The Hospitality Connection

In this episode of Hospitality Connection, we sit down with keynote speaker and hospitality leader Ryan Minton to talk about the people, purpose, and perspective that shape successful careers. Ryan shares lessons from his own hospitality journey, the importance of finding great mentors, why you should “choose the leader, not the company,” and how taking a long-term view can change the trajectory of your career. We also explore why hospitality remains fundamentally human in an increasingly AI...

What does it take to build a hospitality career that reaches the C-suite? In this episode, Cohosts Scott Samuels and Alex Gould talk with Justin Fowler, Chief Operating Officer of Sage Hospitality Group as Justin traces his path from scooping ice cream in a family restaurant to running a restaurant division, and lays out the habits that move someone from manager to executive. With more than 35 years in hospitality, Justin explains why financial fluency (reading a P&L cold) is the ...

What makes a great bar program actually work? In this episode of Hospitality Connection, Scott and Alex sit down with Ben Potts of Unfiltered Hospitality to talk about the systems, standards, and service mindset behind successful bar and beverage programs. Ben shares his path from finance and investment banking into hospitality, then breaks down what operators often get wrong when building cocktail programs. From greeting and guest engagement to menu design, training, checklists, batching, ...

What does it really take to leave the corporate restaurant world behind and build something of your own? In this episode of the Hospitality Connection Podcast, hosts Scott Samuels and Alex Gould sit down with Kevin Timmons to explore his journey from corporate restaurant leadership to independent restaurant ownership. Kevin shares his perspective on the challenges and rewards of entrepreneurship, the transition from managing within a corporate structure to making decisions as an owner, and ho...

Alissa Thomas didn't plan on becoming a recruiter. She was managing restaurants when an opportunity landed in her lap, and now she's a Vice President of Recruiting at Horizon Hospitality. Turns out, the skills that make someone great at hospitality translate perfectly to finding the people who'll be great at it too. Here's what Alissa knows that most recruiters don't: personality beats qualifications almost every time. A resume can tell you where someone's been, but it can't tell you if they...