Fall 2012 Management 320: Leading & Managing Teams by Dr. Len McKendrick Loyola University Chicago Corporate Social Analysis on Chick-fil-A including 17-year financials, environmental stewardship, corporate social responsibility, and leadership assessment.

1. Corporate Social
Responsibility Analysis:
Project Manager
Marie Holada
Team Members
Mayra Gomez, Matthew Cruz, Mitch Goebel,
Alix Gilmore, Jacob Hostetler
November 30th, 2012 1

2. Table of Contents
About Chick-fil-A 3
Mission Statement
17-Year Sales Summary 4
Current QSR Rank
Projected Sales
Environmental Stewardship Assessment 5
Corporate Social Responsibility Assessment 6
COO Dan Cathy Leadership Assessment 7
Team Beta Assessment of Dan Cathy 8
Summary 10
Works Cited 11
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3. About Chick-fil-A
• Fast food chain founded in Hapeville, GA in 1946 by
S. Truett Cathy
• Led by COO and President Dan Cathy
• 1,600+ restaurants in 39 states (mainly South &
Midwest)
• Corporate culture heavily influenced by Christianity
(i.e. stores closed on Sundays)
Mission Statement
"Be America's Best Quick-Service
Restaurant"
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4. 17 Year Sales Summary
Current QSR Rankings*
*With current trends in sales, Chick-fil-A is projected to overtake KFC when 2012 QSR Rankings are reported.
2012 Projected Sales: Two Independent Methods
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5. Environmental Stewardship
Performance Assessment
• Implementation of EnerG2 coolers and freezers Good
• Energy and Water retrofits for 900+ restaurants by year end 2012 Good
• Converting company’s print projects to Forest Stewardship Council certified printers
Satisfactory
• Constructing LEED Gold certified restaurants Exceptional
• Expanding foam cup recycling program to 500+ restaurants in 2013 Satisfactory
• Reduced Chick-fil-A Bowl landfill waste by 12 tons Satisfactory
– Saved 359 gallons of oil and 24,850 gallons of water
• Overall Assessment: Good
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6. Corporate Social Responsibility
8 out of 10 subject matter experts cite Chick-fil-A
as a “do well and do good” corporation.
• “Starting today, Chick-fil-A® is taking another step in continuing to address the issue of
childhood obesity by debuting one of the nation’s most nutritious kid’s meals.” –
Franchising.com (Better Business Bureau verified)
• “President and chief operating officer Dan Cathy infuses everyone from franchise owner-
operators to teenagers earning $9 an hour with his passion for service and his conviction in
its intrinsic worth – to the individual as well as the company.” – Chuck Salter, Senior Writer,
Fast Company
• “As a franchisee I control 100% of marketing budget – sponsor little league teams, spend
the money locally, on events that create an emotional connection, food donations, etc.” –
Lauren Silich, Owner Operator, Chick-fil-A Water Tower
• Random Acts of Kindness: “every cashier has a card saying RAK so they can comp meal or
give you little cow or t-shirt if it seems you’ve had a bad day.” – Lauren Silich, Owner
Operator of Chick-fil-A Water Tower 6

7. Leadership Assessment
17 out of 20 subject matter experts rate Dan Cathy’s
performance as either “good” or “exceptional.”
• “In fact, [Dan Cathy’s outspokenness] might have been one of the smartest marketing
moves of the year.” – Charlie Gaudet, Marketing Analyst, Predictable Profit
• “Dan is a visible and eager ambassador of the Chick-fil-A brand. Seriously, the man is so
engaging he could sell chicken to a vegan.” – Jim Rohm, Success
• 'There was a lot of talk that this (referring to the anti-gay comments) would hurt Chick-fil-A,
but it actually helped the brand.” – Jeff Davis, president of Sandelman
• “Dan has a huge focus on customer service. His leadership is centered on customer service
as a differentiator and leadership development within Chick-fil-A. Mainly because the
franchisee model: little capital buy in because they want someone who is ‘seemingly normal’
to be able to own/operate. I run this like Lauren’s Chicken Shack. His model is ‘this is my
own restaurant. It’s not an investment type mentality.’” – Lauren Silich, Owner Operator of
Chick-fil-A Water Tower
• Overall Assessment: Exceptional 7

8. COO Assessment by Team Beta
• Marie
– Chick-fil-A has an innovative business approach that focuses not only on the food but also
the stakeholders involved.
– Dan Cathy does an exceptional job as a leader to set a high standard of behavior for his
employees to provide the best service possible.
• Jacob
– While Dan Cathy has done a great job at growing a brand with an almost cult-like following,
he didn't not and is not going about the political issues properly, and his PR actions are
harming the company.
