A few years ago I was introduced to the social-networking site Linked-in by a business colleague. I set up a profile and was directed to summarize my business acumen and biography in a few short paragraphs. I finished this summary with the following words... "I intend to build off of my experiences, and the skill sets I have obtained through school, to achieve my goal of being a recognized leader by the age of 30."
More recently I was approached by a former professor of mine, but still a good friend and mentor, Bruce McAdams. He informed me that he had personally nominated me in the Ontario Hostelry Institute's (OHI) 'Top 30 Under 30' awards for 2012. The OHI then reached out to me for a portfolio containing my resume, career achievements and a couple of reference letters. I put all these these together, along with a terrible picture of myself, and forwarded them off to the panel of judges for consideration.
I heard back this past week and was pleasantly surprised to have been chosen by the committee as a 2012 recipient of the Top 30 Under 30 award! Now, I am hardly a leader of my industry, but as the OHI says on their website, the award recognizes "future generations of hospitality leaders who are and will make a difference". I hope I will one day make a difference, and I strongly believe I can. With 5 long years remaining until I turn 29 for the second time, there is a lot to do and a lot more left to learn before I feel comfortable calling myself a 'leader'.
I just want to thank those who supported me through this process. My friends who were convinced I'd get there, my current and former bosses who were more than kind in their letters of reference and of course to Bruce who got this ball rolling in the first place. I am looking forward to continuing my work in building the food service industry into a sustainable and profitable industry that attracts the best and brightest of the worlds future business graduates.
To see the digital portfolio that I created for the committee, please follow this link to Prezi. And for more information on the award, please see the OHI website.
