Flame 2023, Issue 1

NFA Editorial Board

Matt Herridge

Executive Editor mherridge@charton.biz

304-865-2222

Rachel Jackson

Editor-in-Chief rachelj@nfabk.org

Allison McCallum

Communications Editor allisonm@nfabk.org

Jared Johnsen Communications Specialist jaredj@nfabk.org

Advertising Sales

Jeff Reynolds Director of Business

Partner Relations jeffr@nfabk.org

678-797-5163

NFA Officers

Dan Fitzpatrick

Chair

Jim Froio Vice Chair

Matt Herridge

Secretary

Steve Keith

Treasurer

Anthony Josephson

Second Vice President

Russ Lo Bello

Second Vice President

Kevin Newell

Second Vice President

Christy Williams

CEO

NFA Board of Directors

CANADIAN FRANCHISEE ASSOCIATION

Mike Kitchingman

FLORIDA/CARIBBEAN

Glenn Levins

GREAT MIDWEST

Matt Carpenter

Henry Delouvrier

Mark Peterson

GREAT WESTERN Nasser Aliabadi

Gary Geiger

INTERNATIONAL HISPANIC FRANCHISEE ASSOCIATION

Guillermo Perales

LARGE FRANCHISEE GROUP

Tom Garrett

METRO NEW YORK

Sanjay Patel

MID-ATLANTIC

Gary Andrzejewski

MID-SOUTH

Kevin Newell

Mike Callahan

Kevin Fernandez

Larry Stokes II

MINORITY FRANCHISEE ASSOCIATION

Camille Lee-Johnson

MOUNTAIN

Amir Allison NEW ENGLAND

Brek Kohler

OHIO RIVER

C.J. Timoney

Josh Lephart

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Shirley Humerian

TABLE OF CONTENTS

2023 Issue 1

Longest Franchisee

28 Thirty-Five Facts for NFA’s Jade Year by Jared Johnsen, NFA communications specialist

30 Empowering Individuals and Feeding Potential Through Leadership contributed by the BURGER KINGSM Foundation

32 NFA Hall of Fame by Allison McCallum, NFA communications editor

36 RSI Launches a Sales Performance Benchmarking Dashboard contributed by Restaurant Services Inc.

38 Protecting Your Employees and Business Against Slips, Trips and Falls contributed by Lockton Cos.

40 How to Save Taxes for Your Business While Helping Your Community contributed by Mize CPAs

41 When the Passion Shines Through by Dennis Snow, Snow & Associates Inc.

42 An Employee Broke a Law: Now What? by Douglas H. Duerr, Elarbee Thompson Sapp and Wilson LLP

44 The Actions of Leadership: The Downside of Success and the Upside of Boundaries by Dan Coughlin, The Coughlin Co

46 Machine Work: Three Ways Artificial Intelligence Is Impacting Business Productivity by Laura Stack, The Productivity Pro®

FROM THE CHAIR

Thankful for 35 Years

And we are off!

2023 is well underway. Depending upon where you are in our country, you have endured historical rains and heavy snows on the West Coast, frigid cold in the upper Midwest, even touching the likes of Florida, or a mild winter of chilly temperatures and below historical snow falls. Mother Nature, as usual, is acting on her own in the way that she sees fit!

By now, the Refuel the Flame Rallies are winding up across the system, and we are realizing improving trends in sales and cash flow. The current trends, though, are just the beginning of the beginning with a long way to go to achieve our objectives. We are all called to use our ability in every single restaurant, every single day, with every single guest, to deliver the BURGER KING® brand at the highest levels in order for us to recapture the guests’ love for our beloved brand.

More to come on this as our year unfolds!

It is also time for us to observe the 35th anniversary of the National Franchisee Association (NFA). Thirty-five years ago, franchisees banded together around their self-interests in a desire to be a wholesome contributor to the success of the brand with the creation of the NFA. Later in this issue, some of our history will be recounted, highlighted and chronicled.

Rather than replicate the historical record, I choose to instead focus upon our present role. Clearly, the NFA is alive, well and thriving. We are fully engaged in a host of activities across the BURGER KING brand and franchisees’ businesses. We have made and are making a meaningful difference.

There are numerous examples of what I am referring to but allow me to comment on the most recent. As a part of last year’s activities and the creation of the Refuel the Flame Agreement, the leadership of BURGER KING Corp. (BKC) and the NFA, as well as certain franchisees from across our system, met in earnest to design a way forward for the brand. Although there have historically been efforts between BKC leadership and the franchisees to coalesce around initiatives and plans, this collaboration was different – extremely different.

First, there was a recognition that the status quo was unacceptable and unsustainable for the long-term health of the brand and the franchisees’ individual businesses.

Second, there was a clear understanding that the franchisee’s responsibility is to deliver the brand. In this way, we were able to focus on not only the challenges before us but the opportunities that we could capture by rallying around a singular plan over the next several years to achieve our shared interests of a successful, vibrant, relevant and meaningful BURGER KING brand.

Most notably was the shared commitment to improving restaurant-level cash flow to a level, approaching our historical best and then pushing forward to the end of 2026 to a new record high for the brand. Though, in order for this to occur, it would take not only improved sales and expense management, but it would require that the brand travel to its core and address all of the issues that have held us back, take corrective action, create corrective plans and then to execute those plans in every market and every restaurant across the system.

It must also be noted that these plans will not all be articulated, identified and implemented in the present moment. Rather, there will be a series of plans and initiatives, both strategically and tactically, that will unfold over time, each with a sincere attempt to improve the brand. It should be clear that the brand did not stumble into an under-optimized position overnight, and it will not turn itself around on a dime either. Our success will be predicated on a long-term commitment and focus on this notion of “continuous improvement.” Although not everything that we will do will be 100% successful, I am confident that the working relationship between the franchisees and BKC leadership is as good as it has ever been and, by the way, absolutely necessary for us to achieve our shared interests of mutual success.

The NFA is a vibrant, strong organization with committed leadership by the NFA officers, our board, our committee chairs and all who serve as volunteers on our various committees. I thank each and every one of

by DAN FITZPATRICK

you for your participation in the process. I marvel at the selfless nature of so many franchisees taking away from their business, family and personal lives to engage in the work of the NFA on behalf of the brand.

Moreover, the NFA’s success can never be discussed without mentioning the great work of Elevanta, our wholly owned subsidiary which provides services to our BURGER KING franchisee family as well as our association management and clients across nearly a dozen organizations. I salute the leadership of Christy Williams and her entire team at the NFA and Elevanta for their professional successes and their personal commitment to each and every one of us. They are all simply the best!

I offer my congratulations and appreciation to all of our past chairmen, officers and directors for their past service! I also encourage franchisees across the system who have not yet decided to become engaged in the NFA to take that step – simply stated, we need you, we need everyone to help!

Remember that 35 years ago, a group of franchisees met on their own accord, on their own dime and formed what has now become this highly recognized and successful organization, the National Franchise Association. Thirty-five years later, we can look backward with pride and forward with enthusiasm – the best is yet to come! n

W H O S H O U L D A T T E N D ?

F r a n c h i s e e s

A b o v e R e s t a u r a n t L e a d e r s

S y s t e m S u p p l i e r s

Servant Leadership: The Backbone of NFA’s 35-Year History

Thirty-five years! Wow! As we enter 2023, NFA begins a milestone year, celebrating a history rich in people, friendships, success, celebrations, and yes – challenges. I am proud to say that I have been with NFA for almost 22 of the past 35 years. Each quarter, Flame will focus on the past 35 years and celebrate the amazing history that has been created by BURGER KING® franchisees.

As I think about this significant milestone, I reflect back on so many changes since my arrival at NFA. When I began, NFA ran the annual convention, and much of NFA’s financial stability was due to the success of that annual convention. I recall attending my first convention a few months after I began with NFA. Immediately, I knew I was somewhere special. Why? Because of the franchisee community.

The original convention was planned by franchisees for the franchisee community. During these times, NFA convened a convention committee with dedicated franchisees who discussed the important topics, the best speakers, and yes, even the location for the annual event. There were professional companies who supported NFA and the committee, but the brain trust and heavy lifting was from the franchisees. As I witnessed how the franchisees stepped up to develop this annual event to benefit their peers, I knew this was an organization I wanted to be a part of for the long-term. While the phrase was not yet coined all those years ago, what I was witnessing was “Servant Leadership.”

The NFA and BK® franchisee community has flourished over the past 35 years because of our volunteer franchisees. I have watched franchisees devote hundreds of hours helping one another. From the NFA Board of Directors, committees

and councils with BKC, special ad-hoc committees, regional associations and more, BURGER KING franchisees are the key to the success of NFA. At Elevanta, NFA’s wholly-owned subsidiary, we manage other franchisee associations, and therefore, see how other volunteer organizations are managed. I can share first-hand that the volunteer experience and dedication experienced in the BK community is rare. The way that the BK franchisee community has come together over the past 35 years is truly remarkable. The NFA Board of Directors is professionally managed and has been governed by a knowledgeable and dedicated group of volunteer leaders since its existence.

Let us look at the executive leadership team of NFA, starting with the NFA Chair. The number of hours that Dan Fitzpatrick, NFA Chair, dedicates to the franchisee community as the volunteer leader of the association is simply incredible. Dan’s knowledge, passion for the brand and ability to advocate for all franchisees is the definition of servant leadership. Dan follows an impressive list of leaders who also dedicated their time and knowledge to improving the business and brand they love. Throughout 2023, we will highlight the past chairs of NFA and reflect on their time leading the franchisee community and NFA.

For the past 35 years, NFA has been creative and proactive in developing new programs for franchisees. There are numerous examples, including the CORE education program, which led into our Leadership, Exploration and Development (LEAD) Conference to NFA’s legislative event, now called NFA Day on the Hill in Washington, D.C., held every other year. Committees were formed when NFA leadership saw a need among the

by CHRISTY WILLIAMS

franchisee community. Examples include Project Regional Strengthening, which focused on developing leaders for the NFA’s regional associations many years ago to one of the more current committees, the IT Task Force. NFA has always been ready and willing to put the resources, including people and finances, to focus on the most pressing issues facing franchisees. Most important to the success of all these programs are the volunteer, servant leaders who developed their time, expertise and guidance to making each of these initiatives a success.

I could go on and on and write 35 paragraphs to talk about all the wonderful history and accomplishments of the NFA. I will not do that now but will focus on this amazing organization throughout 2023 as we continue to celebrate NFA, and most importantly, our dedicated and passionate servant leaders in the franchisee community – past, present and future! n

Ampler Management Hosts Employee Appreciation Picnics

It is said that food brings people together. For Ampler Burgers, its picnics were no different.

During the months of October and November, Ampler Burgers management wanted to show gratitude to its staff and their families for their hard work with two employee appreciation picnics. The gatherings were held district-wide, one of them in El Paso, Texas, and the other in Loredo, Texas. These events also served as a networking opportunity to initiate discussion between members of the same district.

“All of our leadership was there,” Bonnie Najera, Ampler Burgers marketing

manager, said. “We did not want our staff to lift a finger. This was all for them.”

Upper-level management made and provided games and food for attendees to enjoy.

The events were strategically held from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. to accommodate the hours of the day when some crew members had to work.

Najera said all the crew members who attended were thankful and loved the event. Ampler Burgers plans to host more events like the picnic in the future.

“We really wanted to give them a feeling of family,” Najera said. “We are not just a team.” n

GPS Hospitality Efforts With the Atlanta Mission and Beyond

Since 2017, the GPS Hospitality corporate office has supported the Atlanta Mission. Their partnership began with sponsoring the shelter’s annual 5K which takes place every February. Since then, GPS’ efforts with the non-profit have grown to include corporate staff doing volunteer work and holding multiple drives to collect items that the Atlanta Mission needs.

