Frank always ready to roll out the red carpet

While the career of Juniper Administration Officer Frank Martino has taken a few turns over the years, putting the customer first has remained a constant.

Part of the retail industry for decades, Frank started on a cadetship at Perth’s fondly remembered Coles store in the Hay Street Mall; moved up to store manager at Kmart for 30 years and later sold paint for 10 years.

He would ultimately make a further career shift to becoming a qualified carer after completing a Certificate III course at TAFE. Studies he pursued to support and care for his mother.

“I thought I’d do something totally different – my mum had dementia, and the qualification was a great benefit to have,” Frank said.

During his studies, Frank took part in a student placement at Juniper Chrystal Halliday Residential Aged Care Home in Karrinyup and went on to secure a carer role at Juniper John Bryant in 2020.

Always willing to chip in as needed, Frank started looking after some administration duties at the front desk of Juniper John Bryant.

The variety of duties and customer interaction soon piqued Frank’s interest, and he became a full-time Administration Officer at John Bryant two and a half years ago.

Ever since then, Frank has been the friendly and popular face at the counter who “rolls out the red carpet” for visitors.

Whether it’s drawing up rosters, sorting out invoices, filing duties or greeting visitors, Frank continues to enjoy the “mixed bag” that his role offers.

“I think the business is really well set up – the clinical side of things has had a lot of changes for the better, and it’s a good place to work,” Frank said.

“I’m very impressed with the training, Juniper always do their best to upskill you and meet the standards required.”

The multicultural nature of the Juniper workplace is another aspect that Frank appreciates in his role. With many of his colleagues moving to Perth from around the globe, Frank said it reminded him of his own parents migrating from Italy to WA in the 1950s.

Away from keeping Juniper John Bryant in check, Frank likes a round of golf and enjoying time with family and friends.

“Customer service is my whole life – I’ve always interacted with customers, always interacted with people, I enjoy it,” Frank said.