When a company is in its infancy, its founder may find it easy to impart the same values to everyone. As the concept reaches, say, 80 franchised units in seven states, with another eight to 10 stores expected to open by December, it becomes much more difficult for the founder to directly influence the employees at every location. John Scardapane anticipated that problem after launching Saladworks in Philadelphia in 1986. As the fast-casual salad chain began growing, Scardapane rounded up his corporate staff for a three-day retreat to formally craft the company’s values. The goal was to come up with a list, not to hang on a wall or put on a business card but to establish an attitude and way of life that would guide business decisions for everyone in the chain, from who to hire and train to how to run the restaurants. The core values that came out of that strategy session seven years ago are still in effect: Do the Right Thing, Do Whatever It Takes, It’s All About the Customer, Together Everyone Achieves More (TEAM), Value Each Other and Passion to Be the Best.
Alot of companies craft lists of values. How do you make them come alive at Saladworks?
We use them in everything we do. For example, in the interview process, we tell [job applicants] what they are and that we are looking for those values in their lifestyle and personality. If it looks like a good fit, we’ll proceed and hire them; if not, we don’t hire them.
Do they apply to the franchisees?
Absolutely. It teaches them how to train their staff. We have a monthly newsletter that goes out to all employees in the system. It highlights people we’ve caught exemplifying any of the core values, like Do the Right Thing. We take their picture, put them in the newsletter and it’s a constant reminder of our values.
How have the values affected retention?
I don’t have turnover figures for the franchised units, but in the last four years, I’ve only had one person leave the home office, and she just rejoined us. It has been the most important part and reason for our success.
It gives us a strategic advantage over our competitors. Anyone can copy a concept, but they can’t copy our values.
