EBL Series: Dan Cathy of Chick-Fil-A on The Importance of Personal Ethics
Today we are launching a new series here at CCI in conjunction with one of our content partners, the Beta Gamma Sigma Center for Ethical Business Leadership, which describes its mission as follows:
Given the size, geographical scope, and levels of responsibility achieved by our membership, the Board of Governors of BGS has determined that we should serve our members and the business community by becoming an international resource for good ideas on incorporating ethical business practices into the very fabric of our business enterprises. We want to join and inform the discussion about ethical business by focusing on those leadership strategies and actions that can make ethical business behavior fundamental to good business.
Visit the links at the bottom of this post for more information on Beta Gamma Sigma and its Center for Ethical Business Leadership.
In the first installment of our series here at CCI, we will be spotlighting one of the executives whose thoughts on ethics and business are highlighted at the EBL Center website. Today’s featured executive is Dan Cathy, the President and COO of Chick-Fil-A, one of the largest family-owned, quick-service restaurant chains in the world.
There are links below for more information on Cathy, as well as a link to the complete transcript of the interview the EBL Center conducted with Cathy. Courtesy of the EBL Center, we have embedded a couple of videos that provide segments of their interview with Cathy. Among the topics highlighted in the videos: the importance of personal ethics; the advantages enjoyed by Chick-Fil-A by being a private company; and, the importance of people.
Video: Chick-Fil-A President Dan Cathy on The Importance of Personal Ethics
The most important decisions that we make are really how we spend our personal time. Our public life is really a reflectionof our private life.
…
If you make a bad mistake about how you spend the shareholders money or if you misrepresent the values that you have espoused—if you say one thing but your personal conduct goes another—that ultimately will bring shame and disrepute to the organization, as it should.
Click here to view video in a new window
Video: Chick-Fil-A President Dan Cathy on Leadership Advantages of Being a Privately-Held Company
Probably the most visible sign of that is the reputation we have for being closed on Sunday. That is a big, big marquee for us. And to be honest with you, that whole statement of being closed on Sunday is a literal statement but it also has some figurative overtones as well. It is probably the most succinct way of talking about our corporate culture.
Click here to view video in a new window
Video: Chick-Fil-A President Dan Cathy on The Importance of People
We typically select based on what we call the “three C’s.” Competence, that’s their business acumen and the skills that they have. Character, which is their whole values set, and also their Chemistry, their likability – is this someone we would want our own sons or daughters to work for?
Click here to view video in a new window
The following links will provide more information about Chick-Fil-A president and COO Dan Cathy, including the rest of the videos from his interview with the EBL Center:
- Dan Cathy, President and COO of Chick-Fil-A — (Center for Ethical Business Leadership)
- Customer-Centered Leadership: Dan Cathy and Chick-Fil-A — (Fast Company)
- Dan Cathy — (Twitter)
- Dan Cathy bio — (Chick-Fil-A.com)
The following links will provide more information about Beta Gamma Sigma and its Center for Ethical Business Leadership:
- Center for Ethical Business Leadership
- About the Center for Ethical Business Leadership
- Beta Gamma Sigma
* – Dan Cathy photo credit: Center for Ethical Business Leadership
Tags: beta gamma sigma, chick-fil-a, dan cathy, ethical business leadership, importance of people, importance of personal ethics, videos
