Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue I, 2016 | Page 31

“We have been fortunate to have great people who handle the day-to-day operations for our many businesses. We stay close as owners, but let our people do what they do best.” PERSONAL First job: Working for my father during summer break in high school at one of the hotels we owned. Exercise/workout: Three to four times a week in the mornings, usually before work. Formative influences/events: Watching my father grow our small, independent motel business into a large-scale company owning and operating a multitude of brands and businesses. We have built great relationships with all our franchisors and partners along the way. Best advice you ever got: Focus on the things you can control. What’s your passion in business? Watching our co-workers succeed and grow with our company. Biggest current challenge: Finding and keeping the right people for our company at all levels. How do you balance life and work? I make a point to spend quality time with family and friends every week and plan specific outings with everyone to stay connected. Next big goal: Growing our portfolio of franchise brands to over 100 total units. Guilty pleasure: Sweet tooth. First turning point in your career: Getting to work for a large private equity firm before I rejoined the family business. It really tested me as an individual and highlighted what I was good at and what still needed improvement. Without this experience I would not be in the position I am today professionally. Best business decision: Willingness to try something new. Hardest lesson learned: Being smart is not enough to succeed in business. Work week: In a family business, you do whatever it takes to keep our businesses succeeding. I am always on the clock! Favorite book: The Most Important Thing by Howard Marks. Favorite movie: “Saving Private Ryan,” “Coming to America,” “City of God.” What do most people not know about you? I love classical music. Pet peeve: Drama. What did you want to be when you grew up? A businessman like my father. Last vacation: Martha’s Vineyard. Person I’d most like to have lunch with: Benjamin Franklin. MANAGEMENT Business philosophy: Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right things right. Management method or style: Giving our team the resources and tools they need to succeed and getting out of the way. Attention to people, not ideology. What are the two most important things you rely on from your franchisor? Consistently growing the brand and maintaining relevance/value proposition with the core consumer. Greatest challenge: Getting everyone to focus (myself included) on the top priorities each day and not getting distracted by emails, calls, meetings, etc. Have you changed your marketing strategy in response to the economy? How? Our marketing strategy is always evolving as we try to meet constantly changing consumer needs across our business lines. How do others describe you? Hard-working, honest, loyal, knowledgeable, driven, easygoing. One thing I’m looking to do better: Work/life balance. How I give my team room to innovate and experiment: Empowering them to come up with ideas and solutions to improve our business on a daily basis. It’s okay to try something new and different as long as we can learn from the experience and move toward a better solution. How close are you to operations? We have been fortunate to have great people who handle the day-to-day o