Area IV: consulting and promotional activities
The activities of the Industry Skills Center in this area concern, in particular, the promotion of professions and education in the field of catering and waitressing (including through the implementation of industry competitions and tournaments for students), support for schools and institutions of the educational system and universities in the implementation of career counseling, dissemination of changes implemented in vocational education from 2019, and support for people with disabilities in entering the labor market.
The Industry Skills Center will implement the concept of centers of vocational excellence CoVEs (and. Centers of Vacational Excellence) and the assumptions of the Integrated Skills Strategy 2030, based on the best experiences and practices, taking into account the changing models of social functioning and non-formal education in Poland and around the world.
The Industry Skills Center implements activities aimed at creating innovative and novel solutions for the development of catering and waitressing professions. A prerequisite for the development of these industries is to follow new trends both in the area of nutrition, the search for new, healthy and ecological ways of obtaining food products and processing them, and the organization of innovative gastronomic concepts.
The food service industry is one of the most sensitive industries to change. Representatives of the industry approach with great responsibility the constant changes they are subjected to through economic and social changes. The formation of new food trends resulting both
The formation of new food trends resulting from both environmental protection needs, the principles of sustainable development, as well as new market needs, forcing the emergence of new and often innovative organizational and catering concepts in the industry.
New nutritional trends
The trend toward finding new, healthy and organic ways of sourcing food products and processing them is very strong these days, and is forcing the industry to take a new approach to tasks and personnel training. It is largely geared toward vege diets, replacing meat products with their plant-based counterparts. A novelty is vegan seafood, vegan replacements for shrimp, caviar, tuna, salmon or crab sticks. It is believed that this is a trend that will soon take over the gastronomic market, making employers expect their employees to have knowledge and skills about these products and how to create dishes from them - they recommend that education programs include this topic and update them with new emerging food trends.
Innovative concepts in gastronomy
Dining alone the concept of preparing an environment conducive to eating for people whose need is to dine in peace and quiet.
Fine dining a concept that refers to a restaurant experience of higher quality and greater formality compared to the experience at typical restaurants.
Causual dining the idea of a dining establishment that serves affordable dinner meals in a friendly, family atmosphere, prices are higher than in fast food or fast casual chains.
Dark/Ghost kitchen or virtual restaurant is a space, it is the concept of a restaurant that does not have a space available for guests, it offers only take-out dishes.
Dual branding concept, two catering brands, the expansion of the business to include another brand can be complementary in dark kitchen establishments, which can fulfill orders for several catering brands in one kitchen space, this concept also involves the possibility of mutual use of staff.
Food hall, an idea where the premises are shared by different tenants, but with the use of a common umbrella of communication and marketing, joint management of technical, cleaning issues, etc.
Fast casual the idea of premises of a medium standard, a little higher than fast food, where there is partial waiter service and the meals offered are moderately priced, and are often run as part of franchise chains.
A pop-up is a restaurant that opens for a limited period of time - this can often be seen, for example, in the more modest furnishings of the establishment. It is not uncommon that a pop-up will involve guest chefs cooking in existing locations.
Patchwork/hybrid venues combining quality and social messages, such as creating venues with local cuisine, additionally offering a cultural aspect and having staff from the group of people with disabilities.
Innovations and new technologies for gastronomy
Social innovation implementation of solutions to support and motivate staff, such as gamification to activate young employees, who will want to improve their skills through the game - healthy competition, but also fun.
Technology and innovation - the digitalization of the food service industry is inevitable and forces major changes in the approach to the education of future employees. Machines, equipment with innovative solutions, digitalization that supports the operations of catering establishments, e.g. online ordering systems, projects for managing catering establishments, applications, introduction of artificial intelligence are forcing significant changes in the approach to the necessary qualifications and skills of those working or planning to work in catering.
Progressive market changes make it necessary for the industry to bet on development, and in particular on the development of the catering and waitressing professions, as the guarantor of good quality services is properly prepared staff and adaptation to change.
The Non-Public Industry Service Center actively and systematically monitors emerging news about the catering and waitressing industry, so that industry representatives, teachers and lecturers, as well as those planning a career in the industry, have access to information and thematic materials.
You can find more information on new trends in the industry in the Report Recommendations for the Development of the Catering and Waitressing Professions.
We also invite you to familiarize yourself with other materials that are available as part of the substantive offer of the Non-public Sector Skills Center in the field of gastronomy and waitressing in Tarnów.