– Someone more suitable for PR/Marketing should take the limelight so Cathy can get back
to really running the company and making money.
• Alix
– As evident through the financial success of Chick-fil-A, Dan Cathy has done an exceptional
job as a leader, despite all of the criticisms and unnecessary attention centering on his
political beliefs.
– His personal investment in the company is seen through his involvement in all aspects of
the organization and his dedication towards exemplary customer service as well as
continued innovation.
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9. COO Assessment by Team Beta
• Matthew
– While critics of Dan Cathy cite “loss of brand value” as his major failing, the ultimate
purpose of a strong brand is to generate revenue for the corporation when it goes public.
– As the Cathy family has no plans for a public offering, the only metric of leadership should
be financial performance, which, to be honest, is exceptional.
• Mayra
– Dan Cathy is an exceptional leader, which is evident in the way his company has been able
to generate revenue despite the criticism of his personal beliefs.
– Being a private company, Chick-fil-A financial success should be considered the main
metric for evaluating Dan Cathy’s leadership.
• Mitch
– While the negative press surrounding Chick-fil-A often casts the leadership of Dan Cathy as
incompetent and unfit to lead the brand, the financial data tells a completely different story.
– Dan Cathy’s leadership has yet to yield any detrimental effects to the brand which has
continued to grow and surpass even their publicly traded competition in size.
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10. Summary
• Chick-fil-A is currently ranked #1 in the chicken market by QSR magazine in
per unit sales and #2 in total volume, where it is poised to overtake KFC
when 2012 QSR numbers are released.
• Chick-fil-A participates in numerous environmental stewardship endeavors,
including packaging, resource conservation and supply chain sustainability.
• Chick-fil-A models itself on “Second-Mile” QSR Hospitality, including
exceptional customer service, clean restaurant environments and healthier
meal options.
• Franchise strategy at Chick-fil-A is the inverse of a typical QSR with Chick-
fil-A choosing and retaining ownership of all locations.
• Chick-fil-A maintains a strong corporate culture, with mandatory Sunday
closings in its franchise agreements.
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11. Works Cited
1. Baskin, Jonathan Salem. "Three Cheers for Chick-fil-A and Why I'll Never Eat There Again.” AdAge.2012. http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/Chick-fil-A-brand-claims/236385
2. Becker, Jill. “Have Tent and Trumpet, Will Travel.” Success Magazine.2012. http://www.success.com/articles/1245-have-tent-and-trumpet-will-travel
1. Bhasin, Kim and McConnell, Alaina. “RANKED: The Most Popular Fast Food Restaurants In America.” Business Insider. 2012. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-most-popular-fast-food-
restaurants-in-america-2012-7?op=1
2. Chandler, David. “Strategic CSR - Chick-fil-A.” CSR Newsletter. 2012. http://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/2012/09/strategic-csr-Chick-fil-A.html
3. “Chick-fil-A 2009 Tax Records.” Scribd. 2011. http://www.scribd.com/doc/101385467/Chick-fil-A-2009-Tax-Records
4. “Chick-fil-A Adds Healthier Options to Kid’s Menu.” Better Business Bureau. 2012. <http://www.bbb.org/blog/2012/01/Chick-fil-A-adds-healthier-options-to-kids-menu/>
5. “Chick-fil-A Annual Message.” Chick-fil-A. 2012. http://www.Chick-fil-A.com/Media/PDF/Chick-fil-A_Message.pdf
6. "Chick-fil-A Bowl Announces Sustainability Results." Chick-fil-A Bowl Announces Sustainability Results. N.P., 2011. Web. <http://www.Chick-fil-
Abowl.com/PressBox/BowlNews/BowlNewsViewer/tabid/122/ArticleId/7/Chick-fil-A-Bo>.
7. "Chick-fil-A: Company Fact Sheet." Chick-fil-A. 2012. <http://www.Chick-fil-A.com/Company/Highlights-Fact-Sheets>.
1. “Chick-fil-A Debuts One of America’s Most Nutritious Kid’s Meals.” Franchising.com. 2012.
http://www.franchising.com/news/20120109_chickfila_debuts_one_of_americarsquos_most_nutriti.html
2. "Chick-fil-A Receives Chain’s First LEED Gold Certification." MultiVu: Multimedia and Broadcast PR. 2012. <http://www.multivu.com/mnr/53980-Chick-fil-A-first-leed-gold-certification-ft-worth>.
3. Cody, Steve. "Chick-fil-A's 5 Most Boneheaded PR Moves." Yahoo! Small Business Advisor. 1 2012. <http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/advisor/chick-fil-5-most-boneheaded-133815760.html>.
