Stefanie’s love for Areas and her passion for people has been clearly noted throughout her tenure with Areas, and even longer in the hospitality industry. Her career at Areas began in 2008 where she spent her first six years in operations. She then moved to HR as the Director of Talent, Acquisition & Development for four years before leaving Areas to pursue an opportunity in the town where she grew up.
When Stefanie was asked to come back, her decision to return to Areas was an easy one. “I loved the people I worked with,” she said, noting her surprise at seeing so many familiar faces after being away for almost five years. This reinforced her conviction in deciding to return. “The team member retention at Areas speaks volumes of the company. I appreciate the ethos of Carlos and the leadership team and their ideas for the future.”
Stefanie is excited to help steer one of the most important components of the Areas ship to success: its team members. As the new Director of People, Culture & Talent, she will be the right hand to VP of Human Resources George Garcia; working with HR business partners and Areas team members to provide support and promote a healthy working culture in the field. Her day-to-day responsibilities will touch on project and team management and assisting with the talent and acquisition side of the business. “I believe a company is an inverted pyramid. The people on the front lines are the most important people in the company, and everyone else is responsible for getting the roadblocks out of their way,” explains Stefanie.
One of her primary objectives is to get Areas and the HR team to the next level. “We have reached a new age where you can’t give people a packet of information and expect them to learn it. Areas has a platform to make some serious investments in technology, and in becoming cutting edge and innovative not only on the culinary and service side, but also on the support side,” she says enthusiastically.
She points to the new “goHappy” technology as a stepping stone along the journey to get to that next level, as it provides a great opportunity to interact with the frontline team on a regular basis, strategically communicate important information, and recognize and celebrate their successes. “Never stop learning because life never stops teaching. My goal is to ensure that we are investing in our team from the minute we first start speaking with them during the interview process, to making sure they are in the same column as our 10-year team members. I want our people to feel we have invested in their training and promote their development and career path at Areas.”