What it takes to succeed in the hospitality industry

Retail and Service
Written By Stuart McNish

Guest: Ian Tostenson (CEO, British Columbia Restaurant and Food Services Association)

In our series of conversations about interesting jobs, what they entail, how the person we’re interviewing ended up in their position and what you can learn from their career.

Today we sit down with Ian Tostenson, the CEO and President of the British Columbia Restaurant and Food Services Association and the man leading the RideSharing Now for BC initiative.

There are thousands of industry associations, taking the helm on one demands that the person in charge has a diverse background. Sometimes that background is directly related to the industry; other times the association lead may have experience in leading other associations or an ability to navigate a complex series of skill sets in government relation,s or helping to establish industry and government standards. Sometimes their background is on the sales and marketing side.

As you’ll learn in this conversation with Ian Tostenson, the path to leadership is anything but a straight line.

Watch more episodes
Creating a mental health assessment tool
Creating a mental health assessment tool

Getting help with and getting assessed for mental health can be difficult – Jason Morehouse seeks to change that with HiBoop, a tool that helps professionals improve the quality of their treatments. To get started, he had to get an understanding of technology and how to leverage it with good developers and passionate product builders, and wrap it up with awareness among people who are in charge of the brand.

Read More →
Discovering the importance of mindful cancer care
Discovering the importance of mindful cancer care

Cancer is a complicated topic involving different scopes – Dr. Linda Carlson knows that well. As a researcher, she focuses on all aspects of cancer care. This goes beyond traditional approaches, but also psychological aspects and using mind wellness as cancer care. Her findings are vital for a more holistic understanding of patient care.

Read More →
Being written off by others and proving them wrong
Being written off by others and proving them wrong

“I suffered as a child,” David Chalk says. That is why his work is all about helping others get through life, specifically related to education and learning. He is very blunt – being told that he is “stupid” throughout his life is what drives him to come up with new ways to improve and help others improve as well. He doesn’t believe in writing people off; after all, he was written off by others during his youth and committed to prove people wrong.

Read More →
Work-life balance and doing the impossible
Work-life balance and doing the impossible

Brian Scudamore is a serial entrepreneur. He is best known for being the brains behind 1-800-GOT-JUNK, a national trash collection company in Canada. But he sees his role as more than a CEO; he grows the business culture of his companies. To him, business is always fun – as long as he pays attention to work-life balance, which allows him to be more present at work.

Read More →
Stuart McNish
Previous

Studying active volcanoes on a daily basis