During this past holiday drive, which took place at the end of 2022, the shelter specifically needed cold and flu medications, thermal clothing and other necessities that are vital to survive the winter season.

Lisa Grier, GPS Hospitality director of communications, commented, “Some years we collect gift cards or other items depending on what is needed at the time. This past year, we had a good collection of

cold weather necessities that I delivered to the Atlanta Mission in December.”

The company also works with My Sister’s House, a women’s and children’s shelter ran by the Atlanta Mission, where

GPS Hospitality staff have volunteered multiple times to serve lunch to those the shelter supports.

“Volunteering with Atlanta Mission is something the corporate office began doing to allow us to find a way to serve hands-on,” Grier said.

“We always run in the 5K together as a group. Each February we run in the cold for those who sleep in the cold.”

GPS also supports many charitable efforts through its brands. Grier continued, “We always participate in the BURGER KING® Foundation fundraisers in all our stores. We own other brands as well, and in our restaurants, we like to support our brands and their charities. GPS is proud to continue participating in these efforts, and we’re looking forward to getting our volunteer dates on the calendar for 2023!”

Ampler Burgers staff sporting BK® crowns at one of the picnics.

The GPS Team at the annual Atlanta Mission 5K.

The First Canadian BURGER KING Received a Pick-Me-Up

On Nov. 30, Redberry Restaurants announced the grand re-opening of Canada’s first-ever BURGER KING® location in Windsor, Ontario. Store No. 552 first opened its doors in September 1969 and was completely renovated to include a stunning new interior, an outdoor digital menu board in the drive-thru and a modern new exterior.

Built with the “BURGER KING of Tomorrow” concept, the overall design is focused on flexibility, innovation and convenience to enhance the guest experience.

The refurbished restaurant made its debut with a ribbon-cutting ceremony with high officials making their appearances, such as Redberry CEO Ken Otto and Matt Wright, general manager of BURGER KING Canada. Because the event occurred on a Wednesday, the company celebrated “WHOPPER® Wednesday” by giving guests a discount on the WHOPPER sandwich.

“This is a special location for both BURGER KING and Redberry, and we’re incredibly proud of the work that has gone into this renovation,” Wright said. “The guest experience is at the forefront of everything we do, and this design concept takes into consideration how our guests interact with BURGER KING, making the ordering and dining experience easier and more enjoyable.”

This location holds significance for several team members with many employees marking lengthy years of service, ranging from 10-years all the way up to 40-years of service.

This original BURGER KING is one of eight Redberry-owned BKs® in the Windsor area and one of 30 locations being redesigned by Redberry across Canada in 2022 and 2023. These renovation plans are part of the Area Development Agreement between Redberry and BURGER KING Canada to build more than 150 new restaurants and remodel nearly 65 locations

in the next six years.

“Redberry is thrilled to accelerate both new-unit growth and remodels for the BURGER KING brand. This remodel is especially dear to us,” Otto said. “As Canada’s first-ever BURGER KING, it was incredibly important for us to make this renovation a standout. There have been a lot of memories over the years at this first Canadian BURGER KING, and this renovation sets the restaurant up for years of future enjoyment.” n

Sunny Ghai Celebrates 25 Years With BURGER KING

Sunny Ghai of Ghai Management Inc. is celebrating 25 years with BURGER KING® this April. His journey with the company started in 1996, just two years after immigrating from India. Knowing he wanted to become a franchisee, Ghai started working for a franchisee in California as an assistant manager. Ghai was quickly promoted to store manager, and in 1998, the owner decided she no longer wanted to grow her business. She asked Ghai if he wanted to buy one of her restaurants, and that’s how he acquired his first BURGER KING.

Twenty-five years later, Ghai’s fleet of restaurants has grown to include 145 BURGER KINGs, over 35 Taco Bells, seven Blaze Pizza restaurants and a number of Denny’s and Popeye’s locations.

“I consider myself a scavenger of the system,” Ghai said. “I always end up buying the worst stores, and we improve them, taking them to the next level. My first store was a restaurant that had shut down, and we were able to turn it into a success.”

Within six months of opening his first BK®, Ghai opened his second store. As he began purchasing more stores, he almost exclusively bought rundown stores that needed a second chance. Ghai has also built 40 BURGER KING restaurants from

the ground up.

Though Ghai started the venture by himself, building such an impressive portfolio wasn’t achieved strictly on his own.

“I brought Harsh into the business when he was 16 years old,” Ghai commented. “He started as a crew member, moving all the way up to his position today, helping me run the company. He has been instrumental in growing our business.”

“Looking back, everything I worked on before BURGER KING is meaningless to me,” he continued. “Everything I’ve done in the last 25 years has given my family and I what we have today. Together, Harsh and I have made our business a success.” n

Store No. 552 in Windsor, Ontario, with a fresh, refurbished look.

Please join us in celebrating 35 years since the inception of the National Franchisee Association (NFA). It is not just an anniversary; it is a commemoration of the accomplishments our organization has achieved since 1988.

To celebrate the occasion, NFA has updated its logo. Taking notes from BURGER KING®, our logo’s new colors reflect the rebrand, and we’re going back to our roots.

Known as the Jade anniversary, the 35-year milestone represents

Regional Events

May 31

Southwest Franchisee Association

Meeting

Arizona Restaurant Association

Phoenix, Arizona

June 7

Mountain Franchisee Association

The Capital Grille

Denver, Colorado

July 8-13

Great West Franchisee Association

Joint Meeting With Mid South Franchisee Association

Sheraton Park City Park City, Utah

good fortune and wisdom. The knowledge and connections gained over the past 35 years is invaluable to this organization. With a promising year ahead of us, NFA will continue the important task of representing the best interests of BURGER KING franchisees across the continent.

We recognize and thank our officers, members, directors, staff, vendors and business partners for their dedication in supporting us throughout the years. None of this is possible without you all. n

National Events

April 25-27

GRC Meeting

The George Hotel

Washington, D.C.

May 17-18

RSI Board Meeting

TBA

Miami, Florida

May 15

Elevanta Board Meeting

Virtual

May 22-23

NFA Board Meeting

The Gaylord Texan

Dallas, Texas

May 22-25

NFA Lead Conference

The Gaylord Texan

Dallas, Texas

Aug. 16-17

RSI Board Meeting

TBA

Miami, Florida

Aug. 29-31

Elevanta Board Meeting

Courtyard by Marriott

Burlington, Vermont

Recognizing Kelton Graham From Keurig Dr Pepper for 34 Years of Service

Dear BURGER KING® Partners,

Please join Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) in recognizing Kelton Graham, KDP vice president of sales, as he prepares to retire from the company after 34 years of extraordinary service and dedication to BURGER KING.

As Kelton prepares to transition BURGER KING account leadership, we caught up with many of his colleagues who shared memories of working with Kelton from his early days.

Kelton first called on BURGER KING in 1989 in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions and approached our business by building relationships with franchisees and BURGER KING Corp. with sincerity and enthusiasm. He always maintained his sharp focus on doing what was right for the restaurants and BURGER KING guests.

Drew Paterno, former BURGER KING franchisee, told us he remembers well when Kelton Graham came calling on the New York market saying, “We had recently transitioned from Pepsi back to Coca-Cola as our primary soft drink supplier. Kelton faced an uphill battle convincing us to consider adding Dr Pepper to the lineup as New York had never served Dr Pepper in any of our restaurants.”

But, he noted, “Kelton was persistent and quick to point out the benefit of having two soft drink suppliers serving our restaurants and convinced us that our guests would embrace the product — that it would provide a point of differentiation since our major competitors didn’t serve Dr Pepper. Before long, Dr Pepper had a valve in almost every restaurant in the New York market and the rest of the Northeast.”

In 1995, Kelton moved to South Florida and assumed responsibility for leading a dedicated BURGER KING national account team for the Dr Pepper brand and was later promoted to vice president. His customer-focused approach, integrity, fairness and love for the Dr Pepper and BURGER KING brands fostered his relationships with the NFA, BURGER KING Corp. and RSI.

“Kelton’s deeply felt passion and commitment to the brand and the franchise community is rare among a supplier/vendor partner. His support and partnership with the franchisees will be sorely missed,” said Dan Fitzpatrick, NFA chair.

Former NFA Chair Steve Lewis echoed these thoughts, noting Kelton’s loyalty to both the BURGER KING and Dr Pepper brands. “There’s no doubt that KDP will miss him, but so will the BURGER KING franchisee community,” said Lewis.

One thing is clear, the BURGER KING business is deeply personal for Kelton as evidenced by the countless friendships he has formed throughout his career. Kevin Newell, franchisee, warmly recalled how Kelton could be counted on to go above and beyond his role as vendor: “He is a friend to the whole system, and I personally consider him a friend,” he said. “When our friend

Patrick Sidhu passed away, Kelton and several KDP associates flew to Alabama to be with us during one of our hardest moments. They took all 25 of us out to lunch that day. Things like that I will never forget, and I am grateful to have worked with a man like Kelton.”

With much respect, we recognize Kelton’s contribution to the BURGER KING business and sincerely thank him for his more than three decades of dedication and leadership! n

The Keurig Dr Pepper Team

Josh Hanley, Leslie McCormick, Kelton Graham, Larry Foresee and Tracy Kearns.

The Great Mid-West Coalition Takes on Chicago

The Great Mid-West Coalition (GMWC) convened at the Renaissance Chicago North Shore Hotel in Chicago, Illinois, on Dec. 12-13, for its regional meeting.

Members were given brand updates by BURGER KING® Corp. (BKC) representatives and had the opportunity to network among themselves and vendor partners.

General session on the first day opened with remarks by GMWC Chair Matt Carpenter, followed by a presentation by GMWC member Mark Malenchik and a report by BKC. Later that evening, members and vendors were able to mingle with one another at a three-course dinner at Ruth’s Chris Steak House.

The following day, Restaurant Services Inc. CEO, Joel Neikirk, and NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick gave remarks. Woven into the agenda were presentations from supporting vendor partners Budderfly, The Coca-Cola Co. and True Payroll Integration. To close the event, the vendors were given the opportunity to have an open forum with GMWC members.

Keep a watchful eye on GMWC communications to stay updated on the next regional meeting. n

Meets in Pasadena

The Southern California Burger King Franchisee Association (SCBKFA) held its annual meeting on Dec. 14, at the Hilton Pasadena in Pasadena, California. The event featured updates and informational sessions from the National Franchisee Association (NFA), Restaurant Services Inc. (RSI), Zaller Law and key vendors. Franchisees could also attend the trade show, giving them the opportunity to network with other franchisees and vendors who work closely with the NFA.

The meeting began with opening remarks from SCBKFA Regional President Shirley Humerian, followed by vendor presentations from Green Dot Corp. and Keurig Dr Pepper. Throughout the day, franchisees were invited to join sessions on the Reclaim the Flame initiative, the Royal Reset and other pertinent information regarding brand updates.

After the trade show and lunch, franchisees heard a legal update from Zaller Law, followed by vendor presentations from The Coca-Cola Co., Leasecake and Restaurant Technologies. Before the closing reception, Joel Neikirk, RSI CEO, addressed NFA franchisees.

Thank you to our sponsors for your continued support! n

The SCBKFA

Wayne Burke gives NFA franchisees a Marketing Advisory Council update.

BKC representative, Kyle Pagel, gives a marketing update to franchisees.

FCFA and MSFA Sailed Away at the Joint Winter Meeting

The Florida-Caribbean Franchisee Association (FCFA) and the Mid South Franchisee Association (MSFA) met together at the International Oceanfront Hotel in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida, on Jan.11-13, for their joint regional meeting.

Attendees were engaged with key BURGER KING® Corp. (BKC) and National Franchisee Association (NFA) leaders, an impressive trade show, a dinner cruise ashore the beaches of Miami and more.

