Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue I, 2015 | Page 25

First job: “In the 7th grade I was in charge of the
popcorn stand at the junior high school concession stand.”
or deduct bonuses and rank stores. Employee favoritism by district managers
is frowned upon and challenges among
stores makes winning sweeter, he says.
This way of thinking is particularly
important to the younger generation,
who want to have fun doing their job,
be recognized for what they do, and
love being ranked. Often, this spirit of
competition is more about productivity and the pride of doing well than it
is about money, he says.
Along the way, Paek discovered that
high morale leads to high productivity.
“Passion is something that is caught,”
he says. “We hire positive people who
deal with employees in positive ways
and recognize and reward positive statistics and productivity. When we focus
on positive influences and positive reinforcement, we find the negativity falls
off. I feel like we have done that well.”

Paek learned the value of a strong
work ethic early. Born in South Korea,
he was a fifth grader when his family
moved to California, and he