News
Cindy Follows Her Passion
Posted on Thursday, 22 October 2009 | Permalink
Cindy Sun-Ho now sits either side of the hospitality workbench. Currently the Office Manager for industrylink Training, Cindy has also taken on an apprentice chef position in the organisation’s training centre - Kuzina, an exciting new restaurant in Hobart. A practical training ground by day; with apprentice chefs learning the art of creating food to stimulate the senses and open to the public by night as a fully operational commercial restaurant.
Business & Employment Apprenticeships Centre Senior Hobart Consultant, Maree Logan, caught up with Cindy to find out what motivated her to take on two diverse roles within the same organisation and industry sector.
"The opportunity presented itself to work for industrylink Training in 2007, in an area I had no history or previous experience in whatsoever. This initially seemed quite a scary and daunting prospect, yet extremely exciting. I immersed myself into the role and learnt a lot about training and the hospitality industry.
Industrylink then moved to larger premises incorporating a training kitchen within an operational restaurant environment. The sights and smells emanating from the kitchen during the training of the apprentices and food preparation for the restaurant ignited my passion to recreate those smells and tastes myself. The opportunity arose for me to take on the next challenge in my life, commencing a Commercial Cookery apprenticeship at Kuzina.
I think I have finally found my niche; you either have to love it, or it’s just a job that pays the bills and let me tell you, you have to be passionate about this as a career, as the money, work and hours can be horrendous. But the hard work, long hours and apprentice wage are worth it in the end once you receive your qualification. And as a mature age part-time student I also receive a government top up. This opens up huge opportunities and many possibilities including owning my own business and travelling overseas/interstate, the world really opens up no matter what your age. Heaven forbid even TV!
I feel truly lucky to have my regular job as Office Manager in the same industry, and look forward to my classes and time spent in the kitchen at Kuzina, with access to exceptional training and an abundance of relevant knowledge from those who are passionate about the industry.”
