J. Patrick Doyle of Domino’s Pizza named 2014 Norman Award winner

J. Patrick Doyle, president and chief executive of Domino’s Pizza Inc. and the driving force behind the company’s global sales momentum, store growth and innovation, has been selected as this year’s winner of The Norman Award from Nation’s Restaurant News.

Named for the late Norman Brinker, the award honors a restaurant executive who demonstrates extraordinary leadership skills and consistently mentors and inspires future industry leaders. Doyle will be recognized during the 55th annual MUFSO Super Show to be held in Dallas during Oct. 5-7.

“Patrick Doyle has had a remarkable career at Domino’s Pizza, where he earned a Golden Chain Award in 2011 from Nation’s Restaurant News for his ongoing strong leadership,” said Randall Friedman, group publisher of the Penton Restaurant Group. “One of his strongest traits is his dedication to the development of others in the tradition of Norman Brinker. We look forward to honoring Patrick at this year’s MUFSO Super Show.”

Richard L. Federico, president and chief executive of P.F. Chang's China Bistro Inc. and the 2012 Norman Award winner, likened Doyle to the award’s namesake.
 
“Patrick is like Norman in so many ways,” he said. “He is truly inspiring, surrounds himself with great people, is a superb developer of talent, allows his team to excel and has built a culture of performance second to none.  Norman would be most impressed with Patrick’s humility while maintaining a drive to excellence in every area of his business.”

Philip J. Hickey Jr., chairman of Miller’s Ale House Inc. and the 2011 Norman Award winner, echoed these sentiments.

"I'm thrilled to see Patrick Doyle receive this award,” he said. “He embodies many of the qualities that made Norman Brinker such an outstanding leader. A people-first, collegial leadership style focused on relentless improvement has enabled Patrick to excel among his peers, both in financial results and in enhancing our industry's reputation.”  

Under Doyle’s leadership, the Ann Arbor, Mich.-based chain leveraged strong same-store sales growth in fiscal 2013 to fuel expansion of 631 stores across the world, including a record 573 net new international locations. The company has more than 10,800 stores in over 70 international markets and topped $8 billion in global sales in 2013.

Doyle was selected to lead Domino’s in March 2010 after nearly 13 years with the company. From September 2007 to 2010, he was president of Domino’s USA in charge of all domestic retail operations, including corporate-owned and franchised stores, franchisee development and marketing. From 2004 until 2007, he oversaw all domestic corporate-owned stores. As executive vice president of Domino’s Pizza International from 1999 to 2004, he was responsible for increasing the company’s global store presence by almost 1,000 units.
    
Prior to joining Domino’s, Doyle was a vice president and general manager for Gerber Products Co.’s U.S. baby food business. Before Gerber, he was European general manager of Intervascular SA in LaCiotat, France, and spent five years at First Chicago Corp. as corporate finance officer.

He received an economics degree from the University of Michigan and a master’s in business administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He lives in Ann Arbor with his wife, Techy, and their two daughters.

Norman Award winners are selected by an advisory board comprised of industry luminaries and Norman Brinker protégés. Brinker was chairman emeritus and former chief executive of Brinker International Inc. He joined the company in 1983, retiring in 2001 after building it into one of the world’s leading casual-dining restaurant organizations. He died in 2009 at age 78.

The Norman Award debuted in 2010 with Doug Brooks, former chairman, president and chief executive of Brinker International, as the first recipient. Hickey and Federico followed, and last year’s honoree was Jon L. Luther, former chairman and chief executive of Dunkin’ Brands Inc.  

The MUFSO 2014 Super Show will be held at the Hyatt Regency at Reunion Tower in Dallas and is presented by Nation's Restaurant News, Restaurant Hospitality and Food Management. Visit the MUFSO website for information about the event and to register.