Operational initiative
Operational Standardisation in a Catering and Events Business
Korewa's Kitchen & Events
- Role
- Founder & Managing Director
- Period
- 2019 — 2023, with continued application in Texas
- Status
- Implemented
The business problem
Growth across catering, bakery and event work made informal, owner-led practice unreliable. Production, portioning, staffing, purchasing and service quality varied from one event to the next.
Objective
Create repeatable operating practice that protected product quality, customer experience and financial performance as volume increased.
Discovery and analysis
- Reviewed recurring production and service issues across completed events.
- Assessed customer requirements and where they were being lost in handover.
- Evaluated ingredient use, yield and portion control.
- Reviewed event staffing, preparation timelines and handoff points.
- Assessed supplier and inventory decisions against actual demand.
Implemented changes
- Standardised production methods and portion specifications.
- Introduced FIFO and stock controls for perishable inventory.
- Built event-planning checklists covering preparation, transport and service.
- Applied a 5–10% production buffer for events to absorb demand variation.
- Reinforced weighing and tare procedures at the production stage.
- Clarified team responsibilities so handoffs had a named owner.
Outcome
The business delivered consistently across a wide range of events — from small private functions to large weddings — with a team of more than 15 working to documented standards.
Business value
Removed avoidable operational variation and made service delivery repeatable as the business grew beyond what one person could personally supervise.
Operational controls have to be simple enough for staff to apply during high-pressure service, or they will be abandoned.
Working through a similar problem?
Tell me what is not working and I will tell you how I would approach the analysis.