The first day of informational sessions were introduced by FCFA Chair Russ Lo Bello and MSFA Chair Kevin Newell. Following were introductions from vendors, a deep dive into profitability led by Lo Bello and an LDC/bakery meeting moderated by Restaurant Services Inc. (RSI) Regional Manager, Robin Denton.

The day ended with a surprise dinner cruise where attendees were shuttled to the Venetian Marina and Yacht Club. Lo Bello and Newell collaborated with Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) to provide an unconventional reception to those who attended. The highlight was Lo Bello taking the time to commemorate the retirement of KDP Vice President of Sales and longtime NFA supporter, Kelton Graham.

The next day’s general session had presentations and updates from RSI CEO Joel Neikirk, Elevanta CEO Christy Williams, BK® Head of Architecture, Design and Construction, Chris Mott, and NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick.

The regional associations concluded the evening with a Cuban-themed reception.

“The Cuban Night was such a great time,” said NFA Event Planner Olivia Edwards. “There was good food, drinks and even a live band!”

Described as informative by attendees, the final day of the

meeting was full of presentations by BKC, including President of BURGER KING U.S. and Canada, Tom Curtis, Vice President of Insights and Analytics, Julia Oswald, Chief Digital Officer Thibault Roux, Vice President of Operations, Eric Goldhersz, Vice President of Development & Franchising, Eduardo Serafim, Restaurant Brands International Vice President of Information Technology, Chakri Somisetti, and BURGER KINGSM Foundation President, Katie Repici.

The meeting also hosted an extensive, 39-vendor exhibit hall with multiple opportunities to engage with vendors.

The FCFA and MSFA would like to thank the sponsors who helped make this event a success. n

GWFA Hosts Joint Winter Meeting in Palm Springs

The Great Western Franchisee Association (GWFA) held its joint winter meeting Jan. 29-31, at the Hyatt Regency Indian Wells in Palm Springs, California. The association hosted the Mountain Franchisee Association (MFA), Southwest Franchisee Association (SWFA) and Southern California Burger King Franchisee Association (SCBKFA). The event featured updates and informational sessions from the National Franchisee Association (NFA), Restaurant Services Inc. (RSI), Elevanta, BURGER KING® Corp. (BKC) and key vendors. Throughout the event, there was ample opportunity for franchisees and vendors to network and hear from one another.

Sunday, Jan. 29, opened with a welcome reception and trade show, followed by a Texas Hold ‘Em match later that night. Both franchisees and vendors could participate in the tournament.

The first full day of the session started with a breakfast, followed by opening remarks from GWFA President Ayaz Virji. Christy Williams, Elevanta CEO, then gave an Elevanta insurance update to the franchisees. Afterward, BKC gave an update surrounding the Fuel the Flame and Royal Reset agreements and other pertinent information.

After lunch, RSI provided supply chain updates, and franchisees then heard presentations from Restaurant Technologies, Keurig Dr Pepper, Skechers, rapid! and the Coca-Cola Co. Russ Lo Bello provided a technology update in between sessions. The night ended with the Shots in the Dark cocktail and dinner party.

The last day of the meeting began with a presentation from NFA Chair Dan Fitzpatrick. After a BKC Image Committee update, there was a question-and-answer session with the GWFA Board. Virji concluded the meeting with closing remarks.

A big thank you to our sponsors! Please stay tuned for updates regarding your next regional meeting. n

FCFA Chair Russ Lo Bello announces and celebrates the retirement of Keurig Dr Pepper Vice President of Sales and longtime NFA supporter, Kelton Graham.

Joel Neikirk updates members on the supply chain.

Support the Vendors

That Support Your Association

LEGISLATIVE NEWS

On Tuesday, Jan. 17, NFA Secretary Matt Herridge had dinner with Rep. Alex Mooney who represents the state of West Virginia and will be running for Sen. Manchin’s seat in the next election. Herridge and Mooney met at one of Herridge’s BURGER KING® restaurants for a meal and conversation.

“Alex and I made a connection over the last election cycle,” Herridge said. “Prior to the last election, West Virginia lost population, so we went from having three House members to two, and Mooney began campaigning in my area of the state for the Republican seat. By chance, we met each other at the Capitol while I was attending a Government Relations Committee meeting. Once he learned I’m based in West Virginia, he immediately was interested in visiting my restaurants and speaking with me more.”

Mooney reached out to Herridge personally to set up the dinner, and that night, they met at Herridge’s Parkersburg restaurant.

“We shared a WHOPPER® meal, and he loves BURGER KING. We talked a lot about small business and some issues that business owners are currently facing, including the labor crisis and inflation,” Herridge said. “There are not enough workers out there, and that results in competition among the quick-service restaurant industry for the same workers. The back-and-forth furthers the inflationary

income tax credit. This could incentivize people who might have taken themselves out of the workforce to rejoin, therefore expanding the pool of workers.”

“We need workers, whatever their age,” Herridge finished. “This is a bi-partisan bill, so we’re hopeful this will pass. Another issue we spoke about is the Credit Card Competition Act. I could tell this was a harder push, but I focused on the importance of competition in the free market, and he agreed with my position.”

When asked how Mooney can be a help to franchisees and small-business owners, Herridge said, “He is a free market advocate, and I believe he would be a great ally for franchisees should he win this next election and assume the Senate seat.” n

Rep. Alex Mooney and Matt Herridge.

With the book

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5The Domo Campaigns app allows you to build your own custom email campaigns, SMS messages or PDF and CSV attachments and send them out on a schedule set by you. Ensure your customer communications have a positive impact on your conversion rate by gathering data from your CRM and analytics systems in Domo.

6

Synuma is a remarkable cloud-based platform that enables you to grow your entire multi-unit business from beginning to end and was built by industry pros like you, for you. The app will help you make better, quicker decisions to open units on time, on budget and reach projected revenues sooner.

1

2Recognized as one of the most iconic and impactful strategy books ever written, “Blue Ocean Strategy” argues that cutthroat competition results in nothing but a bloody red ocean of rivals fighting over a shrinking profit pool. Based on a study of 150 strategic moves (spanning more than 100 years across 30 industries), the authors argue that lasting success comes not from battling competitors but from creating “blue oceans” — untapped new market spaces ripe for growth.

In each bite-sized, daily episode of “Before Breakfast,” Laura Vanderkam will share a time management strategy or an answer to a listener’s schedule question. Vanderkam helps listeners make the most of their time both at work and at home. The mission is to give listeners practical tools to feel less busy and get more done.

7

Canva is your free photo editor and video editor in one graphic design app! Create stunning social media posts, videos, cards, flyers, photo collages and more. Make your business stand out with one-tap animations and fun music for Instagram stories and video collages.

8

Managers and professionals across the globe have embraced “Primal Leadership,” affirming the importance of emotionally intelligent leadership. Its influence has also reached well beyond the business world; the book and its ideas are now used routinely in universities, businesses, medical schools, professional training programs and professional coaches.

3

In the “Franchise Euphoria” podcast you’ll discover how to design the right business plan for you and your business, avoid the most common and costly mistakes, manage growth and achieve your business goals and dreams. You will hear from leading franchise and business experts like John Lee Dumas, Michael Gerber, Joel Libava and Dan Miller.

9

“Problem Solvers” with Jason Feifer features business owners and CEOs who went through a crippling business dilemma and came out on the other side bigger and stronger. Feifer discusses these stories as a means of helping others avoid the same pitfalls. n

One topic: 10 facts

and What to Expect

E very year brings its own set off obstacles to overcome, goals to meet and trends to watch. 2022 brought a slew of unforeseen circumstances to you and your business, such as supply chain issues, inflation and supply shortages. Leave the guess work to us to predict the trends in 2023 that will keep you as a business owner on your toes and ready to tackle the new year.

1Now more than ever, consumers are purchasing items with sustainability in mind. Much so, a little over 75% of them have been attempting to buy more environmentally friendly products.

2 A company’s sustainable initiatives or actions toward a cause could build a loyal customer base. A whopping 88% of customers support companies that support social or environmental issues.

3 TikTok, a once up-and-coming social media platform, now has over one-billion active users. Marketing your business on TikTok may be in your best interest with over 84% of consumers admitting to buying a product after watching a video advertising its use.

4 Who are the people selling these products? Influencers. Franchise owners are aware of their low cost and influence in certain markets with 25% of small-business owners utilizing them for marketing campaigns.

5 Individuals in Generation Z are stepping up as active participants in the economy. With the oldest of this generation being 24 years old, they, now more than ever, have an influence on the economy.

6 A heavier reliance on automation is at the forefront of combatting the rising costs seen in 2022. It is predicted that 53% of tasks can be automated.

7 With automation comes artificial intelligence (AI). AI is becoming more advanced and will continue to develop as the need for human work decreases. Companies are already exploring this technology, as 25% of U.S. businesses are utilizing this, and 43% of those entities are exploring it.

8 As a business owner, you are one person trying to be in multiple places at once. It is key to have tools that allow you to monitor your business from afar to ensure your efforts are being put in the right place. Other entrepreneurs agree, and 19% of small businesses feel that investing in new technology is worth it.

9 Eighty percent of U.S. small businesses are not correctly utilizing advanced digital tools which can be detrimental to multiple parts of your business.

10 All-in-all, this is the year to build up your business or get it out of a rut. With 66% of small-business owners predicting revenue increases, 2023 is going to be a year of prosperity and growth!

*Note: This is a compilation of web articles strictly for engaging your thoughts, and NFA had no hand in making such predictions.

Sources: Small Business Currents, Melanie Edwards, Ken Marshall, Incfile, Forbes, IBM, Finances Online, Visual Objects, Business.com, Deloitte

REGIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

Meet Your NFA Regional Leadership

Ayaz Virji Great Western Franchisee Association

Mike Laird Southwest Franchisee Association

Shirley Humerian Southern California Franchisee Association

Amir Allison Mountain Franchisee Association

Tom Garrett Large Franchisee Group

Camille Lee-Johnson Minority Franchisee Association

Guillermo Perales International Hispanic Franchisee Association

Mike Kitchingman Canadian Franchisee Association

Nasser Aliabadi Great Western Franchisee Association Mid South Franchisee Association

Kevin Newell

Gary Geiger Great Western Franchisee Association Mid South Franchisee Association

Kevin Fernandez

Mark Peterson Great Midwest Coalition

Henry Delouvrier

Josh Lephart Ohio River Coalition

Brek Kohler New England Franchisee Association

Sanjay Patel Metro New York Franchisee Association

Gary Andrzejewski Mid-Atlantic Franchisee Association

Russ Lo Bello Florida/Caribbean Franchisee Association

Great Midwest Coalition

Matt Carpenter Great Midwest Coalition

Glenn Levins Florida/Caribbean Franchisee Association

Mid South Franchisee Association

Larry Stokes II Mid South Franchisee Association

Mike Callahan

C.J. Timoney Ohio River Coalition

FRANCHISEE SPOTLIGHT

Sunny Ghai

Company Name: Ghai Management Services Inc.

Partner(s): Harsh Ghai, Bob Uppal

Year You Became a BK® Franchisee: 1998

Number of Restaurants: 145

State(s) Your Restaurants Operate In: California

How did you become a BK franchisee? The company was offering a real estate parcel to the BK development manager at the store where I worked, and I was working with BURGER KING® franchisee Gussie Hampton at the time. I liked what I saw, and when a small in-line BK® came up for sale, I bought it and started working for myself. That was on April 1,1998. There was no looking back after that.

Tell us about your company’s background. I was born and grew up in Mumbai, India, in a businessman’s family. I went to parochial school and graduated from Mumbai University with a degree in commerce and economics. I got involved in the family business (hotels/liquor/propane distribution) at the age of 19.

