The Michelle Pascoe Hospitality Podcast · 2026-07-14 · 39 min
Boards keep hiring hospitality leaders for operational experience instead of leadership capability, according to recruitment specialists Ian Stazicker & Grant Taylor of White Now, speaking with Michelle Pascoe, Certified Speaking Professional and hospitality training expert. The right club CEO needs strategic thinking, critical thinking and genuine leadership, not familiarity with gaming machines or years behind the bar. So what should a board actually be looking for when they hire their next CEO? In this episode, Michelle Pascoe sits down with Ian and Grant, the new owners of White Now Recruitment, the long-standing recruitment agency for Australia's registered clubs and hospitality industry. Ian and Grant bring something most recruitment consultants don't have: genuine operational experience inside a club, having turned around a struggling regional club together before taking ownership of White Now. That background changes how they work. The conversation also gets into why boards keep making the same hiring mistake. Boards work because they hire for leadership, strategic thinking, and critical thinking, not for familiarity with gaming machines or years spent pouring beers.
Are Clubs the Last Place Solving Loneliness?67 / 100
Why the Best Leaders in Hospitality Are Unforgettable72 / 100
How Gotcha4Life Is Building Mental Fitness in Schools
How Do You Build a Leadership Pipeline in Hospitality?
What Does It Take to Become a Club CEO?