Labor shortages in the foodservice industry are neither new nor temporary issues. Low wages, high labor intensity, and unfavorable working conditions are persistent challenges faced not only in Korea but across the global foodservice sector. Tradition...
Labor shortages in the foodservice industry are neither new nor temporary issues. Low wages, high labor intensity, and unfavorable working conditions are persistent challenges faced not only in Korea but across the global foodservice sector. Traditionally, culinary skills have been transmitted through apprenticeship-based training, where novices compensated for their lack of expertise by “learning through work.” Although the occupation of cook is increasingly avoided by Generation Z as they enter the labor market, it remains a skilled profession that relies on the accumulation of technical proficiency. Early-career cooks believe that they can grow into competent culinary professionals by acquiring new cooking techniques through daily work experiences. For this reason, there is a growing need for research on skill acquisition in the context of apprenticeship-like employment practices among early-career cooks.
This study empirically examined the influence of informal learning on subjective career success among early-career cooks, focusing on the mediating role of leader–member exchange (LMX) and the moderating effect of Kolb’s learning styles. The aim was to contribute to effective human resource management and the development of skilled culinary professionals within foodservice organizations. Both theoretical and empirical approaches were employed.
For the empirical analysis, snowball sampling—a non-probability sampling method—was used to recruit early-career cooks with fewer than five years of culinary experience in the domestic foodservice industry. The survey instrument included Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory 3.1 Korean version, along with validated scales measuring informal learning, LMX, subjective career success, and demographic characteristics. Based on prior studies, measurement items were adapted to fit the purpose of this research. Reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, correlation analysis, and Hayes’ PROCESS Models 1 and 4 were applied to test model fit and hypotheses.
The major findings are as follows.
First, Hypothesis 1 was partially supported: among the subdimensions of informal learning, external exploration did not significantly predict affective loyalty or professional respect within LMX.
Second, Hypothesis 2 was also partially supported. Professional respect showed no significant effect on career satisfaction, and both affective loyalty and professional respect demonstrated no significant influence on employability.
Third, Hypothesis 3 was supported, indicating that informal learning positively affected subjective career success. Both mutual-reflection learning and external exploration significantly predicted career satisfaction and employability.
Fourth, Hypothesis 4 received partial support, revealing a partial mediating effect of LMX in the relationship between informal learning and subjective career success. However, LMX did not mediate the relationship between mutual-reflection learning and employability.
Fifth, Hypothesis 5 was rejected, as no significant moderating effect of Kolb’s learning styles was found in the relationship between informal learning and subjective career success.
This study contributes to the literature by empirically verifying the relationships among informal learning, subjective career success, LMX, and learning styles among early-career cooks, while also identifying the distribution of their culinary learning styles based on Kolb’s framework. Practically, foodservice organizations should actively support early-career cooks’ participation in external seminars and benchmarking opportunities, strengthen their interactions with senior cooks, and enhance motivation for career development. Furthermore, developing and implementing effective informal learning strategies tailored to different learning styles may foster the advancement of skilled culinary professionals and promote more efficient human resource management within the foodservice industry.