My Story

I grew up in restaurants.

Not as a stepping-stone, but as a foundation. My father owned multiple restaurants, and by the time I was nine years old, I was washing dishes and bussing tables for two dollars an hour. Long before I understood titles or org charts, I learned what accountability, teamwork, and pressure looked like in real life. I still remember being nine years old and getting chewed out for not wanting to pick up an extra shift. It wasn’t easy, but it was formative. Hospitality teaches responsibility early, and it never lets you forget it.

That upbringing shaped how I understand leadership, operations, and people.

I went on to build a career in restaurant operations and management, working across independent concepts and national brands. I learned the realities of running a business where the margins are thin, the expectations are high, and the guest experience is never optional. Restaurants don’t operate in theory, they operate in real time, with real consequences. You either execute, or you don’t survive.

In 2003, I transitioned into hospitality management recruiting, bringing an operator’s mindset into the hiring and leadership side of the industry. For more than a decade, I worked closely with ownership groups, management companies, and senior leaders, seeing firsthand how hospitality executives are evaluated, selected, and trusted. I learned what separates strong operators from scalable leaders, and why some careers accelerate while others stall.

That experience made one thing clear: hospitality leadership is about far more than résumés and titles. It’s about presence, credibility, judgment, and the ability to lead people under pressure.

86 Service was built on that belief.

Today, I serve as an Executive Brand & Career Strategist for hospitality leaders, helping General Managers, Regional Leaders, and Corporate Executives navigate career transitions with clarity and confidence. My work focuses on executive positioning, interview preparation, and accessing the hidden hospitality job market, roles that are filled through reputation, relationships, and timing long before they are ever posted.

I hold eight industry certifications, including:

  • Nationally Certified Résumé Writer

  • Nationally Certified Online Profile Expert

  • Certified Career Transition Coach

  • Certified Professional Career Coach

  • Hidden Job Market Coach

  • Certified Interview Consultant

Those credentials support the work, but hospitality experience anchors it.

I understand this industry because I’ve lived it. I know the demands of the floor, the pressure of peak service, the reality of turnover, and the weight leaders carry when performance, culture, and guest experience must align. I also understand how hospitality executives are evaluated behind closed doors, and how to position leaders so their experience is seen, trusted, and valued.

At 86 Service, everything starts with people.

People First. Always.

Because in hospitality, leadership isn’t theoretical, it’s personal. And careers are built the same way.