Alison O’Hearn’s journey into foodservice began with a passion for cooking, rooted in connection at the family dinner table. It is a journey that led her to her current role as project manager at Cini-Little International, Inc.
“Dinner was at 6.30pm every night, but my mom was studying at architectural school while I was growing up, so I was cooking while she learned CAD and making models,” says O’Hearn, reflecting on her childhood spent in Virginia, Michigan and Maryland, US. “It was really interesting to witness, and that definitely got me interested in designing.”
Inspired by her mother’s academic pursuits, she strove early on towards a design-adjacent path, becoming the student technical director and creating award-winning theater sets for school musicals with her peers.
“I adored that time, learning how to design and construct a stage set within a few months was fascinating,” she adds.
When career options became a more pressing matter, two routes presented themselves before her. Would she follow her theatrical design path towards Broadway, or her passion as a chef? The latter won out, informed by the belief that it would be the “more stable” option, bolstered by an education background her parents would approve of. With that, she set off to Johnson and Wales University (JWU) in Providence, Rhode Island, where O’Hearn earned an associate’s degree in culinary arts before advancing to a bachelor’s degree in science in foodservice management.
Immersing herself in the world of foodservice, she held roles at Sugar Shack Donuts as the event planner while also helping to make donuts at 4am, and working at Walt Disney World at the Hollywood and Vine Character Breakfast in March 2013 for an internship. This is where design made its way into O’Hearn’s ways of thinking.
“Disney World was really where the kitchen design came in because I got to notice things. Just having those little steps helps. And that’s how really good foodservice design can help.”
Hands-on experience
Other early roles in O’Hearn’s career included FLIK International, the B&I version of Compass Group in 2017, and Medimmune, a pharmaceutical company, working in the cafe as a cook at the international food station.
“Food was just happiness; so, I think that’s really where it came from,” says O’Hearn. “It was all about happiness and being taken care of, and love.”
In her senior year at college, she received a letter calling for culinary demonstrators and recruiters. Despite an aversion to public speaking, she bit the bullet and took it on, which led her to speak in front of school audiences about food.
Today, the former chair of FCSI’s Emerging Professionals in Consulting (EPiC) network has spent the last five years progressing from strength to strength in foodservice consultancy leadership and project work, focusing on hospitality and hotel work, and healthcare, as a project manager for Cini Little International.
“I love hotel work because it can be so diverse,” says O’Hearn. “Every hotel I’ve ever worked on has been completely different, so it definitely keeps things interesting.”
A more recent love for O’Hearn is healthcare, after she was introduced to renovation projects in hospitals. “I love the hands-on piece of it, and I really love how passionate they are about patients and staff, so it’s great when we get to come together and build something that’s just a well-oiled machine,” she says.
The world of FCSI
Progressing from foodservice roles towards consultancy, O’Hearn’s first consultant role was at Foodservice Consultant Studio in Virginia, which automatically welcomed O’Hearn to the team with the encouragement to join the FCSI community.
“FCSI sounded like a good thing to get involved in. For me, FCSI is about community, business and career development,” says O’Hearn. “I don’t go to FCSI events to count them as work hours, I go to learn things, meet people and network and grow my consulting community. Tons of excellent education happens during those events.”
FCSI has opened O’Hearn up to a global network of peers in the industry, who can share one another’s struggles and find common ground: “Even if you speak another language, we’re still having the same struggles, and we’re still thinking the same way.”
As the first chair of EPiC, O’Hearn came away with some valuable lessons that would help to shape the future of the group for young professionals, but also the wider FCSI network, with the goal to attract the next generation of consultants. “I didn’t ask for help as much as I should have [as EPiC chair], so with this next group, I’m trying to instil that,” says O’Hearn. “I’m trying to help them develop a leadership group rather than one single person in charge.”
For O’Hearn, FCSI’s in-person events are critical for career development and networking, given the nature of remote work and the network’s international expanse Events provide opportunities for learning from more senior peers.
“It’s about business and career development, not necessarily work. Many have families and life and things to do, so it’s hard to schedule things outside of work hours, but I do believe people benefit from the social aspect when we do,” says O’Hearn. “It’s a slow process, and we just have to keep pushing to be on top of people’s minds.”
Paying it forward
When it comes to the broader landscape, the next generation of consultants feels uniquely prepared to navigate it, with a refined edge for curiosity and technology.
“We get excited about technology, AI, being more sustainable and energy efficient, so we’re also more likely to research new ways of doing things, like an AI bot, or a newer piece of equipment that nobody else has done because they’ve been specifying the same thing for the past 20 years,” says O’Hearn. “It’s an ever-aging, small industry, so it’s crucial that we keep pushing to have younger members, and we really have to be aware of what younger people want.”
O’Hearn hopes to increase FCSI’s presence in younger environments, from colleges to student fairs, to get younger generations involved and refresh the industry with new perspectives as well as consolidated contacts. This logic has inspired her EPiC efforts to target design schools, but also foodservice and culinary schools.
“To me, Revit and the technology piece can be learned, especially for the younger generation who are quick learners with technology but understanding a kitchen and how it runs is so crucial to being a good consultant,” she says.
Looking towards the future, O’Hearn’s has genuine belief in the next consulting cohorts ability to adapt and evolve the industry.
“We’re here to make our own way and make it more advanced, so that’s definitely something we’ll keep pushing, and it will keep growing,” says O’Hearn. “That’s going to change the industry quite a bit, but it’s going to take time.”
Lauren Hurrell