3. DeFreitas, Susan. "Chick-fil-A Clucks about Its First LEED Green Outlet." Earth Techling. 2012. <http://www.earthtechling.com/2012/02/Chick-fil-A-clucks-about-its-first-leed-green-outlet/>.
4. “Direct Business Company." EnerG². The Madison Energy Group. <http://www.themadisonenergygroup.com/energ2.html>.
5. Gaudet, Charlie. "Is Chick-fil-A’s CEO Smarter Than You Think?" Predictable Profits. 2012. <http://www.predictableprofits.com/is-Chick-fil-As-ceo-smarter-than-you-think/>.
6. Horovitz, Bruce. “Chick-fil-A thrives despite gay rights issue.” USA Today. 2012. http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2012/10/24/Chick-fil-A-thrives-despite-controversey/1654719/
7. Howerton, James. "Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy: We Have Made No Concessions to Same-Sex Marriage Supporters." The Blaze. 2012. <http://www.theblaze.com/stories/Chick-fil-A-
president-dan-cathy-we-have-made-no-concessions-on-same-sex-marriage/>.
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12. Works Cited
18. Lewis, Al. “The Gospel According to Chick-fil-A” The Wall Street Journal Market Watch. 2012 http://articles.marketwatch.com/2012-08-03/commentary/33010116_1_vandalism-spree-chicken-
magnate-marriage/2
19. Mahan, Bridgette. CPA, Business Department Chair, Harold Washington College. 2012. bmahan@ccc.edu
20. Mariano, Jonathan. “Chick-fil-A: Stewards of the Environment?” Triple Pundit. 2012. http://www.triplepundit.com/2012/08/chick-fil-stewards-environment/
21. Marzilli, Ted. "Chick-fil-A Takes a Hit with Fast Food Eaters." Brand Index. 2012. <http://www.brandindex.com/article/chick-fil-takes-hit-fast-food-eaters>.
22. McGregor, Jena. "Does Chick-fil-A Controversy Risk Turning off Young Employees?" Washington Post. 2012. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-leadership/post/does-Chick-fil-A-
controversy-risk-turning-off-young-employees/2012/08/03/ab038014-dd7e-11e1-8e43-4a3c4375504a_blog.html>.
23. Menkin, Kit. “Leasing News.”Leasing News. 2012. http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2012/8_09.htm#versus
24. Murray, Haskell. "Conglomerate Blog: Business, Law, Economics & Society." Conglomerate Blog: Business, Law, Economics & Society. N.P. 2012.
Web.<http://www.theconglomerate.org/2012/08/Chick-fil-A-as-a-social-enterprise.html>.
25. "No Such Thing as Bad Publicity?" Daily Mail Online.. 2012. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2223150/No-thing-bad-publicity-Business-booming-Chick-fil-A--despite-calls-boycott-
chain-gay-marriage-stance.html?ito=feeds-newsxml>.
26. O’Donnell, Jayne, and Horovitz, Bruce. “Chick-fil-A moderates its stance on gay issues.” USAToday. 2012. http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/business/story/2012/09/20/Chick-fil-A-
moderates-its-stance-on-gay-issues/57815712/1
27. Paul, Ron. "In the News." Technomic. 20 Sept. 2012. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. <http://www.technomic.com/Pressroom/In_the_News/>.
28. “Pepperdine 2011 Commencement Ceremony.” Pepperdine University. 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HaS6xKJVas
29. Salter, Chuck. “Chick-fil-A’s Recipe for Customer Service.” Fast Company. 2012. http://www.fastcompany.com/resources/customer/chickfila.html
30. Silich, Lauren. Owner-Operator of the Chicago Ave. Chick-fil-A Franchise. 2012.
31. Sniegowski, Don. “Chick-fil-A Model, A Rare Bird.” Blue MauMau. 2012 http://www.bluemaumau.org/11151/chickfila_model_rare_bird
32. Stafford, Leon. “Fast-food company deals with firestorm.” Atlanta Journal Constitution. http://www.ajc.com/news/business/fast-food-company-deals-with-firestorm/nQXXz/
33. "Top 50 Sorted by Segment." Quick-Service Restaurant. Aug. 2011. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. <http://www.qsrmagazine.com/reports/top-50-sorted-segment>.
34. Tristano, Darren.“Top Growth Chains: Who They Are and Why They Succeed.” Technomic. 2012. http://www.technomic.com/_files/whitepapers/growth_chains_whitepaper_5-11.pdf
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35. White, Mark. “Chick-fil-A, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Ethical Consumption.” Economics and Ethics. 2012. http://www.economicsandethics.org/2012/08/Chick-fil-A-corporate-social-
responsibility-and-ethical-consumption.html