Careers Talk Podcast

SPORTS PRESENTER AND JOURNALIST - 

As is common in media roles, your first job is so often in the country - they send you there first to make your mistakes in a less competitive market. After getting a job as a radio jock in Wangaratta, Tony packed his bags and started his career but he didn’t take to spinning disks naturally. It wasn’t until his manager gave him a chance in the newsroom that a life-long career started. In this epi...

SOUS CHEF AT SOCIETY

Imagine fighting for space in the kitchen to cook. 

That was the reality for Singaporian born Chef Kimberly Tang who grew up in a family of home cooks.  

Kimberly’s grandmother, father, mother and now Chef brother bonded and sometimes competed over each other’s cooking skills and knowledge. 

It’s no wonder Kimberly took on an apprenticeship at Crown when she was 17. 

In this episode, Kimberly explains life in t...

CIVIL AND ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEER - 

A love of STEM subjects was alive within Luisa Panuccio from a very early age, thanks to her Grandfather.  But while Luisa was a great student and got really good grades, her education wasn’t without problems that would impact her ability to study.  In this episode, Luisa reflects on her high school and university education, an eating disorder and explains why she’s on a mission to change how soc...

CIVIL AND ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEER - 

Chemistry! It’s all about chemistry…well, at least if you want to start a YouTube channel.  After being asked by relatives if she could help entertain their children during lockdown, Luisa started producing STEM educational videos and social media posts.  Even in the early stages of her career (and with limited availability), Luisa is finding the time to give back and help the younger generation ...

CHEF DE PARTIE

With a chef for a father and a mother who was a passionate home cook, it was fait complete for Chef Chris Milligan. 

But his parents didn’t agree as they saw Chris’ caring and attentive nature more suited to teaching. 

However, Chris showed his chef’s attitude by refusing to listen to his parents and pursued a hospitality career pathway. 

In this episode, Chris explains why the appeal of cooking won out and how he sh...

CHEF DE PARTIE

Chef Chris Milligan doesn’t believe in the reality TV show approach to cooking. 

To him, you start at the bottom and slowly but surely work your way up. 

When Chris started his professional career with his chef father, he wasn't given a free-pass to work more glamorous roles within the kitchen. 

Chris started as a dishwasher which is a test to prove yourself to others in the kitchen. 

In this episode, Chris talks thr...

EXECUTIVE CHEF AT AUSTRALIAN VENUE CO

Chef Telina Menzies was only going to do one thing as a career. 

From making pavlova and ginger bread with grandma to having a father and uncles as chefs.

The decision to pursue hospitality as a career was a no-brainer for Telina. 

But that didn’t make Telina the best student as Telina still needed to attend (and study) English, maths and science classes. 

In this episode, Telina explains life ...

EXECUTIVE CHEF AT AUSTRALIAN VENUE CO

Working as a chef in Australia was a great life for Telina Menzies, but the right of passage to relocate to London to work in Michelin starred restaurants was too great. 

But while rewarding, working in London was a tough, hard slog and came with other challenges Telina didn’t expect or want. 

In this episode, Telina explains what it’s taken to succeed and how the industry is changing to benefi...

GENERAL MANAGER - VICTORIA DIVISION, ENGINEERS AUSTRALIA -

At a young age, Alesha Printz knew the importance of balancing school work with her social life.  Because in addition to studying, she enjoyed spending time with family and friends, playing sports and even working at a takeaway food outlet and paintball referee.  Through these experiences, she discovered a zest for life, which later led to an interest in travelling and to h...

GENERAL MANAGER - VICTORIA DIVISION, ENGINEERS AUSTRALIA -

University graduates know that stepping into the workforce can be nerve-wracking, especially when you consider all the people you’re up against applying for jobs.  But for Alesha Printz, that wasn’t the case.  Alesha graduated from university at 24, but didn’t commence professional work until she was nearly 26. But unlike most new grads, she didn’t feel scared about applyin...

FOH. MIXING ENGINEER. TOUR MANAGER. PRODUCER - 

Cam Trewin loved his school days and spent a lot of his time involved with music but didn’t do as well in subjects like maths. While wanting to be a bass guitarist, Cam eventually caved to the encouragement of his music teacher to play trombone instead. Little did Cam know it was training his ear for this future career. It would seem obvious that a career in music was a given for C...

FOH. MIXING ENGINEER. TOUR MANAGER. PRODUCER - 

Leaving education and entering the workforce can be difficult, but it helps if you have the support, knowledge and guidance of a mentor. That’s what happened for Cam Trewin, when his mentor put his name forward for an assistant engineer role at a recording studio. Six years later and many lessons learnt, Cam was ready to seek out other opportunities and become a freelance sound engine...

CEO - RESTAURANT AND CATERING ASSOCIATION

You name it and Wes Lambert - the CEO of Restaurant and Catering Australia - has given it a go. From faking his own ID to get a job in high school to leading an organisation representing more than 48,000 restaurants, cafes and catering businesses across Australia. Wes was a good student and showed a real flair for entrepreneurialism from a young age. In this episode, Wes shares some gre...

CEO - RESTAURANT AND CATERING ASSOCIATION

Innovative thinker and an action taker - arguably the best words to describe Wes Lambert, CEO of Restaurant and Catering Australia. His career journey is proof that if you apply yourself, offer unique ideas on improvement and commit to being the best you can, you will end up achieving what you want. In this episode, Wes explains his varied career paths and how he’s viewed every opportunity ...

SENIOR IT EXECUTIVE - 

Back in 1975 David Leong was having a tough time at school,

He had poor grades and his parents couldn’t understand why he wasn’t making the most of the opportunity they'd fought so hard to get. 

But through resilience, David was eventually able to turn his situation around and become a popular school kid and go on to have a successful career in IT.

I’ll talk to David in our second episode about being the Dire...

SENIOR IT EXECUTIVE - 

It’s a brave move to leave the safety and security of an established career and throw yourself into the hectic and unstable world of a startup. 

In fact, some statistics suggest startup fail rates are as high as 97%. 

Not many 56 year olds - who can see a comfortable retirement in sight - would be prepared to take that gamble, but David Leong was.

Despite being told he was crazy by people he respected and hav...

FEMALES IN FOOD - BUSINESS CONSULTANT

Having the drive to achieve something is one thing, but what happens when things don’t go to plan? While she’s kicked some major goals in her career, it hasn’t always been easy for Food Entrepreneur, Chelsea Ford. She’s changed industries, got burnt out because of long hours and even packed it all in to live in Peru with a Shaman. But these experiences were the catalyst for Chelsea to identify ...