Great Performances

Ann has held a deep appreciation for hospitality since working at a brewery-restaurant during her college years. Ann expanded her hospitality experience into the retail and fitness industries, where she pivoted her focus to cultivating positive work cultures and developing her skills in HR management and operations. Ann's passion is food, which she believes she inherited from her mom (but unfortunately, did not inherit her cooking skills!). As a forever foodie, Ann schedules her life around food, seeking out new venues, frequenting old staples, and enjoying delicious home cooked meals as often as possible. Ann has a bachelor’s degree in communication and psychology and an HR Management Essentials Certification from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

What is your ideal restaurant experience?

Thought I do appreciate a great ambiance with dimly lit vibe, my focus is always the food. Trying all the different delicious options, sharing every item from the menu that piques the interest with my family and friends.

What does "creating workplaces where people thrive" mean to you?

It means creating a positive, inclusive, and supportive work culture where people feel a sense of belonging. An environment that supports the growth and success of its people. A place where people can trust to be their whole self.

Sarah began her career in restaurant operations with Hillstone Restaurant Group, becoming one of the youngest general managers at a $10m+ location before transitioning to a corporate HR role. After several years as an HR director, however, her position was eliminated, prompting her to pursue a similar HR leadership role in NYC's bustling hospitality industry. To her dismay, many of the small hospitality businesses she was drawn to simply did not need full-time HR support, despite their struggle with HR. In many of these initial conversations, Sarah instinctively pivoted her interview into a strategy session, focusing not on her career goals but on the HR needs of each business - often offering to complete small HR projects as a freelancer. A few months of working in this capacity was all Sarah needed to embrace her calling to build a sustainable, scalable consulting business. Empowered Hospitality was born. Sarah earned her bachelor’s in political science with honors from Yale and holds SHRM-SCP, WSET Advanced (Wine & Spirits Educational Trust), and CSW (Certified Specialist of Wine) certifications. Sarah was selected as a 2021 Tory Burch Foundation Fellow for her passion for building an equitable, collaborative, and socially conscious small business, is a perennial speaker at the annual FAB Conference in Charleston, SC, a frequent panelist on topics related to people and organization for the James Beard Foundation, and a guest lecturer at the School of Hospitality Administration at Boston University.

What is your ideal restaurant experience?

Visiting home in Massachusetts always involves a highly anticipated trip to the local clam shack, where we would go in the summertime as kids. There's no happiness quite like catching up with friends and family over fried clams and 'lobstah' rolls in a place with so many memories!

What does "creating workplaces where people thrive" mean to you?

Creating workplaces where people thrive means fostering growth, transparency, and well-being. It means defining the larger purpose that drives you and building a team that believes equally in that purpose.