Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue I, 2012 | Page 45

MEGA

“We put a lot of our resources into
training. When we bring people into our
organization, we bring them along slowly,
working with them to help them learn our
system, our business philosophy, and how
we want to treat our customers.”
MANAGEMENT
Business philosophy: Take one day at a time.
Are you in the franchising, real estate, or customer service business? We’re in the customer service business. Without putting customer service number one on the list, there would be no reason
for any other phase of the business.

SIP.
SHARE.
SAVOR.

What gets you out of bed in the morning? I enjoy each day and the challenges it brings—both
the ones I know about and the ones I don’t. That’s one of the pros and the cons of the business, never
knowing what to expect. There’s definitely nothing mundane about what we do.
What’s your passion in business? Our employees.
Management method or style: We give people a lot of latitude in their jobs as well as opportunities
to succeed, make mistakes, and learn from their mistakes.
Greatest challenge: Our greatest challenge is coping with the outside influences and government regulations we are faced with today while continuing to run a profitable business.
How close are you to operations? I’m operations-oriented, so I’m involved every day.
Have you changed your marketing strategy in response to the economy? How? We
are doing more value meal kinds of marketing, looking closely at pricing, and using the Internet and our
Facebook page to reach out to more people, especially younger people and teens.
Personality: Most of the time, I’m fairly easygoing, and I try to think before I speak. However, like
most people, I’ve had to have my foot surgically removed from my mouth more than once.
How do others describe you? They would say the same, but most of my team has been around
long enough to know when to give me a little space.
How do you hire and fire? I hire and fire very carefully, and we don’t fire very many people. We
find that those people who don’t fit into the organization usually weed themselves out.
How do you train and retain? We put a lot of our resources into training. When we bring people
into our organization, we bring them along slowly, working with them to help them learn our system, our
business philosophy, and how we want to treat our customers. When people leave, we do exit interviews
to learn what we may do better and how to make a better work environment. Over the past 32 years,
we’ve learned something every time we lose an individual from the organization. We feel a sense of obligation to our employees. After all, they make us successful.
How do you deal with problem employees? I don’t deal with any unless they’re in upper management. Generally, we counsel people, give them goals to reach and opportunities to improve. If their
goals are not in sync with ours, more often than not they leave on their own.

1-855-466-9222
www.belgianbeercafe.us

Multi-Unit Franchisee Is s u e I, 2012



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