EP. 118 - Monica Rothgery/No Santa New England IPA

On this week's podcast, we are joined by Monica Rothgery, Author of "Lessons from the Drive Thru" Monica shares her experience from being a frontline fast food manager at Taco Bell, all the way up to being the COO of KFC, and the leadership lessons she has learned along the way. I share a glass of (No) Santa New England IPA from Sloop Brewing Co. from East Fiskhill, NY.

About Monica:
Thirty years ago, Monica was a Restaurant General Manager for a Taco Bell outside of Chicago where she struggled to understand the essence of leadership. It was a constant uphill climb. Frustrated, she couldn’t understand how to make her team care about customers, or even want to show up for work. Turnover was high and morale was low. She missed sales goals, turnover targets and of course, profit. One very late night, after a particularly challenging day, she sat on the floor of her dining room. As the tears of frustration fell, she made a vow: “IF I ever get promoted out of the restaurant, I will spend my life trying to make life easier for managers.”Monica did get promoted and over time discovered the secrets to achieving great results and building great teams. Along the way she studied human behavior, organizational effectiveness, instructional design and business strategy. She analyzed great front-line leader behaviors to find common threads. She discovered the essentials to becoming a great business leader and achieving results: how to…· Embrace who you are at work· Make your mark on the lives of others· Figure out what is yours to do· Become the leader that no one ever leaves.Monica went from running one restaurant to leading 4000 restaurants as the COO of KFC in the United States. Today, Monica continues her passion to empower frontline leaders through keynotes, coaching and workshops.

About Monica's Book:

Lessons from the Drive-Thru: Real life Wisdom for Frontline Leaders

Leading a team is hard. There is immense pressure to deliver results while leading a team of unique, diverse individuals. As a Taco Bell manager, Monica tried muscling her way through, working extremely hard, only to produce mediocre results. Over time, she learned that her job was not to run the business but to lead the team. Once leadership became the focus, turnover decreased, the customer experience improved, and the business grew.In Lessons from the Drive-Thru: Real Life Wisdom for Frontline Leaders, Monica uses stories from behind the counter to illustrate the power of true servant leadership. Both new and experienced leaders will learn how to:

• Shift the focus from “me” to “we” and watch the team thrive while the business grows.
• Discover the power of using uniqueness to lead with ease, authenticity, and vulnerability.
• Realize the potential to impact the lives of those of team members.
• Anticipate the unexpected and persevere with grace.