Hospitality

Brianna Parisian shares her journey from 15-year-old server to COO of Thrive Social—managing five Chandler bar concepts, creating guest service departments that walk patrons between venues, and implementing tiny experiments that prevent six-figure mistakes.

Dane Wilfong shares journey from 13-year-old dishwasher to F&B Director at The Ned DC—executive chef at 22, Maryland's first Michelin keys, leading exclusive club serving bipartisan politicians, and industry healing employee-first post-COVID while giving permission to exit.

Dina Belon shares design degree pivot caring more people than columns, corporate VP layoff mourning week at mom's house, team member cooking Filipino meal home for guest, tech stack AI enabling surprise-and-delight, and HR professional Mike becoming chief growth officer after breadcrumb plane ride Staypineapple Hotels.

Sterling Herzik shares political science pivot discovering hospitality passion, graduating December 2019 into March 2020 event management COVID devastation, returning furlough as one-woman band, transforming Marconi wellness retreat into 27-wedding destination, and delivering difficult news acknowledging emotions first.

Alvaro Fraile shares Spanish soccer University of Richmond non-traditional path, right place right time GM 25 operations 70 hotels 30, 2009-10 triple crisis divorce father cancer ACL tear everything temporary write out be patient, culture alignment Azul won't allow people don't align, Charlie Munger don't try be smartest make less dumb decisions emotionally stable listen people.

Scott Smith shares journey from dishwasher to CEO of Max Hospitality—building data consulting business, navigating Rich Rosenthal's buyout, bringing on 11 new partners, and maintaining chef-driven menus across 10 Hartford-area restaurants while surviving COVID stronger than ever.

Rob DelliBovi shares his journey from MTV to opening NYC's Hotel Gansevoort, building RDB Hospitality Group's dual-sided model serving celebrities and hotels, launching industry-first VIP greeter program, and achieving Virtuoso top 1% producer status through relationship management at scale.

Margaret Wang shares journey from education to LIVunLtd lifestyle director—overcoming high-functioning anxiety through holistic healing, producing wellness expos at Monogram New York, and why lifestyle teams activate amenity spaces creating third spaces for community connection.

Christophe Chatron-Michaud shares journey from sweeping-floors-two-Michelin-stars Roger-Verger-Alain-Ducasse to F&B-Concept-Development—duck-carving-disaster-sent-home-teaching-practice, David-Boulet-immersive-apples-smell-chocolates-attention-details, Philippines-teenagers-survival-mode, and why front-of-house-management-coaching-not-throwing-plates superpower-150%-no-comeback-succeed kintsugi-broken-plates-gold-beautifully.

Sean Riley shares teaching career pivot running Slumberland motel $4,000 annually, handwriting 1,000 birthday cards yearly, delivering popsicles to 700 employees, COVID crisis taking 50% pay cut laying off wife first, and succession planning protecting culture asking "what are you afraid of" to 10 leaders.

Anna Jane Stanley shares kindergarten boss prediction, creating events revenue with no playbook, eight months silence after Ole Miss sexual assault, CEO offering free therapy, EMDR breakthrough processing trauma, and Bellamare Development's mission transforming Mississippi communities through mental health support.

Lloyd McBean shares transforming bankrupt Las Sendas Golf Club into top 10 Phoenix destination, raising $5M in 19 days, achieving America's only top 100 alfresco golf dining, and annually reseeding entire course with $150K in ryegrass through 40-year customer service obsession.