If you have business partners, how did you meet? I have one minor partner, Bob Uppal. We connected when he approached me about opening a BK in his gas station as a co-brand. I kept him as a partner as I grew.

In your opinion, what stands out about the BURGER KING brand? Our product. We have the best food in the hamburger segment and need to keep capitalizing on flame broiling.

Going forward, what are your top three business goals for your company?

1) Increase AUVs by pushing top line sales and profitability.

2) Improve the image of our restaurants.

3) Achieve excellence in OPS and customer service. I look at brands like Taco Bell who were in worse conditions than we have ever seen but have now traded places with us. We can also do it.

What is the best piece of business advice you have received? Avoid being a part of tests and pilots on your own dime. Let others pay if they want us to test for them.

What do you feel is the biggest challenge currently facing franchisees? In my California market, the labor laws will stifle growth and make it unviable to operate. Nationally, it’s the competition that is hurting us big time, and we are not facing it strongly enough as our competitors stream past us.

What is the biggest industry change since you started? Delivery and aggregators. I could never have imagined 25 years ago we could deliver our food.

Tell us about your family. I met my wife of 40 years, Tina, on a trip to London in 1979. Love at first sight. It took a lot of work to convince her to leave the U.K. and come with me to India. We married in 1983 and completed 40 years together on Feb. 27, 2023. In 1994, she expressed her desire to move overseas for a better academic life for the kids, and we ended up in California.

We have two great kids.

Harsh graduated from San Jose State University and became my boss. He oversees the business now. I put a drive thru headset around his waist when he was 16, and now he is helping to run the company. He’s married to a phenomenal young lady, Gurbir, who is also handling high-level finance for us. They have two gorgeous girls, Saanjh, who is five, and Reyhat, who is four months old.

Our daughter, Ritu, graduated from UC Berkeley with a political science major and went on to Columbia University to do her JD. She started at a top Wall Street law firm, Sidley Austin, and is currently an associate attorney at Google. She married a smart kid, Harsha, and they have two adorable kids, a boy, Ronav, who is four, and a girl, Navya, who is two.

Ours is not a rags-to-riches story, but one of sacrificing everything we had in our home country to ensure that our kids had the best opportunities. We are very proud of them and have no regrets of what we left and traded into.

Tell us about your personal interests. Ha ha. Negotiating leases and celebrating when I get a good one signed!

Traveling, of course. I’ve been everywhere from Iceland to Machu Pichu.

Occasionally dabbling with Bollywood legends.

If I weren’t a franchisee, I would be … still self-employed as I have never collected a paycheck from an employer in my entire life. Real estate is what I love, and that’s what connected me with people who pointed me to BURGER KING. I must name the person who was the “pointer,” and the old timers in the BK business would know him. His name is Fred Phillips, former development manager at BKC. n

Sunny with his family. From left to right: Gurbir, daughter of Sunny; Harsh, son of Sunny; Sunny; Tina, wife of Sunny; Ritu, daughter of Sunny and Sriharsha, son in-law.

Spotlight on the 118th Congress: Tom Emmer (R-MN-6)

QWhat skills or perspectives from your background do you apply as a public official?

ABefore coming to Congress, we ran a small law firm. The experience of owning and operating a small business has been invaluable to our work here on Capitol Hill. We understand the tight margins that small businesses work under and the stress that is put on the livelihoods of owners and employees alike. Running a business of that size is a difficult undertaking with serious challenges.

Q What do you see as the current biggest threat to small-business owners?

AWe are deeply concerned about the Biden Administration’s regulatory landscape causing higher costs and more difficult working conditions for small-business owners and employees. For example, last session, we voted against the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act. This bill would have hamstrung all American franchises by preventing national brands from partnering with small businesses. In Minnesota alone, local franchise businesses create more than 143,000 jobs. We can’t afford to have these businesses grind to a halt. While this bill did not receive consideration in the Senate, it is a reminder of the regulatory threats on the horizon that small businesses face every day.

QWhat challenges have you helped small businesses in your district overcome?

AIn my home state of Minnesota, most of us bank with small credit unions and community banks that are uniquely threatened by ever-increasing regulatory burdens. Unlike larger institutions, they do not have access to substantial compliance budgets and were understandably concerned when Democrats proposed that financial institutions should report to the IRS about every transaction on accounts with inflows and outflows of over $600 per year.

This proposal would have made compliance massively difficult for community banks and credit unions, and we led a push with more than 200 Republicans urging Treasury Secretary Yellen to back down. We were proud to be successful, and thanks to our effort, these smaller institutions were saved from a serious issue.

QIn what ways are you seeking feedback from small businesses in your state/district and using that information in Washington, D.C.?

AHearing from stakeholders back home is hugely important — in fact, we are not doing our jobs if we aren’t in constant communication with small-business owners and employees. I have toured several small businesses in my district and appreciate seeing the flexibility and innovation of Main Street. We get our best ideas from you and stand ready to turn those ideas into legislative actions.

As Majority Whip, I look forward to hearing from small-business owners and franchisees across the country, as well as in Minnesota, on how policies impact their ability to innovate, create new jobs and grow their business.

QWhat seat do you believe franchisees have at the table and what do you do to support them?

AFranchisees are on the front line. We want to hear your insights and help you with your concerns. Legislators have a stake in seeing the communities they represent thrive and supporting your work is part of that. I will continue to support and advance legislation that empowers entrepreneurs, encourages economic growth, reduces burdensome regulations and improves access to resources and capital for entrepreneurs. Additionally, the upcoming expiration of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provisions will pose huge challenges for small businesses. We would love to extend these provisions.

QWhat message do you have for small-business owners struggling with supply chain issues, inflation, staffing and other prevalent issues of today’s day and age?

AThere is a new majority in the House of Representatives. Republicans were elected by small-business owners to deal with exactly these concerns. Combatting high inflation, supply chain delays and workforce challenges will take time. But the effort must, at the very least, involve some combination of reigning in runaway federal spending that has been fueling inflation and easing some of the regulatory burdens that have made hiring workers and acquiring products more difficult. n

CHAIRMAN EMERITUS SPOTLIGHT: Steve Lewis Steve Lewis

How did you first get involved with the BURGER KING® brand?

I started as an hourly employee at BURGER KING No. 210 in Columbia Heights, Minnesota. It was owned by a BK® franchisee. That was when I was a junior in high school in March 1966. I worked there until I joined the Navy in November of 1967. When I returned in 1971, I joined the management ranks at BURGER KING Corp. (BKC) in Minneapolis. From manager trainee, I worked my way up to store supervisor, company district manager, franchise district manager, regional manager, regional vice president … my career with BK took me from Minneapolis to Cleveland, New Orleans and Philadelphia, all in a matter of 12 years. In 1983, I began working for a franchisee whose restaurants I later bought in 1985. From 1971 to 1983, I worked for BKC. It wasn’t until ’83 that I began working on the franchisee side.

Do you still have involvement with the brand?

I sold my business in September of 2020. I did, however, retain the real estate. I’m a landlord now!

How did you hear about the National Franchisee Association (NFA)?

As a franchisee, I heard about the association when it was forming. I eventually joined my local association, the Mid-Atlantic Franchisee Association (MATFA). I eventually became the vice president of MATFA in the late 1980s. I was then asked to chair the Marketing Advisory Committee (MAC) in the early 90s. That was how I really got involved with the association at the national level.

Why did you decide to join the association?

It was obvious to me that the NFA would be the body to advocate for the franchisees. I believed strongly in that process. I thought that the more franchisees bought in to the NFA, the larger our voice would be, and we could more effectively work with BKC.

What was your path to becoming chair?

After I served as MAC chair from ’92-’95, I became the vice chair in 1996. After my term as vice chair, I became the chair in 1998.

Did any significant events happen during your term?

Chair terms are normally two years, but my term was extended an extra year because we were in the middle of Project Champion, which was spearheaded by the NFA, and was the initiative for Diageo to sell BURGER KING to a group of investors. The board asked me to stick around in my position to get that task completed, which we did.

I was also chair when we negotiated a new soft drink agreement with The Coca-Cola Co. in 1999-2000. It strengthened our bond with Coke, but it was a boondoggle for our franchisees in the long run.

Another accomplishment was my work with the BURGER KING McLamore Foundation. That was a huge part of my satisfaction. I felt giving back was a part of our overall responsibility as a brand. With the foundation, we were certainly able to do that.

What made you decide to pursue a second term as chair?

The reason that I jumped back into that position was because a number of franchisees thought that my leadership could move us along with BKC. I didn’t necessarily want to do it, but I still had the energy and passion to assume the chair position. While a number of things happened during my administration, there were also many challenges.

During my second stint that started in 2015, the biggest obstacle was convincing the franchisor that the franchise community is an asset in growing the brand. At that time, there was a lot of division within the franchisee ranks, and we had to work very hard to speak with one voice. We were able to accomplish reestablishing the NFA and the strength of the NFA as a body.

After we restrengthened the NFA as a body, I remember my first meeting with Alex Macedo at BKC. I advised him the brand needed to close approximately 1,200 restaurants. While this was met with disdain, it continues to be true today. While we did work out a store closing policy, it was not significant enough to do what really needed to be done.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention the resolution of the FreeStyle soft drink issue. Mission accomplished on that as well.

How did the NFA change your career?

The NFA helped me and my business be as successful as we were. The leadership component at BKC has always had continual turnover, so that’s why the NFA is so important. It brings the continuity of leadership for franchisees. While NFA leaders may be different in their approaches, they are there to maintain certain brand standards that need to be sustained for the brand to be successful.

It's a challenging job because franchisees have very strong opinions, and leaders of the NFA have strong opinions as well. Sometimes those collide. As a leader of the franchise community, I feel that it’s not about what the chair thinks. It’s about what the brand needs. There will be times when a decision may help the chair, but it wouldn’t help the whole membership body.

For the NFA chair to be effective, they have to always maintain the greater good of the system, not the greater good of their own individual organization or pocketbooks. It’s about the brand — it’s about the whole body. I believe that was always my strength.

I need to say that this was not a one-man show. We could have never been as successful as we were without the administration (secretary, treasurer, other key board members) that I was working alongside during my terms. Julian Josephson was my vice chair in my first term and Jim Froio during my second term, and they were instrumental for me in having them by my side during some very difficult negotiations and discussions.

What is your favorite memory of being a part of the NFA?

There’s two or three things, actually. From an accomplishment perspective, I believe that Project Champion was my administration’s greatest accomplishment.

On the other hand, as I relate back to Project Champion, we probably could have done the acquisition on our own. At the time, I felt it would have been too difficult for our franchisees to come together in terms of also having the responsibility of managing the brand. In retrospect, I wish we would have because I think the brand would be better off today.

In terms of the other part of that question, it’s the people that are my favorite memory. It’s working with the franchise community, the challenges that presents and the accomplishments along the way that have helped all of us. That’s what really motivated me.

I continue to love this brand. BURGER KING gave me everything that I have today. From the time I started as an hourly employee in 1966, I fell in love with the brand — the operations, the people, the responsibility it gave me over the years. As my career developed, I did a number of things that if someone had told me years before I would do, I would’ve said there’s no way! The work has given me so much gratification.

To this day, I still keep up with what’s going on in the brand, and I still have a number of friends who are franchisees, vendors and suppliers. I just absolutely pull for these guys all the time, and I hope that one of these days, BURGER KING will become the success that I know it can be. n

IN MEMORIAM

James K. Fitzpatrick

James K. Fitzpatrick of Fort Wayne, Indiana, passed away peacefully on Jan. 9, 2023, from complications of multiple medical challenges.

Jim had been a part of the BURGER KING® system beginning in the late 1970s for Bennett Management Corp. in Toledo, Ohio. For several years, Jim was the director of operations for Bennett’s Toledo-based operation.

