Hostplus Hospitality Scholarship

The Perth local has dedicated the last 12 years to the industry, working in hotels, owning and running her own café and pre-opening a handful of venues across the city. But it’s the welfare of the people within hospitality she’s most concerned with, reflected in her recent appointment as assistant manager of people and culture on the HR team at Como the Treasury and the State Buildings in Perth.

“My real passion is the people and culture that make the foundation of hospitality,” she says. “The scholarship will be an incredible opportunity for me to further my skills, especially getting accredited as a mental health first-aid trainer.” With the help of the Hostplus Hospitality Scholarship, Wee will be working towards developing her own hospitality-specific mental health first-aid training programs, while also progressing her side project, Last Call, which seeks to address and improve working conditions within the hospitality industry.

She names food writer Dani Valent as “inspiration for a fairer, safer and more positive industry”, and has nominated her as her desired mentor as part of the Scholarship prize. “As I look towards growing my voice in the industry and building towards this vision of ‘Hospitality 2.0’, which is fairer, safer and kinder to its workers and guests, I believe Dani’s insight would be incredibly helpful,” she says. “Stefanie is a dedicated hospitality professional who understands people are at the core of our industry,” says Scholarship judge, Jeremy Courmadias. “From many years of experience managing staff, including in her own café, Stefanie’s passion for staff mental health support and advocacy is rare and much needed for our industry to thrive in the future.” It’s our great pleasure to declare Stefanie Wee the winner of the 2023 Hostplus Hospitality Scholarship.