Cary Neff

Cary Neff is the president of Pear Restaurant Group L.L.C., the restaurant consulting group that operates Naked Pear Café, serving what Neff calls “simple, delicious, and pure food.” But he first came to fame as executive chef at top spa resorts Miraval and La Costa and author of the New York Times best-selling cookbook Conscious Cuisine (Sourcebooks, Inc.; $17.95).

BlackEnterprise.com caught up with the culinary professional about how he got started, his registered, healthy food style, Conscious Cuisine, and how to overcome the industry challenges.

BlackEnterprise.com: Several years ago, you introduced something called “Conscious Cuisine.” Explain what that is.

Neff: I created Conscious Cuisine^® in 1995 to describe the food style that I served at Miraval Resort and Spa in Tucson, Arizona. Conscious Cuisine^® is simply the conscious effort to enjoy food that delivers on its promise to have satisfying flavor and good nutrition. Embracing the Conscious Cuisine^® food style helps diners reshape their plates by selecting fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables, least-processed whole grains, and lean proteins to create balanced, nutritious meals rather than meals dominated by large portions of meat or fried foods. Conscious Cuisine^® also teaches diners how to mindfully reduce excessive and unnecessary fats and calories when preparing meals by using fresh herbs, spices, functional ingredients, high-quality oils, cheeses, and other flavorful ingredients that allow you to use less.

How does being a spa chef differ from being a restaurant chef?

The major difference between heading the kitchens of world-class spas and traditional restaurants is that greater attention is given to portion size and the healthful benefits of food. When working at a spa, there is a greater focus on creating nutritionally balanced meals along with a heightened awareness of food allergies, dietary restrictions, and use of functional ingredients. Prior to working in spas, I thought very little about calories, fats, or the wellness attributes of the ingredients and cooking methods I used.

When did you know you were going to be a chef?

I was very lucky to know that I wanted to be a chef at the age of 15. It began with a clever plan to take a class in high school where I could eat an additional lunch or snack. I fell in love with the power that food has in helping to create memorable experiences for others. I eventually took every food class offered in high school, including vocational training in food service management. I began working in restaurants first as a dishwasher then quickly moved up to cook.

About how much money can a new chef expect to make on his or her first job?

Being a chef is absolutely a lucrative job. The average salary is comparable to average salaries in medicine or law. And the long hours are the same, too. You can make $30,000 to $30 million—it all depends on the chef. Being a chef can also provide a long list of intangibles. Job security is No. 1 and in food service, jobs are plentiful in every state. There’s also travel. Well-trained chefs have the opportunity to work in various states, countries, private homes, on cruise ships, at destination vacation spots, on movie sets, for corporate dining—the list goes on and the opportunities are endless.

What have been some of the challenges you’ve faced as a chef?

Time management and dealing with time away from home. Those are sacrifices you’ll have to make in order to do well in this industry. The demands are physical and mental. But the results are well worth the sacrifices. Food affects people’s lives; it’s part of lasting experiences and memories.

Neff, along with other food industry professionals, will be profiled on BlackEnterprise.com throughout this month, in conjunction with Black Enterprise magazine’s November 2011 “A Passion for Food” issue.

Check out the latest features on industry heavyweights, including Marcus Samuelsson and The Neelys, on newsstands now.

Last month, a woman in Connecticut had had it with her boss, so she logged on to Facebook and got it off her chest. The trouble came when her boss got hold of her comments, and she was ultimately handed a pink slip.

The woman’s Facebook rant stemmed from a labor dispute she was having at work, and according to the National Labor Relations Act, you can’t fire an employee who is exercising their right to openly discuss work and work-related conditions—even if it does include calling your boss a few unflattering names. The Connecticut woman is now suing the company.

So does this mean that we have carte blanche to air our professional grievances and badmouth our bosses and coworkers online without fear of losing our jobs? Not so fast.

Black Enterprise reached out to Ruthie White, a partner at Meyer White law firm in Houston, to get some clarity on the issue. White handles corporate cases and used to be a human resources manager. She explained that, generally, an employer can fire you for any or no reason unless there is a law that says they can’t—a congressional or constitutional law, a labor union law, or the policy of a private company.

There are congressional and constitutional laws that protect an employee’s right to discuss work conditions and from being discriminated against when it comes to race, gender, religion and more. But even if you’re not violating any of these types of laws—let’s say you go online and rail against all the short people you have to work with—you may still be violating a corporate policy or code of conduct, which could lead to your being fired. And in the age of social media, more and more companies are adopting electronic communications or social media policies, which state very explicitly what you cannot do and say—as it relates to your employment—online. If you violate this policy in any way, you can be fired.

But what if you work for a company that doesn’t have this kind of policy? Can you still be fired for language and behavior that your company deems inappropriate and/or distasteful? Short answer: Yes.

And although claiming your First Amendment rights sounds like a get-out-of-trouble-free route to take, it doesn’t apply in this case. Our right to free speech is overruled by the operational policies of the company we work for.

So the next time you log on to go off, think twice about who might see what you’ve written, and what might happen when they do.

Read more about issues at the workplace…

• How to deal with the boss from hell
• Your co-workers are not your friends. Here’s why.
• How sex plays out in the workplace

Roberts talks about how not to make a bad situation worse

Sometimes bad things happen to good companies. A disastrous event (think BP oil spill) or personal scandal (think recent events surrounding Bishop Eddie Long in Atlanta) can taint your brand in the consumer’s eyes and make other brands wary of affiliating themselves with it. So what’s a company or an individual to do when it runs into trouble?

