Steven Hawley first began his Domino’s career as a dough boy in 2003 at Domino’s Armadale.

As a teenager working at the local deli after school, Steven says he quickly grew jealous of the people who worked next door at Domino’s, who were always busy hustling pizzas out the door.

“Back then, the old Domino’s Armadale store manager would come in a lot to pick up cold drinks for his team. One day out of the blue, he offered me a job on the spot because he liked my customer service skills so much!” says Steven.

“After I left high school in 2005, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. All I knew was that I loved working at Domino’s, so I decided to stick with it and focus on becoming a store manager.”

Over the next few years, Steven moved up the ranks from store manager to regional manager, looking after the operations of nine Domino’s stores across Western Australia.

In 2008, he was awarded the ANZ Rookie Regional Manager of the Year Award, before receiving the top award just a year later, taking home the ANZ Regional Manager Leadership Award for growing the most shift runners into store managers.

After helping stores reach success over the next four years, including Domino’s Armadale achieving the Rolex Challenge and winning the highest Operations Evaluation Report (OER) and Food Safety & Handling (FSH) Average Award, Steven decided it was time to become a franchisee himself in 2012, taking on Domino’s Armadale and Victoria Park.

But after almost a decade of being the ‘Mr Pizza’ in his local community, Steven said it was time for him to take his Domino’s career in a different direction…

“Perth had always been my home, and I was keen for a new challenge. I really wanted to live in a different state, so I made the decision to sell both of my stores, pack up, and just go! Selling Domino’s Armadale, the store where it all started for me, was very tough. Everyone knows that saying goodbye is never easy!

“I originally thought I would look to franchise Domino’s stores in Victoria, but when a Domino’s Business Consultant position came up, I thought it was a perfect opportunity to use my 18+ years of experience to help other franchisees grow and succeed.”

As a Domino’s VIC/TAS Business Consultant, Steven now focuses on delivering support to other franchisees. Whether it be completing a business review to help them expand or to stay on track, working out a local marketing strategy, or looking at resolving bottleneck issues they may be experiencing – Steven is always there and ready to offer a helping hand.

“At the moment we’re in lockdown in Victoria, so being in this new role has had its challenges. I’ve spent a lot of time on Zoom and on the phone to franchisees who know I’m never far away. Thankfully, I’ve been lucky to make it out to some stores in a COVID-Safe way which has been great, but I can’t wait to get back into stores properly and work some more shifts!

“At Domino’s, every day is so different and presents a new challenge. What I love most though is the passion our franchisees have for growing their business and their people.

“Even after all this time at Domino’s, I am still learning so many new things from franchisees that have been around for a very long time, and from franchisees who are just getting started!”

Domino’s is a fast-paced business that is forever changing – from our tasty products to our world-class operations procedures and innovative technology. But there is one thing that always remains constant – our people are the heart of our business.

Interested in what a ‘career in pizza’ may look like for you? Visit Domino’s Jobs website today:  https://jobs.dominos.com.au/