Professional Journey
A career built at the intersection of people and operations.
I didn't follow a straight line — I followed curiosity. And hospitality wasn't where the story started: it was the environment I was raised in. What looks like two different careers is actually one continuous story, built on a foundation that was laid long before my first paycheck.
“Whether I was managing a restaurant floor in San Francisco or leading HR for a growing human services organization in Kansas, the work was always the same at its core: create an environment where people can do their best, feel valued, and want to stay. The tools changed. The discipline didn't.”
Human Resources & People Operations
2017 – 2026
Life Centers of Kansas
Kansas
Human Resources Manager
I joined Life Centers of Kansas as their HR function was still taking shape and spent nearly a decade building it into something the organization could genuinely rely on. Over that time, I owned the full employee lifecycle — from the moment someone applied to the day they left — and helped the organization grow from approximately 60 to 130 employees without losing the culture that made it work.
- Owned the full employee lifecycle: recruiting, onboarding, performance management, compensation, benefits, compliance, and offboarding
- Led two full HRIS implementations — actively involved in requirements gathering, data preparation, configuration, testing, launch, employee and manager training, adoption, ongoing administration, reporting, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement
- Led implementation and adoption of an employee recognition platform, building the program from the ground up
- Built HR processes, documentation, and scalable operational systems to support organizational growth from ~60 to 130 employees
- Designed and facilitated employee programs, training, and events that strengthened culture and engagement
- Managed employee relations with care and consistency — navigating complex situations while maintaining trust on all sides
- Served as the primary point of contact for benefits administration, open enrollment, and compliance
Hospitality & Operations
2007 – 2015
Pacific Catch
San Francisco & San Mateo, CA
Hostess / Server / Hourly Supervisor → Restaurant Manager → Interim General Manager → General Manager
Pacific Catch is where I went from learning the floor to running it. I joined as a Hostess and Server at the Inner Sunset location in 2007 and progressed through every layer of the operation — Hourly Supervisor, Restaurant Manager, Interim General Manager at the Marina, and ultimately General Manager in San Mateo. Each step added real ownership: staffing, hiring, training, scheduling, labor, budgets, inventory, purchasing, vendors, facilities, events, operational systems, guest experience, service recovery, and real-time decision-making.
- Progressed from Hostess / Server to Hourly Supervisor to Restaurant Manager to Interim General Manager to General Manager — earning each step through demonstrated performance
- Held Restaurant Manager responsibility at the Inner Sunset location (2011–2014), owning day-to-day operations, team leadership, and service standards
- Served as Interim General Manager at the Marina location (2014), stepping into full operational leadership during a transition period
- Promoted to General Manager at the San Mateo location (2014–2015), overseeing the full operation including staffing, budgets, inventory, purchasing, and guest experience
- Progressively owned staffing, hiring, training, scheduling, labor management, budgets, inventory, purchasing, vendor relationships, and facilities coordination
- Built and maintained guest experience standards and a culture of high-touch service across every role and location
- Planned and executed private events, large-party experiences, and special programming
- Developed operational systems and processes that supported consistency, quality, and team performance
Hospitality & Operations
February 2016 – November 2020
Llywelyn's Pub
Kansas City Area
Key Hourly Manager
This role overlapped with my transition into HR and reflects how hospitality and People Operations developed together in my career. While building the HR function at Life Centers of Kansas, I continued to stay connected to restaurant operations — supporting daily operations, hiring and training, scheduling, staffing, guest service, coaching, and shift leadership.
- Supported daily restaurant operations including scheduling, staffing, and shift leadership
- Managed hiring, training, and coaching of hourly team members
- Maintained guest service standards and operational consistency across shifts
Hospitality — Where It Began
June 2006 – September 2007
Chili's Grill & Bar
San Bruno, CA
Hostess / Takeout / Server
My first paid job — and the natural starting point for someone who had grown up watching how a restaurant works. I came in already understanding the rhythm of a dining room, the importance of a warm welcome, and what it means to make a guest feel taken care of. This is where I learned to execute those instincts in a professional environment.
- Worked as Hostess, Takeout, and Server — developing foundational skills in guest-facing service, hospitality standards, and operational flow
- Brought to the role a lifetime of observation: growing up around Chili's in San Bruno with my dad, and being born into a family-owned restaurant environment
- Built the service instincts and floor awareness that would carry through every role that followed
What connects it all
A foundation, not a starting point
Hospitality wasn't a career I entered — it was the environment I grew up in. That shaped how I understand people, business, and experience before I ever held a job title.
Operational discipline
Warm experiences require rigorous systems behind them. I've always built both — the feeling and the infrastructure that makes it repeatable.
HR as an expansion, not a pivot
Moving from hospitality to HR wasn't a career change. It was a natural extension of the same skills: understanding people, building systems, and creating environments where people can do their best work.
Execution at every level
I've worked every position on the floor and built the systems that run the operation. That range — from frontline to leadership — is what makes the perspective different.
Ready to see the full picture?