Beginning in 1984, Jim joined Quality Dining Inc. (QDI), along with his brothers Dan, John and Jerry, and began developing BURGER KING restaurants in the Muskegon, Michigan, market. Beginning in 1986, Jim moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, as Quality Dining entered into the Fort Wayne market. As an operator and developer, Jim applied his expertise to making the BURGER KING brand a vibrant entity to these markets.

As Quality Dining grew and diversified, Jim led the development efforts, including real estate and construction, for many years. Jim retired from QDI in 2020 as its then vice chairman.

“It is difficult to describe Jim’s legacy and the impact he had on many in just a few words, but Jim was a kind, genial, fun and witty man who people gravitated to, followed and respected,” said Jim’s brother, Dan Fitzpatrick, Quality Dining chairman and CEO. “As both a brother and a colleague, he will be deeply missed.”

In addition to Jim’s professional involvement with QDI, Jim was ordained a deacon in the Catholic Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, in 2011. As such, Jim was the Master of Ceremonies for the Diocesan Bishop and was involved in various parishes.

“Without a doubt, Jim’s deep faith was an integral part of the type of person that he was. As a deacon, he was an outstanding minister in the church to the benefit of many,” Dan continued.

Jim is survived by his wife, Karen, and daughter, Kristen, four brothers and a long list of nieces and nephews. n

“Jim was a kind, genial, fun and witty man who people gravitated to, followed and respected.”

– Dan Fitzpatrick, Jim’s brother, Quality Dining chairman and CEO

Paulo Pena

Carrols Restaurant Group CEO, Paulo Pena, passed unexpectedly on New Year’s Eve 2022 at the age of 50. He was known for his passion for people, charismatic leadership, extensive business knowledge and the love he had for his family.

Before Pena joined the company in April 2022, he had an impressive career working with industry-leading brands such as McDonald’s, The Coca-Cola Co., Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts and Selina.

“We are deeply saddened by the untimely passing of our friend and colleague Paulo Pena,” David Harris, chairman of Carrols, said in a Carrols Restaurant Group press release. “While his time at Carrols was relatively short, his impact on the company and its business was undeniable. Paulo was a visionary leader who created a culture of operational excellence and put the customer at the forefront of everything we do. While Paulo’s drive, energy and strategic insights will be greatly missed, I am confident that Carrols will continue to build upon the progress we have made under his leadership as we seek to capture the immense opportunities ahead of us.”

During his time at Carrol’s, he had achieved in his challenge to increase profitability for the company that is obviously shown in its 2022 Q3 results.

Pena’s free time was spent with his wife and children. They enjoyed the outdoors, soccer, music and hiking.

Pena will be lived on by his wife, Corryn, two daughters, Jordana and Sadie, his son, Damon, his father, Julio, and his brother, Marcelo.

If you would like to make contributions in Paulo’s name, please make it out to ExpandEd Schools, the Heschel School and the Paulo Pena Fund for Innovation. n

“While his time at Carrols was relatively short, his impact on the company and its business was undeniable.”

– David Harris

“Paulo was a visionary leader who created a culture of operational excellence and put the customer at the forefront of everything we do.”

– David Harris, Chairman of Carrols

Remembering Bob Fur man: BURGER KING’s Longest Franchisee

Bob and Royal Furman outside of BURGER KING® No. 12.

Robert “Bob” Furman was truly a cornerstone of the BURGER KING® brand. Together, with his father Royal Furman, they opened BURGER KING No. 12 in 1959 in Miami, Florida, making the Furmans one of the first franchisees of the concept. Bob will be remembered for his devotion to the system and his contributions that forever shaped the BURGER KING business.

A Chicago native, Bob was born in 1930. After serving in the 10th Mountain Division during his years in the army, Bob returned to Illinois. Royal, a retired postal worker, was looking for a business opportunity and stumbled across a small, three-line ad in The Chicago Tribune. The ad was posted by James McLamore and David Edgerton themselves, looking to franchise their burger restaurant. Royal filled out the form and mailed it off to Miami. Little did he know that he and his son would be instrumental in building BURGER KING into the international success it is today.

McLamore answered the Furmans’ postcard, inviting them to speak with him and Edgerton in Miami. In the Fall 1996 issue of Flame, Bob recalled meeting with the founders, saying, “We met him at the restaurant, and while we were talking, Jim chopped lettuce and onions. Around 11 a.m., he suggested lunch and excused himself as he and Dave had to go to work. We went to the counter, and there he was working the cash register while Dave worked the fries.”

After their meeting, the Furmans decided to buy into BURGER KING. Bob returned to Chicago, and Royal stayed in Florida to run their new restaurant. A couple of weeks later, McLamore reached out to Bob directly, asking him to relocate to Miami to help his father. Bob decided to leave his current position in the insurance business behind and joined his father.

“We still have the telegram my grandfather wrote to my father on the first day of business,”

Jennifer Fairly, daughter of Bob, said. “They couldn’t just pick up a cell phone and call each other. It’s a testament to how different things were back then.”

Bob also reflected on this time in a 2013 edition of Flame, saying, “We only had a few items on the menu. If you compare that to today, the business was easier to run, and the service was much faster.”

After moving to Miami to work with his father, Bob realized how successful the BURGER KING concept was and decided to bring it to Chicago in the 60s. He also started a commissary for BK® in Chicago where operators could come and pack their own meat, grab their own vegetables and get other products in bulk that were needed to run their restaurants. Bob even hand-prepared the patties in the basement of his restaurant each day.

The 1970s ushered in a new prospect for Bob. He got another opportunity to move back to Florida to continue his work with BURGER KING. This time, he had his wife and children to take with him. They settled on the west coast of Florida to further expand the market.

“His entire life’s work was building these stores,” Jennifer said. “There were no assets or acquisitions because there were no restaurants to acquire. He had to find the land, have utilities installed and literally build these BURGER KINGs from the ground up.”

“In the beginning, we didn’t have contractors,” she said. “My dad would go and build these stores himself with the help of a small crew. He really enjoyed that aspect of it. Installing the floors, the seating, the fryers … he did it all.”

As they grew up, Jennifer and her sister Kimberly were fully immersed in BURGER KING.

Continued on page 26

Bob outside of one of his Chicago locations.

Grand opening of a Florida location.

Flyer from the late 1950s outlining how much opening a BURGER KING restaurant would cost.

Bob Furman

Continued from page 25

She recalled, “My dad started in BURGER KING before our family had even started, so that really is all we’ve ever done. In the early days, all the franchisees were very connected, working towards a common purpose.”

“He ended up having a close relationship with McLamore and Edgerton until they both passed away,” Jennifer commented. “Every vacation we took was with other franchisees and even all the families became very close. This really has been my whole life.” She laughed, “All of my birthday parties growing up had a Whopper Hopper and paper crowns.”

Without Bob and other early franchisees, BURGER KING certainly could not have become the big name it is today.

“All of his friendships were these franchises doing the same work as him,” she continued. “They put every penny and every minute they had into building this brand. It wasn’t like they had a foundation to build upon — they literally took it from the ground up. It was a community effort.”

By the 1980s, multiple acquisitions of BURGER KING had already begun. Most notably was the Grand Met acquisition of Pillsbury in 1988 that spurred the founding National Franchisee Association (NFA) members to act.

“My father was very interested in the association early on,” Jennifer said. “As business grew larger, it was important to get like-minded people together who cared about the same goals, so

work could be done with the franchisor.”

She continued, “He was very instrumental in taking the NFA across the country and getting the Florida-Caribbean association off the ground. He really enjoyed the networking opportunities; he gave so much council and free advice because he wanted to help others.”

Bob knew that the franchisees were the backbone of the business. He truly wanted his community to succeed, along with BURGER KING.

“Over the years, he served on probably every NFA committee he could. He was very engaged with the work. He was a true owner/operator,” she said.

The Furmans are a multi-generational franchisee family with Jennifer having worked alongside Bob for a number of years as vice president of Furman’s Inc., following in his footsteps.

Jennifer concluded, “It’s been a fabulous ride with the greatest people. He will be missed in a king-sized way in our BURGER KING family.”

In 2013, late founder David Edgerton commented on Bob’s entrepreneurship, saying, “Bob Furman was an excellent operator and managed the restaurants 100% like Jim and I would have wanted him to. He paid attention to every detail, really took care of his restaurants and became one of the best operators in the system.”

Bob was a visionary who knew that hard work and dedication would shape BURGER KING into the success he thought it could become. He will be sorely missed by the entire franchisee community who will work to carry on his legacy every day. n

Bob and some of his crew members.

James McLamore, Jerry Ruenheck and Bob at the first NFA Convention.

Former BKC President John Chidsey giving Bob a Hall of Fame award.

Facts for NFA’s Jade Year

For 35 years, the National Franchisee Association (NFA) has connected hundreds of franchise owners, vendor partners and corporate officials. Here are 35 facts about the association:

1The magazine you are reading right now, Flame, was first published in 1990 as the official magazine of NFA.

4 Today, NFA is headquartered in Kennesaw, Georgia, a suburb outside of Atlanta, Georgia.

5 The mission of NFA is “To improve, preserve and ensure the economic well-being of all members.”

6 NFA is split into 12 regional franchisee associations that spread across the U.S. and Canada.

7 NFA members own 86% of restaurants in the U.S. and Canada BK® system, representing 6,086 stores.

The first issue of Flame was published in 1990.

2 The first Flame magazine was only 12 pages long and was printed in black and white.

3 Originally, NFA’s headquarters was located in Napa, California.

8 Eighty-one percent of BURGER KING® franchisees are NFA members.

9 The first mass gathering of NFA members was the NFA Convention in 1993 with 900 attendees in San Francisco, California.

The general session room at the first convention.

10 Don White was the first president (chair) of NFA.

11In 1997, NFA, alongside BKC, was called upon by former U.S. President Bill Clinton to establish a welfare-towork coalition.

by JARED JOHNSEN

12 Formerly known as the National Franchisee Association Government Relations Conference, the Day on the Hill was first held in Washington, D.C., in 2006.

13

NFA was instrumental in forming the formal agreement between BKC and the purchasing cooperative Restaurant Services Inc. (RSI) in 1992. Some members who majorly acted in this benchmark were Jack Eberly, Larry Kohler, Joe Anghelone, Dick Fors and Wayne Thompson.

14 The NFA Procurement Committee, a now inactive NFA committee, was the genesis for what RSI is today.

15 NFA membership was opened to Canadians in 1996.

16

There have been 13 NFA chair positions filled since 1988.

17 Only two NFA members, Dan Fitzpatrick and Steve Lewis, have served two non-consecutive terms as chair.

18

NFA was born with three committees: the Marketing Advisory Committee, the Franchise Relations Committee and the Operations Technology Committee.

19

In 1991, NFA established its first by-laws, which, with minor edits, have stood tall to the present day.

20

NFA spearheaded Project Jennifer, an agreement between BKC and the association, giving NFA certain rights as franchisees.

21The Image Task Force was formed in 1995. Renamed the NFA Image Committee, this council is still active to this day.

22

NFA’s website was launched in 1999.

23

The NFA staff member with the longest employment is its Executive Director, Christy Williams, with 21 years.

24

The first NFA monthly communication was started in the late 90s and called Flashpoints

25 NFA was started by only 12 franchisees.

28

The first newsletter NFA distributed was called the “King of the Hill,” and it covered legislative initiatives affecting franchisees.

29 In the early 2000’s, NFA provided a business credit card, health discount card, safety equipment purchasing and drug testing and background screening programs as member services.

30 Elevanta, NFA’s association management company and health insurance provider, was previously called the National Association Management Group (NAMG).

31 The BURGER KING Franchisee Political Action Committee, started by Larry Baker in 1997, has raised over $3 million since its inception.

