering Management
• Catering Segments
• On/Off-Premise Catering
• The Caterer and the Client
• Taking an Event
• Safeguards
• Corporate Catering
• Cost and Profit Relationship
• The Catering Market
• Mission Statement
• Growing the Business

Professional Catering Module 2
Getting Started

• Choosing Your Client
• Creating a Customer Base
• Needs, Wants, Demands
• Prospecting Strategies
• Social Media Marketing
• Types of Social Media
• Engaging Customers
• Standard Catering Website
• The Seven Functions of Catering
• Planning
• Operations
• Implementing

Professional Catering Module 3
The Catering Operation

• Planning
• The Menu
• Barriers to Planning
• Successful Business Plan
• Operational Tasks
• Recipes
• Convenience Foods
• Branded Menu Items
• Organizing the Event
• Catering Management Tasks
• Purchasing
• Ordering and Receiving

Professional Catering Module 4
Catering Equipment

• Equipment and Design Considerations
• Utilities
• Workstations
• Procuring Catering Equipment
• Professional Equipment Supplier
• Consultants and Architects
• Rental Services
• Implementing
• Employee-Supportive Culture
• Service Styles
• Uniforms
• Room Arrangement

Professional Catering Module 5
Control & Legalities

• Controlling
• Standard Operating Procedures
• Guiding Employee Behavior
• Cash Flow
• Risk Management
• Insurance
• Legal Issues
• Safety Committees
• Beverage Management
• Forming the Beverage Plan
• Site Inspection
• Beverage Packages

Professional Catering Module 6
Management

• Conflict Resolution
• Dimensions of Conflict
• Principled Negotiation
• People Skills
• Sustainable Catering
• Sustainable Business Practices
• Sustainable Green Zones
• Human Resources Management
• Federal Employment Laws
• Recruiting
• Gathering Information and Interviewing
• Collective Bargaining

**Outlines are subject to change, as courses and materials are updated.**

Start Your Own Business

Start Your Own Business Module 1
Entrepreneurial Pathways

• Defining Entrepreneurship
• What Entrepreneurs Do
• Free Enterprise Economies
• Finding & Evaluating Opportunity
• Examining Profits
• Creating Business from Opportunity
• Creating a Feasibility Analysis
• Developing a Business Plan
• Defining Your Business
• Analyzing Your Competitive Advantage
• Viability Testing
• Valuing a Business

Start Your Own Business Module 2
Integrated Marketing

• Exploring Your Market
• Marketing vs. Selling
• Market Research
• Market Segments
• Positioning Your Product or Service
• Developing Your Marketing Plan
• Marketing Mix
• Pricing Your Products
• Breakeven Analysis
• Smart Selling
• Effective Customer Service
• Principles of Selling
• Successful Sales Calls
• Customer Relationship Management

Start Your Own Business Module 3
Cost Analysis

• Understanding & Managing Costs
• Identify Required Investment
• Analyze Fixed Operating Costs
• Calculate Gross Profit
• Financial Record Keeping
• Financial Statements
• Income Statements
• Examining a Balance Sheet
• Financial Ratio Analysis
• Calculating Return on Investment
• Same-Size Analysis
• Quick, Current & Debt Ratios

Start Your Own Business Module 4
Financing Strategy

• Cash Flow Management
• Cash vs. Profits
• Cash Flow Statement
• Cash Budget
• Taxes
• Filing Tax Returns
• Financing Preferences
• Types of Business Financing
• Debt vs. Equity Financing
• Identifying Sources of Capital
• Stocks & Bonds as Investments

Start Your Own Business Module 5
Operating For Success

• Addressing Legal Issues
• Managing Risk
• Business Legal Structures
• Contracts
• Commercial Law
• Intellectual Property
• Protecting Tangible Assets
• Operations in a Business
• Production-Distribution Chain
• Supply Chain Management
• Managing Suppliers
• Managing Inventory
• Facilities Location & Design

Start Your Own Business Module 6
Growing Your Business

• Management
• 10 Basic Tasks Handled by Managers
• Leadership Styles
• Organizational Cultures
• Organizational Structure
• Human Resources Management
• Ethical Leadership
• Incorporating Social Responsibility
• Ethical Practices
• Growing Your Business
• Franchising
• Licensing
• Cashing in Your Brand
• Methods for Valuing a Business

**Outlines are subject to change, as courses and materials are updated.**