Food & Beverage Director
Oversees all food and beverage operations in a hotel or resort — restaurants, bars, banqueting and room service. Combines culinary knowledge with financial management and leadership.
- AI exposure
- 30 of 100, low exposure
- Hiring trend
- Rising
- Hiring rate
- 40%
The role
What the work is, what it pays, and what it costs you.
At a glance
- Remote friendly
- No
- Freelance potential
- Low
- Time to senior
- 10 years
A day in the role
Reviews F&B revenue reports across all outlets, designs a new restaurant menu with the chef, approves wine purchases, manages a banquet event for 300 guests, and analyses food costs.
What it pays
Kenyan market, per month- Entry
- KES 60,000-110,000
- Mid
- KES 140,000-300,000
- Senior
- KES 350,000-750,000
Exposure
How much of this a machine can already do, and how that was worked out.
Where this rating sits
1,516 rated careersRated above 27% of the 1,516 careers in the catalogue, which averages 43. Inside hospitality & tourism the mean is 30, across 97 careers.
Named task by task
Already automated
- AI-powered menu engineering and pricing
- Automated inventory and cost management
- Generating F&B performance reports
- AI-assisted demand forecasting
Still human
- Managing all F&B outlets and operations
- Developing menus and beverage programmes
- Managing F&B budgets and costs
- Hiring and training F&B staff
- Ensuring food safety and quality standards
- Driving F&B revenue and profitability
Task counts
- Displacing
- Minimal — F&B leadership requires human judgement
- Augmenting
- AI menu engineering improves profitability
- Creating
- AI F&B platforms create new analytical roles
Sources
Behind the rating- Kenya hotel sector
- Kenya Utalii
- WEF Future of Jobs 2023
Getting in
The routes into the role and what each one asks for.
What to study
8 courses- Artisan in Catering and AccommodationKsh 67,189a year
- Artisan in Food and BeverageKsh 67,189a year
- Artisan in Food and Beverage ProductionKsh 67,189a year
- Artisan in Front Office OperationsKsh 67,189a year
- Artisan in Hairdressing and Beauty TherapyKsh 67,189a year
- Baking Technology Level Four (TVET-CDACC)Ksh 67,189a year
- Certificate in Baking TechnologyKsh 67,189a year
- Certificate in Food Preparation and Culinary ArtsKsh 67,189a year
How people get in
BSc Hospitality + F&B experience
8-12 yearsVery high cost
BSc from UoN, USIU or Utalii plus progressive F&B experience
Who hires
- Sarova Hotels
- Serena Hotels
- Radisson Blu
- Kempinski
- Large Resorts
Common misconceptions
F&B director is just a senior waiter
It involves multi-outlet management, financial planning, menu engineering, wine expertise, staff leadership and strategic revenue management — F&B directors manage significant revenue streams.
What happens next
How the role changes from here, and where it leads.
Growth outlook
- Net demand change
- +10%
- Over
- 2026-2028
- Drivers
- Hotel expansion,Conference tourism,Growing dining scene
- Headwinds
- Cost pressures,Staff turnover
What to learn
- AI F&B management platforms
- Sustainable sourcing
- Beverage programme innovation
Related careers
Kenyan market notes
F&B directors are senior roles in large hotels — Sarova, Serena, Radisson, Kempinski. Growing hotel sector increases demand. Requires extensive F&B experience. Limited F&B directors in Kenya — high demand for experienced professionals. Salary: entry KES 60,000-110,000, mid KES 140,000-300,000, senior KES 350,000-750,000+ (international chains pay more).
Further reading
This role is rated 30 out of 100 today. Save it and the app keeps that number, then tells you by how much it has moved when the record is next reviewed.