Coffee Jobs Board (CJB) has helped companies find people, and people find jobs, in the technically-complex coffee industry for several years. As we've evolved we have added the ability for candidates to share their skills and experience. Hiring companies can also specify preferred skills and experience and we suggest which candidates could be most suitable.
The coffee industry, however, can play an important stepping stone for starting a skilled, professional career and we recognize that many candidates can be overwhelmed by the technical skills they're asked to self-assess on. Companies may also be overlooking their next star barista or customer service champion because, as, the customer-facing side of our industry we are concentrating on technical coffee skills.
After working with a group of regular hiring companies on CJB we have now added some softer skills to allow candidates to express their experience and abilities when it comes to things like customer service, time management and resilience:
Curtators Coffee, a company that hires through Coffee Jobs Board, values these skills highly for new trainee baristas and especially front of house roles. We spoke briefly with Alice Besley (their Hiring Manager):
"When recruiting Baristas, we look for excellent communication skills and a friendly manner above all else. We know that coffee skills can be taught, and we invest a lot of time in training our new recruits, but a welcoming smile and the willingness to go the extra mile for our customers is something special."
- Alice Besley, Hiring Manager, Curators Coffee
We're currently prompting candidates to self-asses their soft skills, and over the next few weeks we will start presenting this information (alongside technical sills) to hiring companies when reviewing applications.