Megan H., Employer Brand Co-op

Julia will be celebrating 10 years at Toast in just a few weeks! Hear about her experience, insights, and advice as one of the very first Toasters: 

What’s your “Why Toast” pitch when you’re talking to your friends, family and previous coworkers about an opportunity to join us at Toast?

Culture is always my number one reason. We hire such lovely people who care deeply and it shows up in the way we support our customers, how we market our brand and how we treat each other internally. It’s just a delight to work with Toasters. 

You’ve built a successful career at Toast, what do you attribute your success to?

I’ve always tried to take advantage of the project or opportunity in front of me and embrace the ambiguity. I’m not scared to dive into the work, take on unproven projects with a limited roadmap, or pivot where needed. I think my flexibility, optimism and high say-do ratio have helped me succeed. 

Aside from rolling with the chaos, I’ve grown so much as a people leader at Toast. I've had multiple opportunities to build and lead teams, from hiring to developing talent. Seeing my teams grow professionally and make a meaningful impact on the business is one of the things I’m most proud of. 

Describe your new role as the Strategic PMO. What excites you about it?

My role is focused on leading senior team projects that are highly cross-functional or very ambiguous -- which is right up my alley. I’m excited to learn about parts of the business I haven’t explored before, foster stronger collaboration across teams, and ensure projects and their supporting teams are set up for success. Once a project is in a strong, sustainable place, I’ll move on to the next complex opportunity!

How does Toast and your job allow for the flexibility for you to pursue other passions outside of Toast?

I have my second sabbatical coming up so that is one huge way Toast is giving me space to pursue my passions (Toast offers a month off every 5 years as a sabbatical). I’m using the time to go on a painting retreat in Europe! I’ve always found Toast to be flexible and supportive of me taking the time I need to balance work and life. Toast is fast-paced and we want to do a lot of exciting things but I’ve only ever had support from my managers and leadership to invest in myself outside of work.

What was your experience like as one of the very first Toasters?

One of my proudest early moments at Toast was creating the logo. It’s so rewarding now, traveling to different offices and seeing our sign—something I designed—always fills me with joy. Watching it displayed in New York when we went public was an unforgettable experience. While the brand and design team have taken it so far from those early days, having the opportunity to create that logo remains a career highlight for me.

Beyond that, the early years were all about being scrappy and having fun. We were wide-eyed, passionate, and deeply invested in what we were building. That same spirit still exists today, but back then, it felt like a dream. Now, we’re truly making the impact we always hoped for.