Balancing Flexibility & Productivity

After growing up working in his family’s legendary Hilo restaurants - Ken’s House of Pancakes and Pond’s Hilo - Jess-Ric moved to the mainland to study Restaurant & Hotel Management at Northern Arizona University. He has held a number of operations, revenue generation and innovation / new concepting roles with Marriott and Hilton International. For the past five years, Jess-Ric has consulted to mainland and Big Island F&B, golf course & resort and hospitality operators, including coming back into his family businesses in Hilo. He is blending best practices he’s learned from the major mainland/global brands, with the unique community resourcefulness and spirit of sharing of Hilo to solve workforce challenges.

Mary is the full-time, in-house Recruiter for Williams Construction of Kauai. She and owner Billy Williams are using extremely creative solutions to flexibly hire and manage their workforce by augmenting their local team with mainland temporary and permanent hires. Her favorite part of her job is making connections with people and helping them begin a new chapter in their lives. After managing restaurants for over a decade, Mary found herself in the world of recruiting and employee development. Since leaving her hometown of St. Louis, Mary has lived and worked in six states. She attended Missouri State University, where she received her Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management and Business. Mary went on to earn her Master's degree in Business, Management, and Organization from the University of Colorado Denver. She has a passion for travel and adventure and takes any opportunity to explore a new destination. Mary loves cooking and learning about different cultures through food.

Theresa Lewis is the Manager of Administrative Services at Koloa Rum Company located in Kalaheo, Kauai. She oversees Human Resources, Shareholder Relations, State Licensing and Project Management including the construction of their new manufacturing, distribution, and office facilities. Theresa has a passion for creating and implementing processes that positively impact and empower employees.

Prior to joining Koloa Rum Company Theresa was the Head of Strategy and Planning for CIE Tours, headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey. Theresa also spent 15 years as Vice President of Market Research & Strategy for Wyndham Hotel Group. Theresa has created strategic plans, repositioned brands, launched loyalty programs, built promotions, established international franchises, and developed a data strategy.