Last week I celebrated 34 years on the corporate staff at Chick-fil-A. It has been an amazing journey. Any attempt to articulate the impact of this organization on my life would be totally inadequate. However, I thought I’d share a few things I love about working at the chicken – 34 to be exact…
1. Truett Cathy
2. The Chick-fil-A sandwich
3. Our Corporate Purpose
4. Being closed on Sunday
5. The people I work with every day
6. The men and women who operate the restaurants – they’re amazing
7. 70,000+ team members – they represent the brand extremely well
8. The daily challenge of my role
9. Free snacks in the break room
10. The variety of work I’ve been able to do over the years
11. A culture that expects people to grow
12. A culture that helps people grow
13. Senior leaders who walk the talk
14. Waffle Fries
15. People asking me, “Which one?” when I tell them I work for Chick-fil-A
16. Our foundation – WinShape
17. They pay me to do what I love
18. The cows
19. Our point of view on leadership – Great Leaders Serve!
20. Our annual meeting – 4000 people and growing
21. Did I mention the Waffle Fries?
22. Required annual development plans
23. The prospect of global expansion
24. The hand-spun milk shakes
25. My space – I traded in my office a few years ago
26. At the home office, you’re never more than a few feet from a white board
27. The untapped potential in our existing restaurants
28. Customers telling me they LOVE Chick-fil-A
29. Working in a place where people care about my family
30. Being stretched as a leader – again and again
31.The opportunity to do work that matters
32. Free lunches at the office
33. The Bat Mobile is in our lobby – the real one!
34. Success is defined as Results AND Relationships
Don’t get the wrong impression – Chick-fil-A is NOT a perfect organization. That’s not the message I’m trying to portray here. There are plenty of opportunities for improvement throughout the business. I see that as a good thing – where there are no challenges, there’s no need for leadership.
Despite the challenges we face, I’m extremely thankful I could make the list of 34 items above without having to think about it too long. And, I’m excited about the next decade. I’m optimistic the list of things I love will continue to grow throughout the remainder of my career.[GLS_Shield]
How about you, what do you love about your job?
CFA is truly a GREAT company! Congrats on 34 years! Even though I’m no longer with company – I’d add that the corporate purpose is just as solid today as it was 30 years ago, that debt free is a reality and the diligence that the Cathy family and Exec Committee have worked with to pass CFA down through the family effectively.
And for my current job, I love the progress we’re making towards being a lasting healthy organization.
“where there are no challenges, there’s no need for leadership” loved that line