Worcester — Saying veteran hires can provide resilience and creativity in jobs at the culinary industry, Massachusetts Secretary of Veterans' Services Cheryl Lussier Poppe discussed how training and staffing organizations can improve outreach to those who have served in the military.

Poppe met with leaders of the food service hiring agency Snapchef, MassHire Central Career Center and Veterans Inc. for a roundtable discussion Tuesday.

Snapchef is a staffing provider for the food services and hospitality industry. The agency has placed chefs in multiple Worcester-area businesses. In addition to facilitating hiring, Snapchef trains members of the communities they have locations in to serve in the hospitality industry. The roundtable was held at Snapchef's training center on Southbridge Street.

In addition to Worcester, Snapchef has locations in Boston, Springfield and Providence. The agency has placed chefs throughout New England.
Todd Snopkowski, CEO and co-founder of Snapchef, said veterans bring discipline to the kitchen. "Being a chef myself, we call it a brigade, the larger kitchens that I've worked in," Snopkowski said. "They come out with skills that I, as a chef, look for. Hardworking, able to follow direction, able to take on tasks and able to complete tasks."

He said one of the chefs Snapchef placed in a college is one of the last standing chefs there after the kitchen went through some staffing shifts. Snopkowski credited that chef's ability to persevere.

In a tough hiring market, Snopkowski said, veterans are a key focus on recruiting for Snapchef.

Hiring agencies like Snapchef are taking the lead by showing interest in hiring veterans who are looking for their next step outside of the military. "They provide them with opportunities. Not just with employment, but also with learning the skills," Poppe said. "And also they're helping them foster some of the values that they learned in the military: the teamwork, the innovation, learning to make some substitutions when you have to."

Ken Desmarais, director of culinary business development at Snapchef, asked Poppe what were the best practices to reach veterans. Poppe said Snapchef has a good start by reaching out to MassHire and Veterans Inc. and recommended talking to the city's Veterans' Services Division. She said there are 15 other veterans services organizations along with Veterans Inc. nonprofit providers that can be helpful. Poppe said veterans can be reached by social media, hiring websites and through traditional mail.