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10 FEDA News & Views Why They When Hatco Corp.'s Joe McAuliffe fi rst entered the Foodservice Equipment and Supplies Industry roughly two years ago, he tended to stick out. Aside from the obvious aura of green that clings to newbies, the 27-year-old history major was, well, still in his 20s and representative of a demographic that's historically been swallowed up by a sea of Boomers. That's, of course, slowly changing as the latter is aging out, forcing segments throughout the channel to strategize about how to appeal to a new crop of talent. Judging by the stats, Hatco's got a few good ideas. A little less than half of its 600 employees are Gen Xers, 18 percent are Millennials and 7 percent fall in the emerg- ing Generation Z category, according to Mike Whiteley, the Wisconsin-based manufacturer's vice president of sales and marketing. "We're excited about the young folks that we have, the talent they bring and the potential they represent," he says. "We try to focus on all of the things that we read about in order to make the day-to-day more of a life experience and not just a job." And according to McAuliffe, life at Hatco is good, thanks to year-round spurts of fun. Past activities include an offi ce Olympics, a Wii Bowling League and a Baggo competition. There's also "Time-Out Thursday," and the annual "Just-Because Picnic," in addition to health and wellness classes and educa- tional assistance for any employee who would like to pursue a degree or additional training. "It's very much work hard, play hard here," says McAuliffe, who started out as a dealer sales rep but now has the added responsibility of helping to manage a few territories in the U.S. What keeps him at Hatco? Simply put, he loves his job—and he's not the only one. News & Views interviewed six other young professionals (starting with Webstaurant's Emily Smith) who are just as pas- sionate about life, their careers and the industry they now call home. Find out how their employers found them and what they're doing to keep them. Also, note each person's "5 Must Haves" for workplace bliss. When Hatco Corp.'s Joe McAuliffe fi rst entered the Foodservice Equipment and Supplies Industry roughly two years ago, he tended to stick out. Aside from the obvious aura of green that clings to newbies, the 27-year-old history major was, well, still in his 20s and representative of a demographic that's historically been swallowed up by a sea of Boomers. That's, of course, slowly changing as the latter is aging out, forcing segments throughout the channel to strategize about how to appeal Judging by the stats, Hatco's got a few good ideas. A little less than half of its 600 employees are Gen Xers, 18 percent are Millennials and 7 percent fall in the emerg- ing Generation Z category, according to Mike Whiteley, the Wisconsin-based manufacturer's vice president of sales and When Hatco Corp.'s Joe McAuliffe fi rst entered the Foodservice Equipment and Supplies Industry roughly two years ago, he tended to stick out. Aside from the obvious aura of green that clings to newbies, the 27-year-old history major was, well, still in his 20s and representative of a demographic that's historically been swallowed up by a sea of Boomers. That's, of course, ing Generation Z category, according to Mike Whiteley, the Wisconsin-based manufacturer's vice president of sales and EMILY SMITH Digital Media Director WebstaurantStore (7 Years In) By Stacy Ward, Managing Editor fedastacy@verizon.net