32 NFA started with regional associations in California before the association spread across the country.

Former Government Affairs Committee Chair, Tony Roland, dresses in American-themed flare to support the early years of the NFA PAC.

33 Tony Versaci is the only active NFA member who contributed to the association’s inception.

34 A catalyst that caused the birth of NFA was Grand Metropolitan’s purchase of the BK brand in the late 80s.

35 Elevanta Health first started as NFA’s Health+ program. n

JARED JOHNSEN is the NFA communications specialist. You may reach Johnsen at 678-439-2291 or jaredj@nfabk.org.

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26

The first executive director of the NFA was Frank J. Capaldo.

27 The NFA developed its modern governance model under the leadership of Julian Josephson.

The inaugural committee structure listing the leaders of that time.

The NFA’s original logo

Empowering Individuals and Feeding Potential Through Leadership

As we bid farewell to 2022 and welcome in 2023, the BURGER KINGSM Foundation is ever evolving and looking for ways to expand its impact. To kick off the year strong, we have embarked on a strategic plan that will allow us to better story tell, have a plan for moving forward and gain support to make a greater impact on our scholars and BK® families. Of course, we couldn’t do this without the leadership and support of many of you. As we look forward, we know we need to be in line with where the brand is headed, and we need the support of our franchise family. We know we can count on you!

We are happy to announce that Andrea Tejada, Luke Pisors, Gary Moore and Richard Santowski have joined our board. They are longtime supporters of the Foundation and deeply involved in our work. We look forward to all the insights they will share. Welcome! Our calendar for the year can be found on the next page. Your participation and support make a huge impact in our success. We hope you will join us in our efforts, and we look forward to seeing you at our events – they are not to be missed!

The team is very enthusiastic about what is coming and making a greater impact! We hope to be a tool to you and your teams. Please be sure to reach out to Katie Repici at krepici@whopper.com should you have feedback.

MAR 6

ROUND UP CAMPAIGN

MAR 31

ROYAL BASH

JUNE 19

ROUND UP CAMPAIGN

JUN 19-21

SEPT 25

JIM MCLAMORE GOLF

INVITATIONAL FALL FUNDRAISER

OCT 3-5

BURGER KING

CONVENTION

NOV 27

ROUND UP CAMPAIGN

P C O M I N G EVENTS 2023

1988: Grand Met acquires Pillsbury and wants to spin off BURGER KING

as an independent company that is over $500 million in debt. Don White, member of the National Business Planning Council, quickly realized that franchisees needed a representative body with power.

OF

HALL FAME

In 1988, the National Franchisee Association (NFA) became the first of its kind — a pioneer in the franchise business — paving the way for other franchisee association groups since its inception. With 35 years behind us, the accomplishments and milestones we’ve reached are too many to count, and the voice of NFA has often been the voice of reason in our business. This body is the sole representative of the BURGER KING® franchisee community, and NFA thanks every single member who has contributed to our mission over the years. To commemorate the milestone, we’re looking back through the NFA Hall of Fame to honor those who have led our organization through trials and successes. Cheers to another 35 years of NFA!

1988-1989

DON WHITE

1990-1991

DICK FORS

• NFA is recognized by BKC as the representative body for franchisees in 1990.

• NFA adopts a new leadership structure, like today’s, establishing different committees.

• Regional associations are recognized in 1990.

• The NFA Procurement Committee paves the way for the formation of RSI in 1991.

1992-1993

JERRY RUENHECK

• NFA was created to form a unified franchisee community, to improve communications with BKC and to create committees and programs to educate franchisees.

• In 1989, 80% of BURGER KING franchisees voiced to BKC that NFA is their representative.

• NFA becomes the first organization of its kind — an independent association of franchisees in the fast-food industry.

• The first ever Franchisee Information Exchange seminar is held in Dallas in 1992.

• Operation Phoenix, BKC and NFA’s first time working together on brand performance and strategic development, started in 1992.

• For the first time, NFA is invited to speak in front of Congress in 1992.

• The first NFA Annual Convention is held in San Francisco in October 1993.

• NFA starts a Hardship Fund for members in 1993.

by ALLISON MCCALLUM

1997: Grand Met merges with Guinness to create Diageo.

1994-1995

JACK EBERLY

• Project Jennifer is developed in 1994. This agreement was one of the strongest set of rights that a group of franchisees had at the time, and it clearly recognized NFA as the sole representative of the BURGER KING franchisee community.

• James McLamore and David Edgerton are recognized for the 40th anniversary of BURGER KING at the second annual NFA Convention in Las Vegas in 1994.

• The Image Task Force is formed in 1995.

1996-1997

MIKE DEROSA

• The Risk Management Corp. is founded in 1996. The Insurance and Member Services committees were created after, leading to what would become Elevanta.

• NFA Health+ program begins in 1996.

• The NFA PAC is launched in 1997 at the NFA Convention in Washington, D.C.

• Operation Enterprise is launched by NFA to build a stronger, more organized base and to strengthen the relationship with BKC.

of investors, is brought about in 2000. NFA asks Steve Lewis to extend his term for an extra year to continue working on the deal.

• A new contract with Coca-Cola is negotiated, strengthening the bond of NFA and The Coca-Cola Co.

• The NFA headquarters moves to Atlanta, and an executive director and staff are hired for the association.

2001-2004

JULIAN JOSEPHSON

• NFA travels to Spain to meet with international franchisees who want to create their own association.

• NFA’s modern governance model is developed.

• NFA establishes an LLC, National Association Management Group, to begin taking on other association clients.

Continued on page 34

2002: Project Champion is completed fully under Josephson’s leadership, and BURGER KING is officially sold to the Texas Pacific Group, Bain Capital and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners.

1999: RSI has the crucial job of keeping the supply chain going while multiple suppliers face shutdowns and shortages that have major potential to disrupt BURGER KING business.

1998-2000

STEVE LEWIS

• BKC recognizes RSI as the company’s official agent for purchasing and managing distribution services in 1999.

• Project Champion, the initiative spearheaded by NFA to convince Diageo to sell BURGER KING to a group

NFA Hall of Fame

Continued from page 33

2005

DAN FITZPATRICK

• NFA restructures committee leadership and membership. The chair appoints committee chairs and members will be approved by the board. The committees now work closely with BKC and include corporate members.

• NFA’s Health+ program expands to include supplemental life and vision insurance plans in 2005.

• Member support of NFA increased from 2004 to 2005 by 29%, reaching upwards of $3.5 million.

• NFA and RSI develop the P&L Benchmarking Initiative.

2006-2008

JOSEPH ANGHELONE

2009-2010

BILL HARLOE

• NFA files a maximum pricing lawsuit over the dollar double cheeseburger in 2009.

• The inaugural CFA Day takes place Feb. 10-11, 2009, in Washington, D.C.

• NFA partners with Direct Capital and announces Lending Solutions+, a program for financing equipment upgrades and restaurant remodels.

2011-2012

TONY VERSACI

2010: 3G Capital acquires BURGER KING in a deal worth $3.26 billion and takes the company private.

• The inaugural Government Relations Conference is launched in Washington, D.C., in 2006.

• The Best Practices Committee, made up of NFA and BKC members, is formed in 2006.

• NFA takes steps to strengthen regional associations. A committee, led by Tony Versaci, is formed to work on revitalization strategies for said associations.

• The Franchise Relations Committee establishes the FRC Process Model to protect franchisee interests in 2007.

• The PAC reaches $1.5 million raised in 2007.

• NFA Vice Chairman, Brian Vaughn, testifies in front of the U.S. House Committee on Small Business Healthcare and the Technology Subcommittee in 2011.

• BKC and NFA settle the dispute over the “maximum pricing policy.”

• Members of Congress invite NFA members to the Presidential Joint Session Speech in late September 2011.

• NFA and BKC host a joint summit in 2012.

2013-2014

MITCH LAIRD

• BKC reevaluates the Gold Peak Tea Exit Settlement at the request of NFA and restructures the settlement, so franchisees have no financial liability.

• NFA pushes BKC to withdraw the BOGO $1 on everything deal.

• BKC allows franchisees to exit the second half of the year investment spending contract at the request of NFA.

2012: 3G takes BURGER KING public again and sells a 29% stake in the company to Justice Holdings Ltd.

2014: BURGER KING and Tim Horton’s undergo a $12.5 billion merger, becoming what is now Restaurant Brands International (RBI).

2017:

• NFA submits a formal proposal to BKC to support regional pricing flexibility. BKC rolls out a test of this strategy in multiple markets in 2014.

2015-2018

STEVE LEWIS

2019-present

DAN FITZPATRICK

• A resolution to the Coca-Cola Freestyle dilemma is reached.

• A store-closing policy is worked out between NFA and BKC.

• NFA restructures NAMG to form its new subsidiary, Elevanta, in 2016.

• NFA launches the CORE Leadership Training Program in 2017 to better equip upper-restaurant management with useful skills to improve their operations.

• NFA hosts the first LEAD Conference in 2019. The conference is designed to educate and uplift above-restaurant leaders.

• NFA hosts its board of directors meeting in-person in late 2020. This was the first in-person meeting at the Ritz-Carlton in Atlanta, since the start of COVID-19.

• NFA holds its first virtual annual meeting in November 2020.

• NFA and Elevanta partner with Hall Financial Advisors to launch the Multiple Employer Aggregation Program, allowing franchisees and their businesses to develop customized 401K plans for employees. n

ALLISON MCCALLUM is the communications editor for NFA. You may reach McCallum at allisonm@nfabk.org or call 678-797-5165.

2020: COVID-19 turns the world on its head, leaving everyone unsure of what will happen next.

RSI Launches a Sales Performance Benchmarking Dashboard

A Tool to Provide Business Critical Insights to Help Improve Restaurant Profitability

In early 2023, RSI introduced Sales Channel, an advanced sales performance benchmarking dashboard, to help provide members with actionable insights into their restaurants’ digital sales activities within the rapidly evolving digital sales environment.

Sales Channel provides operators with enhanced visibility into performance metrics, empowering them to make targeted improvements to increase profitability in needed areas. With its native insights and analysis capabilities, this tool revolutionizes the way BURGER KING® restaurants can monitor their sales and drive optimized performance.

Data Drives Performance at the Click of a Mouse Sales Channel aggregates and displays up to 10 key measures that provide restaurants with greater visibility into their digital and non-digital sales, such as number of tickets, average check, total and percent sales, etc. It also surfaces opportunities to help improve profitability per sales channel, including third- and first-party deliveries, kiosk, loyalty and mobile orders, among others.

With this data, operators can enhance decision making by more precisely pinpointing areas for growth and profitability within each channel and develop targeted strategies to improve performance and, ultimately, profitability.

Using this tool makes it easy to quickly identify restaurants’ strengths and weaknesses; the dashboard will highlight any variances in performance against the benchmark, helping members gain valuable insight into key trends. This analysis, like most RSI tools, can be exported to Excel.

RSI’s Sales Channel is a powerful tool that places the power of data at members’ fingertips. Take advantage of this resource today to efficiently track progress, spot trends and identify untapped opportunities to increase profitability. Access Sales Channel on RSI Web, www.rsiweb.com. n

Protecting Your Employees and Business Against Slips, Trips and Falls

contributed by Lockton Cos.

As the third most common type of occupational injury, slips, trips and falls are a leading cause of workers’ compensation claims for franchise employees. On average, these injuries account for 12 days of work missed for employees and are very costly to businesses. In fact, the average workers’ compensation claim for a slip, trip or fall costs $48,575, according to the National Safety Council.1

While workers’ compensation insurance can provide coverage to your employees in the event of a work-related injury or illness, it is important to be aware of common hazards and try to reduce the situations that cause these incidents.

