The Hot Scots Power 40: Stephen Frost, Sodexo

Ranking: 26

Stephen Frost is the executive chef in Scotland for sports, leisure, workplace and events with Sodexo, which sees him applying his commercial experience and retail flair across its entire Scotland portfolio. Clients and contracts cover every sphere of Scottish life, including office restaurants, museums, universities, conference centres, castles, stadia and racecourses, some of which have received industry recognition, with Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh scooping the Eventia Sustainability award for its events. Recent contract wins at Sodexo Prestige include a £500,000 a year deal at Edinburgh Corn Exchange and a six-figure deal at the city's Freemason's Hall. Sodexo credits Frost's innovative, skilled and well-organised approach to contract catering and his commitment to the industry and passion for food heritage with helping the business to grow.

Stephen Frost - Career guide

As a teenager Stephen Frost set his sights on becoming a hotel manager. It was a career plan that was all too quickly thwarted, when the college course he applied for advised him they were full. No-one who knew Frost was surprised that he overcame that early setback to be admitted to the Master Chefs of Great Britain just over a decade later.

His first career break came in 1973 when a friend of his grandmother's helped him to a place on a four-year chef apprenticeship at Peterhouse College in Cambridge. His drive and passion shone through and saw him named Student of the Year in all four years.

Life at the sharp end started in earnest when he took up a job as a commis chef at the 125-seat restaurant in the University Arm Hotel in Cambridge in 1977.

His next break was landing a job as head chef at Philipburn House Hotel in Selkirk in 1979, a three-year tenure that sparked a love for Scotland.

While he later enjoyed spells at a country house hotel in Wales and at the fÁªted Stonor Arms in Henley-on-Thames (where he prepared the meal for guests at the society wedding of Lady Helen Windsor), he was inevitably drawn back to Scotland.

Notably, between 1984-87, he took the helm at Cromlix House Hotel, Dunblane, where as head chef, he saw it named Egon Ronay's Hotel of the Year and the Macallan Decanter Restaurant of the year.

Frost also had spells at the Black Bull in Killearn, spent two years running his own operation, Kelly's Restaurant in Edinburgh, as well as a role as executive chef at the Drambuie Scottish Chefs Centre in Glasgow.

In 1999, he became executive chef at the four-star Crutherland House Hotel in East Kilbride. Parent group Macdonald Hotels spotted his potential and soon elevated him to regional executive chef, a position that saw him developing the group's conference offering and menu concepts nationwide.

In 2006, Frost was appointed by Sodexo Prestige as regional executive chef for Scotland.
He now heads a team of 12 senior chefs and is mobilising eight units throughout Scotland.

He oversees hospitality at both Perth and Hamilton Park race courses, catering at Scotland's national football stadium Hampden Park where he has cooked for major UEFA matches and concerts including the Eagles, Take That, Pink, the Rolling Stones, AC/DC and Robbie Williams.

In non-sporting arenas, he has catered for the Edinburgh International Film Festival attended by international celebrities, including Sir Sean Connery.

He advises the catering operations at Blair and Dundas castles, Discovery Point, Dundee and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and has catered for a wide range of high profile sporting and corporate events from the Open Golf Championship, Rugby World Cup, Six Nations Rugby and UEFA matches, to wedding receptions at Dundas and Blair castles and concerts at Hampden Park. His remit also includes events at Holyrood Palace and catering for The Scottish Executive.

In 2012, the conference and banqueting arm of the Scottish event business saw sales running £1m ahead of the previous year.

Other regional figures aren't available, but Sodexo in the UK and Ireland employs around 35,000 people at more than 2,300 locations in the corporate, healthcare, education, leisure, justice and defence sectors. With an annual turnover of over £1b, Sodexo delivers services from catering, cleaning, reception to security, laboratory and grounds maintenance services.

Stephen Frost - What we think

Living and working in Scotland for 21 years, Stephen Frost has developed a passion for locally sourced produce and a determination to give customers and clients fresh, seasonal food that's honestly priced.

He has demonstrated an understanding of the relationship between happiness at work and a healthy, nutritious diet, creating menus that help Sodexo's employees, clients and customers maintain a healthier, balanced lifestyle.

With a keen eye for innovation, he led Sodexo's involvement in '