From F&B Director to GM: Navigating the Crucial Transition

A letter from Larissa Zwart

Rome, 20 December 2025

Dear friends of the House,

The most discussed promotion in luxury hospitality, after that to General Manager itself, is the move from Director of Food and Beverage to General Manager. It is a transition I have been part of many times in my career, advising both candidates and owners. It is also one of the most consequential transitions in the industry, both for the individual and for the property they will lead. I want to share some of what I have learned about it.

This letter is for the Director of F and B who is wondering whether they are ready for the next step, for the General Manager considering whom to develop on their team, and for the owner considering whom to appoint when the next role opens.

Why this transition is the most discussed

For two reasons. First, F and B is, in luxury hospitality, the operational dimension closest to the guest experience and the most visible measure of standards. A great F and B Director becomes, almost by training, a candidate for higher leadership. Second, the move from F and B to GM requires a particular evolution that is neither automatic nor easy. The skills that make a great F and B Director are necessary but not sufficient for the GM role. The transition requires the addition of new disciplines.

What carries forward

The strong F and B Director brings several qualities directly relevant to the GM role.

Operational excellence. The discipline of running multiple outlets, managing covers and revenue, holding standards under daily pressure, and developing chefs and service teams. These translate readily to the broader operational responsibility of the GM.

Guest centricity. F and B is the part of the hotel where guest interaction is most concentrated and most varied. A great F and B leader has internalised the guest perspective in a way that informs every later decision.

Brand interpretation. Restaurants and bars are the most expressive of brand standards, and the F and B Director has typically spent years interpreting brand vision through service, menu, ambience, and team behaviour. This skill is transferable.

Team leadership at scale. A senior F and B Director is already leading a sizeable team across multiple disciplines, often with strong personalities. This is closer to the General Manager experience than most roles in a hotel.

What needs to be added

The new dimensions are where the transition is hardest, and where careful preparation matters most.

Rooms expertise. The GM must have credible command of the Rooms division, which is typically the largest revenue and operational unit of the hotel. The F and B leader who has not previously spent time alongside the Rooms team needs to develop this knowledge actively, ideally in the months before promotion.

Financial leadership beyond F and B. The F and B P and L is one part of a much larger picture. The GM owns the entire P and L, the capital expenditure conversations with ownership, the financial reporting to the brand or operator, and the financial relationship with the owner. The financial literacy required is broader and deeper.

Owner and brand management. F and B Directors typically interact with the owner and the brand through the GM. The new GM is suddenly the principal interface for both. Owner relationships in particular require a maturity and judgement that takes time to develop.

Letting go of operational detail. Perhaps the hardest adjustment. The F and B Director who becomes GM must learn to delegate the operational depth they have spent years mastering, and to focus on enabling other directors to operate at that level. The instinct to rescue, to step in, to demonstrate, must be carefully managed. A GM who cannot let go remains a glorified F and B Director, and the property suffers in the dimensions the GM is not actively leading.

What we look for in candidates

When we are asked to advise on this transition, either through search or assessment, we look at several signals.

Has the candidate already begun the development before the appointment? The strongest candidates have spent the year or two before promotion deliberately learning Rooms, finance, and owner management. They have asked their current GM for exposure. They have read the broader operational reports. They have begun to think like a GM before becoming one.

Do they speak about other departments with respect and understanding, or with the territorial language of the F and B silo? The candidate who refers to housekeeping, sales, or finance with subtle dismissal is a candidate who has not yet made the mental transition to GM, regardless of the title they hold.

How do they think about people development? Great GMs spend significant energy developing the next generation of leaders below them. Candidates who have not been actively developing their successor in F and B are unlikely to develop the broader senior team well as GM.

How do they handle disagreement with senior peers? In F and B, the team is typically below the Director. As GM, the peers include the Director of Rooms, the Director of Sales, the Director of Finance. The interpersonal dynamic is different. We test for the ability to lead a team of equals.

A note for current F and B Directors

If you are a Director of Food and Beverage reading this and considering your own next step, three suggestions.

First, prepare actively. Do not wait for the GM role to test whether you are ready. Use the months and years before to build the rooms knowledge, the financial command, the owner exposure that the next role will require.

Second, find a mentor. Ideally a current or former General Manager who is willing to discuss your development honestly. A few such conversations a year are worth more than most formal training.

Third, when the right opportunity comes, take it. The transition is hard. It is also one of the most rewarding moments in a hospitality career. The leaders who step into the GM role with deliberate preparation almost always succeed.

If a confidential conversation about your own next step would be useful, please reach out. The House of ESI exists, in part, to support exactly these decisions.

With hospitable regards,
Larissa Zwart
President, ESI Executive Search International