Franchise brand C-suite executives want to offer growth from within

Most restaurant executives didn’t start out where they are now. Take, for example, MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes CEO Rich Hicks, who started at the bottom working as a dishwasher.

Because of his journey up the ranks, Hicks is now encouraging his front-line employees to follow their dreams and pursue the same path to success.

“We encourage that type of succession planning in growth and development,” he told QSR. “I have numerous examples of team members that have started at the hourly level and have worked their way through the ranks and are leading as general manager.”

Hicks is joined by Toppers Pizza founder and CEO Scott Gittrich, who started out as a delivery driver, and now holds a C-level executive spot. Toppers has a notable system that hires store managers and area managers from within the organization by making note of high-performing employees.

“Somebody has to tell them,” Gittrich was quoted as saying by QSR. “College kids who worked for me say they’re graduating and going to get a real job. I take them to lunch and say this is a real job.” The problem isn’t a lack of ambition or work ethic, he said. It’s just that many front-line employees view their restaurant job as a temporary gig.

Nader Masadeh also shares this sentiment. The CEO of Buffalo Wings & Rings believes that promoting from within the franchise system empowers and inspires others to do the same.

“The loyalty factor is high,” he told QSR. “Morale is high. ... There’s nothing more demotivating than bringing somebody from the outside to manage.”