Preventing Slips, Trips and Falls

As a business owner, you can take proactive steps to prevent your employees from experiencing a slip, trip or fall. Try these tips:

• Create a prevention program: Create a slip, trip and fall prevention program that includes regularly training employees, workplace inspections, accident response and reporting. Keep a list of housekeeping standards to list minimum safety requirements. Provide clear guidelines and responsibilities for all staff members, including managers and employees. Include incident reporting

protocol to ensure accidents will be thoroughly investigated and prevented in the future.

• Remove obstructions: Always clean up spills and wet spots. After the mess has been cleaned up, place a wet-floor sign to make others aware. Arrange or remove furniture so there is plenty of room for walking. Always clear your business’s parking lots and sidewalks of snow, ice or debris.

• Improve visibility: Ensure you have good lighting in place. Consider adding task lighting in dim work areas. Illuminate all parking lots, paths and walkways, too. Replace burned out bulbs promptly.

• Safety-proof: Add grab bars next to toilets. Ensure furniture is in good shape. Install non-slip, rubber mats or rugs around sinks, beverage stations and other accident-prone areas.

• Reduce human factors: Require employees to wear slip-resistant footwear during their shifts. Spread out repetitive tasks, such as food preparation, to various workers throughout the day. Require employees to take frequent breaks from repetitive activities.

Your business is responsible for providing a safe environment for your employees. Your business can also be held liable for any incidents that occur on premises, so it is important to secure the right insurance coverage.

Protecting Your Franchise With Workers’ Compensation Coverage

With workers’ compensation insurance, injured workers can receive funds for their medical expenses and partial lost wages, in return for agreeing not to file a claim against the employer. Death benefits may also apply for cases where a work injury or illness leads to the death of an employee.

In cases where an injured employee does file a claim, workers’ compensation can also cover the costs to defend your business from the lawsuit.

Here’s what business owners need to know about workers’ compensation:

• Workers’ compensation insurance is required by law in almost every state.

• Salaried, hourly, exempt, non-exempt, part-time and full-time workers all need to be covered by workers’ compensation.

• Even some commission-only workers, contractors and subcontractors and paid family members of a business may need coverage, too.

• Workers’ compensation insurance is regulated at the state-level, meaning each state has its own requirements for benefits, coverage areas, coverage type and more. It’s important you have adequate insurance for all employees wherever your firm operates and to the extent each state’s guidelines require.

• You need to review your coverage regularly, including when you hire or expand, expand into a new state, change business categories or your state’s requirements change.

With a Workers’ Compensation policy from Lockton Affinity, you can get the coverage you need to meet state requirements and minimize the risks your business faces. Contact Lockton Affinity’s helpful representatives today at (844) 403-4947 or Elevanta@LocktonAffinity.com to learn more. n

Please note: The information provided by Lockton Affinity is for your consideration and should not be construed as legal advice.

1 “Workers' Compensation Costs.” NSC Injury Facts, National Safety Council, 26 Sept. 2022, https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/work/costs/workers-compensation-costs/.

The Elevanta Insurance Program is administered by Lockton Affinity, LLC d/b/a Lockton Affinity Insurance Brokers LLC in California #0795478. Coverage is subject to actual policy terms and conditions. Policy benefits are the sole responsibility of the issuing insurance company. Coverage may be provided by an excess/surplus lines insurer which is not licensed by or subject to the supervision of the insurance department of your state of residence. Policy coverage forms and rates may not be subject to regulation by the insurance department of your state of residence. Excess/Surplus lines insurers do not generally participate in state guaranty funds and therefore insureds are not protected by such funds in the event of the insurer’s insolvency. Elevanta will receive a royalty fee for the licensing of its name and trademarks as part of the insurance program offered to the extent permitted by applicable law.

While Helping Your Community How to Save Taxes for Your Business

The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is a unique program that benefits everyone involved. Businesses that hire qualified applicants receive a tax credit that offsets part of the first year’s wages for those individuals, and the employees receive enhanced job opportunities.

Here’s how it works:

If you hire employees from a targeted group (see list below), your business can receive a federal tax credit of 40% of the first $6,000 in wages paid to that individual within their first year of employment, as long as they work at least 400 hours.

While $2,400 is generally the highest tax credit available, up to $24,000 in wages can be taken into account for hiring certain qualified veterans. Even if the individual doesn’t work a full 400 hours, a partial 25% credit can be claimed if they worked at least 120 hours.

contributed by Mize CPAs

The WOTC is intended to promote the hiring of individuals who face employment obstacles because of poverty, disability, military service, long-term unemployment or criminal history. Here’s the official list of targeted groups:

• The formerly incarcerated or those previously convicted of a felony.

• Recipients of state assistance under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA).

• Veterans.

• Residents in areas designated as empowerment zones or rural renewal counties.

• Individuals referred to an employer following completion of a rehabilitation plan or program.

• Individuals whose families are recipients of supplemental nutrition assistance under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008.

• Recipients of supplemental security income benefits under title XVI of the SSA.

• Individuals whose families are recipients of state assistance under part A of title IV of the SSA.

• Individuals experiencing long-term unemployment.

• Employers of all sizes can claim the WOTC, including certain tax-exempt entities.

So why doesn’t everyone do this?

Certifying employees for the WOTC requires jumping through a few hoops. On or before the individual receives an employment offer, both the employer and employee need to complete Form 8850. The employer has 28 days from the employee’s date of hire to submit the Form 8850 to the appropriate state’s WOTC office in order for the state to certify the employee’s status. This process can be a bit challenging in the midst of all the other onboarding tasks required for new hires.

That’s why many businesses outsource their WOTC program. A WOTC vendor can assist your employees in completing Form 8850 at the time of hire, submit forms to your state within the time restrictions and compile the certification results, ready for you to claim your tax credits at the end of the year. You get the benefits of tax credits without the stress of managing the program.

Don’t leave money on the table. Learn more about implementing a WOTC program for your organization today by contacting Marc Swearengin at mswearengin@mizecpas.com. You’ll be glad you did! n

Mize CPAs Inc. is a full-service accounting firm that has provided the Elevanta accounting and payroll solution since 2003.

When the Pasion Shines Trough

Iwas talking to an auto repair shop owner recently as I prepared to speak at a conference of independent auto repair shops. I was ready for a quick call focused on getting some specific material to include in my presentation. I was NOT prepared for how enthusiastic this shop owner is about auto repair. It was obvious through his words and vocal inflection that he is passionate about auto repair as well as passionate about his team.

After I hung up from our call, I found that I was passionate about his passion! I was charged up to get things done for MY clients. All from a 30-minute conversation about a potentially mundane subject like auto repair and maintenance. Well, things are as mundane or as exciting as we make them. This owner had obviously made the decision long ago that he was in an exciting business – it didn’t matter what anyone else thought. And it clearly works for him because the reason the conference organizers sent me his way is because his car counts and revenue are off the charts even compared to other, larger repair centers. So how does his passion shine through?

How He Talks About His Customers

He clearly loves his customers. His repair center has a “whatever it takes” attitude toward making customers happy. He talked about “meeting customers where they are,” and trying as hard as possible to make things right for them. He spoke of one customer who was insistent on this repair center doing the job even though his broken-down car was several miles away and a closer option would have been much cheaper. His trust was in THIS repair center.

How He Talks About His Employees

He clearly loves his 30 employees. He’s proud of the fact that he has four employees who have worked at the repair center for over 30 years, and he’s just as proud of his newer employees who bring new ideas to the operation. He spoke of how he thinks of his people as family, and while this can sometimes sound like a cliché, I could tell in this case it was genuine.

How He Talks About His Leadership Skills

He spoke honestly about a recent employee survey he conducted and how he was surprised by some of the results.

There were areas of his performance he thought were strengths, but his people thought could be improved. He outlined to me exactly what he’s doing to make those improvements. I have no doubt he’s making great strides at this very moment.

by DENNIS SNOW

How He Focuses on Continuous Improvement

While improvement has always been a focus for him, it went into overdrive when COVID-19 hit. Suddenly he had to worry about things like touchless car drop-offs, touchless pay options, etc. He worked with his team in coming up with no-touch car drop-offs via a podium set up in front of the center, ways to pick up and drop off cars at customer’s homes, no-touch pay options and other ways to delight customers and keep them coming back even during a tough time. They’ve also instituted scheduling the next maintenance at the conclusion of the current service, much like a dentist office. That sure helps when it comes to predicting future revenue.

He also spoke about how he discusses best practices with other independent auto repair shops and industry experts so that he can keep moving forward. He even has a coach to keep him focused and hold him accountable.

I hope you can see why I was charged up after our call. Nothing about it was fake – his sincerity and passion were consistently on display throughout our call. My guess is that he could write a very good book about his business if he chose to, and that book could apply to just about any organization.

Here’s something to think about: If I were talking with you about your business, would your passion shine through in such a way that it would be contagious? n

DENNIS SNOW is a business author, speaker, and consultant who helps organizations develop world-class customer service. He is the author of two books, "Lessons From the Mouse: A Guide for Applying Disney World’s Secrets of Success to Your Organization, Your Career, and Your Life" (Snow & Associates), and “Unleashing Excellence: The Complete Guide to Ultimate Customer Service” (Wiley). Dennis can be reached at www.snowassociates.com, or at 407-294-1855.

Now What? Now What? An Employee Broke a Law:

To state the obvious: No matter how efficient your business, it requires people to function … and people make irresponsible decisions from time to time. This includes violating a law. What happens if one of your employees violates a law? Obviously, a lot will depend upon what law was (or might have been) broken and whether they were working when they did (or might have) done so. In addition, violation of a criminal law can have civil liability implications on top of reputational/adverse publicity impact on your business. Further complicating the situation is that you and your managers/supervisors are unlikely to know all of the criminal and civil laws your employees might break. For example, even though I am a native Texan and visit family quite often, I only learned recently that in Texas, no matter who you are or what your job is, failure to report suspected child abuse is a crime (Texas Family Code, Section 261.109). Who knew? Based on my nonscientific survey over the last several months, not many Texans. While no single article can cover every potential situation, you can (and should) have an action plan in place that will help guide

your response when the worst happens: an employee commits a crime while working for you and your business. Once you learn of the alleged crime, either because you observed it, law enforcement comes to your business to investigate or you receive a complaint, what do you do?

STEP 1: While the nature of the alleged violation and the employee’s job are certainly relevant, it is normally prudent to start from the notion that the employee should probably be suspended immediately, either with or without pay. When an employee is suspected or accused of having violated a law, whether criminal or civil, there may be a temptation to terminate immediately, particularly if there is an allegation the employee violated a law while performing his/her job duties, so as to avoid adverse publicity or impact on employee morale; however, doing so might

by DOUGLAS H. DUERR

not only result in the loss of an otherwise valuable employee, it could cause liability for discrimination, defamation or the like. In addition, if it turns out that the employee did not actually violate a law, there is the potential for adverse publicity or negative impact on the morale of co-workers because you “acted too hastily without all of the facts.” Initially suspending the employee allows time for gathering relevant information and considering what is necessary to protect co-workers, customers, vendors and the business in general.

This is not to say that taking some lesser action would not also be appropriate. For example, if the employee is not accused of a crime of violence, moral turpitude, etc., it may be appropriate to allow that individual back into the workplace, with or without any special limitations or restrictions. What is important is to take the time to consider the available facts and the potential for further harm by the accused. Additionally, some states have laws regarding employment decisions based solely on the fact of an arrest, and it will be important to ensure that you do not inadvertently run afoul of such a law by hasty action.

Note: If the employee is unable to report to work because s/he is in jail, you normally should, and can, apply the normal attendance policies so long as you do so consistently. That is, if an employee can normally take leave with little or no notice, then, even if calling from jail, the same privilege should be afforded to the jailed employee.

