The skills you need to work in hospitality are mostly practical: turning up on time, reading a table, staying calm when it's busy and knowing the menu. A manager can teach you the till in an hour. They can't teach you to be reliable.
What skills do hospitality employers look for?
- 1Reliability. Arrive early, in uniform, ready to work. For shift work, your record of completed shifts is often the first thing a manager checks.
- 2Reading a table. Know when guests want to chat and when to leave them alone. Spot the empty glass before they ask.
- 3Staying calm when it's busy. Something will go wrong on a full Saturday. Fix it, tell your manager, move on.
- 4Menu and drinks knowledge. Know what's in every dish, which ones contain allergens, and what goes with them.
- 5Selling without pushing. "The linefish is very good tonight" works better than "Anything else?"
- 6Clear communication. Call orders clearly and repeat special requests back to the guest.
- 7Teamwork. Clear a table that isn't yours. Help the bar when it's three deep.
- 8Speed without mistakes. Carry, clear and reset quickly without dropping standards.
- 9Tills and card machines. Most venues take cards at the table. Be comfortable with the POS system and careful with cash.
- 10Food safety and hygiene. Clean hands, a clean station and safe food handling. In a kitchen this comes first.
How do you show hospitality skills to an employer?
- On your CV: use numbers. "Ran a 6-table section on 120-cover nights" beats "hardworking".
- In an interview: tell a short story. What happened, what you did, how it ended.
- On a trial shift: arrive early, ask questions and keep busy without being told.
- Through references: a former manager who says you were reliable counts for more than any skills list.
HirePro interviews every applicant and checks references with former workplaces. If you have at least a year of hospitality experience, you can apply for shift work in Cape Town.
