Kaitlin is the Assistant Restaurant Manager at New Market, Queensland. When she’s not at Grill’d, you’ll most likely find her on a footy field, playing rugby league or Oz Tag. She’s also currently studying to be a Midwife and is in her final year at ACU. We had a chat with Kaitlin about how she manages her sport and studies with Grill’d. 

 

How do you manage to juggle being a student midwife and working at Grill’d? 

My Restaurant Manager is so amazing. As long as I give notice, she will drop whatever she needs to make sure I can work. Sport and study take up a lot of time and the unpredictability of midwifery means that my roster is often changing. I’m also on call with some soon to be mums which means that I can get a call when they go into labour, meaning I need to rush to the hospital. But Grill’d is supportive of that and I always tell them when I think that one of my ladies is going into labour. 

 

How would you describe the team at Grill’d? 

It’s just like a family. We just had two birthday parties and everyone from Grill’d was invited. It really wouldn’t be the same if everyone wasn’t there. Everyone is so close-knit and the staff at my restaurant are second to none. They’re so welcoming and so lovely and they’ll drop anything to help you. I’ve got so many close-knit friends from work that I had never had before from any other work environment.

 

Is Grill’d a High Energy, High Reward place to work?

Definitely. Like today, we were really busy for an hour and everyone just knuckled down and smashed it out. But then once it was over we were talking about the weekend plans and what everyone’s up to.

Local Matters also makes work feel really rewarding. Our restaurant is really engaged with the community. My footy team is on the Local Matters jars in March so I’m really looking forward to the team dinner for everyone to come down. 

 

What would you say to someone thinking about joining Grill’d?

I’ve learned so much more about myself working at Grill’d than I think I would in any other business. There are times where you have to reflect and be like, Oh, did we just do 600 burgers in two hours? 

There is a lot of self-reflection and progression that you don’t get in many other jobs. Every person that you deal with is different. Especially with teaching and coaching feedback. What works for one person might make another person cry. Being able to say to someone, “Look, this is what I need you to work on and here’s how I want you to get there”, is a really important skill. The leadership skills I’ve learned at Grill’d will help me in so many aspects in my future, even when I start working in a hospital.

 

What advice do you have for new Grill’d team members?

Stick with the internship! Push through the first 12 months, you’ll feel rewarded at the end. You also learn so much in the first 12 months, both about yourself and hospitality in general. It’s such a great place to work and it just takes a little bit of grit when you first start.