IN THIS ISSUE

1. The Fifth Annual South Beach Wine and Food Festival
2. JobFinder Employee Tip: Are You Listening?
3. CEO's Dish: Raising the Bar on Employee Performance
4. Alimentaria 2006: The International Food and Beverages Exhibition
5. It's Your Last Chance: Enter to Win a Trip to Paris with StarChefs.com's Salary Survey

1. The Fifth Annual South Beach Wine and Food Festival
This year Miami's South Beach Wine and Food Festival celebrates its fifth anniversary. What began as a one-day festival known as the Florida Extravaganza has become a three-day destination event including the "Chef's Gone Wild" trade seminar, a Grand Tasting gala and even a "Kidz Kitchen," and featuring chefs from across the country including Michael Mina, Todd English, and Mark Militello. The culinary stars will shine on America's riviera as top-rated chefs, food personalities and wine professionals converge on South Beach's wine, spirits and culinary celebration beginning Friday, February 24.

Save the Date! If you're headed to the South Beach Wine and Food Festival, don't miss StarChefs.com's Industry-Only After Party. When the cooking cools down, the beach heats up! Join StarChefs.com on Friday, February 24th at The Sanctuary South Beach from 11:00pm to 1:30am. More details to follow - stay tuned!
Check out the Sobe Wine and Food Festival here: http://www.starchefs.com/events/south_beach/2006/html/index.shtml

2. JobFinder Employee Tip: Are You Listening?
Suggestions for improvement can come from all levels of an organization, and employees who regularly interact with clients, such as servers and cashiers, or purveyors, such as kitchen managers and sous chefs, can offer valuable feedback for improving products and services. The key to soliciting and utilizing this feedback is to appear receptive to suggestions and accessible to your staff both in group meetings and on an individual basis.

Welcoming input from your staff is great for employee morale and fosters a real sense of community within a business. By encouraging your staff to assume a proactive role in offering feedback and ideas, you can increase productivity and allow your employees the chance to feel involved in the business. As an added benefit, by being open and considerate of employees' suggestions, managers can encourage continued creativity and reduce turnover.

3. CEO's Dish: Raising the Bar on Employee Performance
Your business most likely bases staff raises and bonuses on aptitude and performance, but are your employees aware of your prerequisites? By informing your staff what duties are expected of them and setting specific guidelines defining what is required to earn increases in compensation, you will find that employees are more likely to deliver consistently high performance and have a greater commitment to your business.
Bonuses and raises can be based on production, sales goals or performance, as long as employees are aware of everything they are required to do in order to be eligible for pay increases. Setting tangible advancement goals with your staff also promotes a feeling of solidarity by allowing employees to stay connected and involved in the welfare of the business.
Surprisingly enough, it not always necessary to define the amount of the compensation; creating a track that allows employees to progress towards consideration for a raise or bonus can be effective as well and prevents your company from making an agreement that it cannot honor. Naturally, if an employee delivers the performance, you must deliver the compensation in order to secure credibility and boost employee morale.
Implementing a clearly defined compensation program can be an excellent tool for employee motivation. Although it requires a strong leadership commitment, the payoff is a dedicated, goal-oriented staff that will help your business shine.

4. Alimentaria 2006: The International Food and Beverages Exhibition
If you couldn't make it to Madrid Fusion this week, don't miss Barcelona in March! Catch Chef Ferran Adria, Chef Charlie Trotter, Chef Andoni Luis Aduriz, Chef Jose Ramon Andres, Chef Joel Robuchon, and Chef Alain Passard. In addition, Alimentaria will offer visitors various recreational, demonstrative and educational events including Spain, the Land of 100 Cheeses, Vinorum, The Spain of the Olive Oils and the Meeting of Contemporary Cuisines - BCN Vanguardia.
Learn more about Alimentaria 2006 by clicking on the link below:
http://www.starchefs.com/events/alimentaria/2006/html/index.shtml

5. It's Your Last Chance: Enter to Win a Trip to Paris with StarChefs.com's Salary Survey
StarChefs.com's Second Annual Food Industry Salary Survey is in its final week! It's your last opportunity to contribute to our groundbreaking industry review and be automatically entered for a chance to win an all-expense paid trip to Paris courtesy of Pernod. The survey will gather data on income and employment for all types of jobs in the foodservice industry, from the front servers and sous chefs to sommeliers and stewards. It's completely anonymous - and the complete results will be available only to those who participate. Help us shed light on these important statistics, which will empower you when searching for your next job, hiring a new employee, or asking for a raise in the New Year. So don't hesitate - take a moment and fill it out. The results it provides will be invaluable! Fill out the salary survey today and you may soon find yourself shopping and dining on the Champs Elysées!
Bonne Chance and Bon Appetit!
Click below to enter:
http://www.starchefs.com/salarysurvey