Dawn Angelique Roberts is a cofounder and managing partner of KD Communications Group, a full service communications firm out of Philadelphia. She also sits on the board of the National Black Public Relations Society and teaches a public relations principals and practices course at Lincoln University. Roberts explains the right and the wrong things to do if you or your company ever has to answer for an unfortunate or misguided incident.

Have a plan. Your company has a plan for other things— the first aid kit in HR, emergency evacuation procedures, the defibrillator in the conference room. It is equally important to have a plan for a public relations crisis. “Have a main contact person who has instructions to contact other members of the company who each have a specific action to carry out,” says Roberts. For example, one person could be appointed to deal with any inquiries from the press while another person could be responsible for rounding up the rest of the company and debriefing them on the situation. “It’s very important to speak in one voice; for the company to appear unified,” she says.

Don’t remain silent. Your inclination might be to say nothing and wait for the whole incident to blow over. After all, today’s headline news always becomes tomorrow’s birdcage liner. But, according to Roberts, saying nothing can often make the situation worse. “Legal counsel may encourage you to have no comment, but from a PR standpoint, don’t ignore an incident or scandal. As PR, we are more concerned with protecting the brand and will advise you on what’s best for the brand,” explains Roberts.

You don’t have to confirm or deny anything. There’s a big difference between acknowledging an incident and trying yourself or your company in the court of public opinion. Address the issue by saying something like, “We are aware of the incident/allegations and are looking into it further,” advises Roberts. A neutral response that neither admits guilt nor accepts blame is the best tactic.

Don’t lie. An incident or a scandal will only be made worse by lying about any aspect of it. As ugly as the truth might be, a deception in an attempt at a cover-up that’s found out is even uglier. It’s a risk better not taken.

Find backup. “Seek support from board members, industry experts, and other companies who will speak out publicly about the positive things the company or individual is associated with and has done,” advises Roberts.

Plan for the future. “Have a plan for when the crisis is over,” says Roberts. “Talk about what you/the company is doing now, what positive things you’re working on and have planned for the future. [If applicable,] talk about what you’re going to do to fix the incident or situation after the fact. Don’t concentrate on what just happened.”

Rand

President Obama appointed A. Barry Rand to his Advisory Council on Financial Capability last week. The Council will advise the president on promoting and improving financial literacy and capability throughout the nation.

Rand was appointed CEO of AARP in March of 2009 . He succeeded William Novelli to become the organization’s first African American CEO. Prior to joining AARP, Rand was CEO of Equitant Ltd., a company that manages the order-to-cash process for Fortune 500 companies, and served on several corporate boards. He also served at CEO of Avis Group Holdings and enjoyed a 31-year career at Xerox, where he climbed the ranks from sales rep to vice president for worldwide operations.

Rand’s appointment to the Obama administration furthers his lifelong mission of servicing the underserved and disenfranchised.

Kelly Smith Beaty gives us exclusive access to The Apprentice

Think you know what’s going down on Donald Trump’s The Apprentice? Think again. Tonight, at 11:05 p.m., join contestant Kelly Smith Beaty for a live chat exclusively on BlackEnterprise.com immediately following NBC’s all-new episode.

It’s your chance to ask the 30-year-old public relations rep and former BLACK ENTERPRISE intern about what went on, what you didn’t see, and what it’s really like to stare down ‘The Donald’ in the boardroom!

Would you have picked other people to lead the teams?  Did anyone participate in outright sabotage?  Who would you have fired tonight?  Has race been a factor?

Click here for your chance to get the inside scoop on the good, the bad, and the downright nasty challenges in today’s boardrooms!

Beaty, former Black Enterprise intern and cast member of The Apprentice

You prepare yourself for the professional path you want to take in life, but you never know where your career might take you. Just ask Kelly Smith Beaty, a 30-year-old public relations rep and former Black Enterprise intern who will appear on the newest season of Donald Trump’s The Apprentice.

Beaty, who was born in North Carolina and raised in Georgia, earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Spelman College and a master’s degree in public communication from American University. She’s dreamed big since she was a little girl, and her knack for spotting opportunities and capitalizing on them has served her well throughout her career.

Read Beaty’s official biography for The Apprentice.

In this last installment of our three-part interview (read Part 1, and Part 2) Beaty updates Black Enterprise on what she’s been doing since her summer internship.

The cast of this season's The Apprentice

What have you learned from doing The Apprentice?
I’ve learned to chase my dreams.  This season is different because it deals with people who, in whatever capacity, were dealt a bad deal in life.  Two weeks before the casting of the show I received my termination from a company with which I’d once had a great professional relationship and that I held in the highest regard.  I couldn’t understand what was happening to me or why.  I’d studied my entire life, preparing to get to where I was professionally and, in the blink of an eye, it was gone.  That could have easily been the end of my story, but it turned out to be only the beginning.  From the first time I ever saw the first episode of The Apprentice, I always knew I’d love an opportunity to compete on the show.  I was captivated by the strategy, the creativity, and branding challenges.  Back then, it was just a dream.  Today it’s a part of my life story.  Dreams come true when we get the gall to pursue them.  I will never ever forget that lesson.

Has it opened any doors for you?
Well, right now, the only door I’m focused on is the one that leads to my new office within the Trump Organization.  My eyes are still very much glued to that prize!

What are your plans for the near future?
In the near future, I plan to enjoy the two-hour season premiere of The Apprentice, which will air September 16, at 9:00 p.m. EST!