Critical Thinking, Decision-Making Organizational Chart

Critical Thinking

The purpose of this paper is to explain critical thinking and decision-making by different examples, models, and show how it is used in everyday life. Everyone uses critical thinking and decision-making all the time, most of the time without recognition and involuntary and it starts from the time you wake up in the morning till you go to bed. It is used at home and at work. There are three components for every decision made and they are: 1.Criteria- the standards by which decision makers evaluate alternatives. 2. Alternatives- specific courses of action or options, being considered “positions.” 3. Cause and Effect Beliefs- cause/effect belief are cognitions linking specific alternatives to specific criteria. These are often referred to as models, theories, assumptions, beliefs, or alternative attributes (Scholl, 1999). The reason for exemplifying the structure of kitchen hierarchy is needed to understand how certain decisions can affect many areas and how critical thinking is needed and used by all involved in the restaurant business. The structure of a restaurant is very complex and it is any ones guess on how anything ever gets accomplished. If it were not for critical thinking and some sort of decision making model then nothing would get accomplished. In a kitchen there are many people organized into a military type hierarchy for good reason and the purpose of this is to explain the structure, operation, and importance of a hotel restaurant kitchen and its employees starting at the top from the Executive Chef down to the dishwashers and cooks. A chart showing this hierarchy follows.

The Executive Chef and the Executive Steward are at the top of this pyramid and together they rule the kitchen and oversee its operation. First, the Executive Steward his/her responsibility is to maintain sanitation for kitchenware, including plates, silverware and storage containers for hot and cold food. Amongst those duties they must also sanitize all food surfaces, including walls, counters, drains, and the floor. Most importantly this department has to have enough clean kitchenware to supply the chef for its customers. Second, the Executive Chef’s responsibility is to oversee all departments that produce food for