Final answer:
The Sous Chef is responsible for running a kitchen when the head chef is not available, overseeing kitchen staff and ensuring food quality. Specializing in tasks in a restaurant increases efficiency and productivity. Task division among various roles leads to a restaurant's economic and operational success.
Step-by-step explanation:
The foodservice professional responsible for running a kitchen when the head chef is not available is the Sous Chef. This position comes second in command after the head chef and takes over the kitchen's operational responsibilities in their absence. The sous chef helps to manage the kitchen staff, ensures food quality and consistency, and maintains the kitchen's productivity.
Specialization in the workplace, including a restaurant setting, leads to increased efficiency and productivity. A baker focusing on baked goods and desserts, and a chef concentrating on the creation and preparation of main courses, allows for each to work more rapidly and effectively. Each team member can hone their respective crafts, resulting in better-quality meals and a higher volume of production than if they were to split their focus across all tasks.
Modern businesses, including restaurants, divide tasks among various roles like top chef, sous chefs, kitchen help, servers, greeters, janitors, and managers to ensure a smooth operation and to handle tasks appropriate for each worker's skill set. This division of labor is an essential component of the restaurant's economic and operational efficiency.