Franchise Update Magazine Issue II, 2012 | Page 14

CEO profile:
begins with me. Examples include the
following: “Do the right thing.” “Passionate about serving others.” “Obsessed
with excellence.” “Courage to be bold
and grow.” “People first with pride and
respect.” I include these values in every
presentation I make to the organization.
Spending time in our restaurants with
our employees, franchisees, and guests
also helps me share my vision and culture across the organization.
Where is the best place to prepare for
leadership: an MBA school or OTJ?

Although a strong education is helpful, the best place to learn about effective leadership is through business and
personal experiences and by observing
and learning from other leaders. Some
people are born with more natural leadership skills than others, but great leaders work hard at it.

enough or your management style is
keeping the best ideas from coming out.

Last book read: What Matters Now by

Management

What technology do you take on the
road? BlackBerry, iPad, and laptop

Describe your management style: I

computer.

believe in hiring smart executives with
lots of passion and a strong work ethic,
as well as managing with an open and
collaborative style. That allows us as a
team to achieve results that would be
impossible to achieve individually.

Gary Hamel.

How do you relax, balance life and
work? I exercise, spend time with family,

and participate in local auto track events.
Favorite vacation destination: Triple

Creek Ranch in Montana.
What does your management team
look like? Smart, flexible, diverse, pas-

sionate, and hard-working.
How does your management team
help you lead? They challenge me and

each other. They trust each other so we
can have open communication to find
the best answers.

Favorite occasions to send employe es notes: Anniversaries and birthdays.
Favorite company product: A Big

Buford with fries finished off with a
Strawberry Cheesecake Sundae.

Bottom Line

Are tough decisions best taken by
one person? It depends on the deci-

Favorite management gurus and
books: I prefer business periodicals

What are your long-term goals for the
company? We want to take everything we

sion. First, never shy away from the
tough decisions. In fact, seek out the
tough decisions because that’s usually
where the big risks and big rewards are.
As a leader, you need to face those decisions, understand them, and provide
the necessary leadership to get to the
best answer. Sometimes that requires
you to step in as the leader and make
the decision yourself. In other cases,
it might be best to allow your team to
work through the issue and arrive at
the best decision aided by your coaching and leadership.

like the Harvard Business Review and
keeping up with the latest business and
trade news.

learned in 2011 and apply it to 2012 and
beyond. Our long-term goal is to grow to
3,000 restaurants while maintaining a commitment to our values and stakeholders.

How do you make tough decisions?

The resolution has to be consistent with
our values and drive the interests of all
of our stakeholders: guests, employees,
franchisees, and shareholders.
Do you want to be liked or respected?

I’d prefer to be respected for my values,
professionalism, and commitment to
our stakeholders.
Advice to CEO wannabes: Hire smart,

hard-working executives with strong
values. If you’re the one coming up with
the best answers, your team is not strong

12

Franchiseupdate Iss u e II, 2 0 1 2

What makes you say, “Yes, now that’s
why I do what I do!” When I see an ex-

ecutive or employee achieve something
they never thought they could achieve.
That moment is incredibly satisfying
and rewarding for me.

Personal
Exercise in the morning? Yes! When

I’m at home, I’m up at 4:45 a.m. for a
workout. I feel best when I work out in
the morning.

How has the economy changed your
goals for your company? It forced

us to find new ways to grow our sales,
profits, and spur new restaurant growth.
Where can capital be found these
days? Many business people and inves-

tors are sitting on cash that they need
to invest. A Checkers/Rally’s franchise
is a great place to invest that capital.
How do you measure success? Re-

sults, not activity.
Wine with lunch? Never, but I love

wine with dinner on weekends.

What has been your greatest success? I’m proud to have created and

Do you socialize with your team after
work or outside the office? We spend

developed an outstanding leadership
team at Checkers/Rally’s.

lots of time together at work and during our business travel. We enjoy each
other’s company, have lots of laughs,
and know each other very well. That
said, we all have healthy personal lives
so weekends are typically spent with
family and friends.

What can we expect from your company in the next 12 to 18 months? We’ll

continue to evolve and grow in order
to find new ways to increase restaurantlevel sales and profits while adding new
restaurants to our system. n