STEP 2: Investigate whether the employee did violate a law or engage in lessor conduct that should lead to corrective action, including termination. While, obviously, you will not be conducting a criminal investigation, you will need to have someone (or several) individuals who are qualified to look into the facts, including interviewing the employee and any witnesses or liaising with government or other officials. If there are criminal allegations/charges, the employee may be less willing to participate in the investigative process; however, while the conditions of parole usually prohibit a charged individual from communicating with the alleged victim(s), any potential co-defendants and any potential witnesses, there are seldom any other legal requirements prohibiting an employer from interviewing the employee to ascertain at least his/her version of events. (Note: if your business is a potential victim of a crime or the employee is accused of committing a crime as part of some conspiracy with the business, then the employee might in fact be prohibited from participating in your internal investigation.)

STEP

3:

Once you have gathered the available, factual information, examine the nature of the employee’s job, the alleged violation(s) and the available facts. Is there a sufficient job-related connection between the alleged (or actual) violation of the law and the employee’s job duties, such that continued employment poses a sufficient risk of harm? For example, if the employee is a server and is charged with providing alcohol to an underage individual, the connection is obvious; however, if the employee is instead a cook with little or no access to customers, perhaps not. Likewise, if the employee is charged with DUI or some other offense involving a motor vehicle and has no driving duties, the lack of a jobrelatedness connection is also obvious.

Importantly, even in the absence of a clear job-related connection between the alleged violation of law and the employee’s job duties, there may be an incentive/temptation to avoid the

continued employment of someone the community perceives as “undesirable” because of an alleged violation of law. While most individuals are employed “at will” and can thus be terminated for any lawful reason and could generally thus be terminated because of the adverse reaction of patrons or the community at large, such termination would create liability if it were discriminatory on an unlawful basis. For example, if an individual is accused of child molestation, does the community react more firmly when the accused is male whereas more willing to excuse (or await a final conviction) as a potential misunderstanding when the accused is female? Here, consistency on your part will be critical in avoiding claims of wrongful termination based on unlawful discrimination.

In considering whether to terminate an individual based on a violation of law, it is important to have a plan for interim measures to protect others and your business, to investigate the circumstances and then to set upon a final course of action. While you probably prefer not having to make any final decisions until after an employee has been proved to have violated the law or not, such is often not a realistic option as that could take months if not years. Because terminating an employee prior to a final adjudication (remember to be mindful of state law restrictions on taking actions based solely on an arrest) thus has risk of creating liability from claims of discrimination, defamation or the like, it is important to gather all the facts you can and take the time to reach a considered decision. n

DOUGLAS H. DUERR is a partner at Elarbee Thompson, a national labor and employment law firm with an industry practice area focused on franchisees. Learn more at www.elarbeethompson.com.

THE ACTIONS OF LEADERSHIP:

THEDOWNSIDE OF SUCCESS&THEUPSIDE OF BOUNDARIES

Success is important. Success is worth pursuing. Career success is often measured by title, authority, recognition and income.

Presidents are seen as more successful than vice presidents. Being in charge of 100 people is seen as more successful than being in charge of 10 people. Receiving a national award is seen as being more successful than recognition in your office. Making $250,000 a year is considered more successful than making $80,000 a year.

People invest an enormous amount of time and energy in working to be successful. It’s a good thing to be successful, to be seen as successful and to have the resources to do what you want in your life for yourself and other people.

THE DOWNSIDE OF SUCCESS

However, as you become more successful because of your well-honed talent and hard work, there are traps you can easily fall into.

TRAP ONE: PEOPLE STOP BEING HONEST WITH YOU.

When you’re 23 years old, six months into your new job, and you get drunk at a company party, the boss will call you in the next day and tell you to stop acting like a knucklehead, or you will be fired.

When you’re 45 years old, the COO of the company and you get drunk at every company party, perhaps no one will say a word to you because they don’t want to put their jobs on the line.

TRAP TWO: THE BOUNDARIES ON WHAT IS APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR BECOME HAZIER.

As you keep pushing the envelope, and no one says anything to you, you start to think more and more obnoxious words and behavior are okay.

I have seen a senior executive in a room with several associates, and the executive makes bizarre, perverse statements using very

vulgar language. The associates just roll their eyes when the executive can’t see them. No one points out to the executive how ridiculous he or she is acting.

TRAP THREE: YOU IGNORE MULTIPLE WARNING SIGNS.

Even if no one tells you to change your words or your behaviors, there are almost always warning signs you could have picked up on. You can feel the next day that you said something or did something wrong. You can see it in people’s non-verbal cues. They are sending messages to you. You might lose a good employee or a good customer because of something you said or did.

by DAN COUGHLIN

When you are in this trap, you just continue on saying what you’ve been saying and doing what you’ve been doing without paying attention to any of the warning signs.

TRAP FOUR: YOU THINK YOUR TALENT AND SUCCESS JUSTIFY ALL KINDS OF BEHAVIOR.

If you ever hear yourself or hear other people saying things like, “His/her talent is so great that we can’t afford to ever lose him or her no matter what he/she does,” then WAKE UP. Those words are dangerous. They open the door to terrible thoughts and behaviors.

I know of people who are tremendously successful, but every single time they drink, they get very drunk. No matter how many times they must be carried home, they still put their career in danger because of their willingness to justify their drinking with their tremendous business talent.

Their big title or their big talent becomes a trap, until one day their behavior is so far over the line the company has no choice but to fire them or something worse happens.

THE UPSIDE OF BOUNDARIES

The way to avoid these traps is to truly value having boundaries in your life.

VALUE ONE OF BOUNDARIES: YOU CAN SEE WHEN IT’S TIME TO MAKE AN ADJUSTMENT.

If you have a sense of the standard of behavior you want to maintain, then it becomes clear when you are missing that mark. My hunch is most of us have made mistakes in what we have said or done at some point. I certainly know I have said and done things where it very quickly became clear I needed to adjust my future words and actions.

Pay attention to what is happening right around you or internally. Take those indicators seriously and make the necessary changes for your own sake. They might not hurt you today, but they will eventually catch up to you.

We must be able to see when it’s time to make an adjustment. It’s dangerous to kid ourselves that we’re always talking about somebody else’s wrong behaviors or wrong words. We must be honest with ourselves about what boundaries we want to live within in terms of our words and our actions, and then we need to make adjustments to get back within our clear boundaries.

VALUE TWO OF BOUNDARIES: WITHIN CLEARLY DEFINED BOUNDARIES, YOU HAVE TREMENDOUS FREEDOM.

Once you start to realize your boundaries, you start to realize how much freedom you have within those boundaries. In a democracy, you have tons of freedom to do and say what you want to do. However, there are still laws that you have to operate within.

The same is true in our lives. When we know the boundaries we need to stay within, we realize that we’re still left with an enormous

amount of freedom in terms of what we can choose to do or say. It’s when we ignore the boundaries that we start to lose our freedom.

VALUE THREE OF BOUNDARIES: YOU CAN SUSTAIN GREAT PERFORMANCE AND RESULTS FOR THE LONG TERM.

Boundaries truly don’t hold us back. They allow us to keep going strong for the long-term. Thomas Kinkade was like a volcanic eruption of talent. From 1987-2012, he produced an unbelievable number of great paintings. However, with no boundaries in place, he eventually lost his wife, his family, his work and his life by the age of 54.

VALUE FOUR OF BOUNDARIES: YOU CAN SLEEP BETTER AT NIGHT.

Operating within boundaries means you are acting with integrity. You are doing what you believe is the right thing to do. And that is the recipe for getting a good night’s sleep. Acting with integrity really is the best pillow. n

Since 1998, DAN COUGHLIN has worked with seriousminded leaders and executives to consistently deliver excellence. He provides executive coaching, leadership and executive development group coaching programs and seminars to improve leadership and management performance. His topics are personal effectiveness, interpersonal effectiveness, leadership, teamwork and management. Visit his free Business Performance Idea Center at www.thecoughlincompany.com.

Machine Work:

Machine Work:

Three Ways Artificial Intelligence is Impacting Business Productivity

Some people call this artificial intelligence, but the reality is this technology will enhance us. So instead of artificial intelligence, I think we’ll augment our intelligence.”

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Ginny Rometty, American business executive

Artificial intelligence (AI) gets a bad rap in pop culture. For every fictional Jarvis or David, there are a half-dozen Skynets or Ultrons. In the real world, most workers believe artificial intelligence is something we’re still waiting on. But it’s already off and running in corporations around the world, though not necessarily in forms people tend to think of when they hear the term “artificial intelligence.” Some visionary authors call what we have “artificial stupids,” but whatever you call them, they can get the job done.

The job, in this case, is making human workers more productive by handing the reins for repetitive, dull tasks to silicon coworkers. I’m not talking about robots, and no one intends for these AIs to take over human jobs. These AIs consist of increasingly sophisticated software to boost personal productivity at work, based

primarily on machine learning culled from previous data.

Let’s look at a few ways AI has already begun to help out:

1 Forecasting. By assessing past data from your business or department and testing hundreds or thousands of models using your data, AIs can help forecast the outcomes of any potential decision or approach. It can also consider innovation, potential disruptions or supply-and-demand changes based on existing or potential conditions. This may sound more useful to manufacturers of widgets than to classic white-collar offices, but keep in mind that we still manufacture our own kinds of products for our end-users, whether they be white papers or computer programs. Besides, standard manufacturing firms also have white-collar offices to handle the technology used

by LAURA STACK

in production and make predictions for next year, quarter and decade. Given the proper constraints, an AI can learn from its past errors, optimize its data based on what it has learned and move forward based on its new conclusions — 24/7. It can also use this information to develop algorithms to predict when maintenance and upgrades to its own system are needed.

2Security. These days, the only way to avoid data theft is to use computers completely cut off from the World Wide Web. That just doesn’t cut it if your business model requires an online presence. Even if it doesn’t, most white-collar businesses need dedicated access to the internet, so workers can more easily do their jobs and communicate with one another. Many businesses have some level of human security to protect their real assets and people, but increasingly, they also require a high level of cybersecurity to protect data, intellectual property and other intangible assets. AIs provide an unsleeping eye to safeguard all these by learning to recognize cyber-attacks based on algorithms developed after previous attacks, closely monitoring input from outside and shutting down access to sensitive files/systems as necessary. They can even help backtrack the attackers to their source to block further attacks. While script kiddies and other hackers remain a serious concern, with the proper AI cybersecurity, they aren’t as worrisome as they once were.

3Research and Personal Assistants. Digital assistants aren’t exactly new, but as AI has evolved in recent years, they’ve become much easier to use and more reliable. Now, with a few instructions, they can handle your email, keep your calendar in hand and streamline other processes with simple suggestions. These are

straightforward tasks evolved from Clippy and Microsoft Bob of the pre-Y2K era (look ’em up). But the most useful thing about these assistants is that they can sift through enormous masses of data with ease, allowing you to do the kind of research that might not have been possible a decade ago. Before search engines alone, research was a much more onerous task which could require months of library work and, in some cases, prohibitive levels of travel.

Being pure software, AIs not only don’t need time off, but they also can process basic data much faster than anything human. As a result, they can relieve us of a great deal of tedium and allow us to discover connections that help us develop or refine products and continue evolving our technology. The examples here are just a few ways AI can increase efficiency, and thus productivity, in the modern business world. Soon we’ll be seeing many others. n

LAURA STACK, MBA, CSP, CPAE is known as The Productivity Pro®. She is an award-winning keynote speaker, bestselling author and noted authority on personal productivity. For 30 years, she has given keynote speeches and workshops on increasing workplace productivity in high-stress environments. Stack has authored eight books, including the bestselling “What to Do When There’s Too Much to Do.” She is a past president of the National Speakers Association and a member of the exclusive Speaker Hall of Fame. To book Laura to speak at an upcoming meeting or event, contact her at www.TheProductivityPro.com.

A Trio to for