卡特·科爾是私募股權(quán)公司Focus Brands北美區(qū)首席運(yùn)營(yíng)官兼總裁,公司旗下?lián)碛蠧innabon、Auntie Anne’s、Jamba Juice等7家餐飲連鎖品牌。她的職業(yè)生涯令人艷羨,也發(fā)人深省。19歲那年,在連鎖餐廳Hooters做服務(wù)生的科爾迅速晉升,開設(shè)了自己的第一家國(guó)際特許經(jīng)營(yíng)店,之后又成功地領(lǐng)導(dǎo)了知名肉桂卷品牌Cinnabon的轉(zhuǎn)型。雖然不斷取得成功,但她經(jīng)常試著忘記這些成績(jī),并設(shè)想如果是一位管理 “高手”擔(dān)任她現(xiàn)在的職位,會(huì)怎樣行事。
2018年12月25日,《財(cái)富》雜志在美國(guó)加州的尼古湖市舉行“下一代最有影響力女性峰會(huì)”,科爾發(fā)表講話,解釋了被她稱之為“高手法則”的方法是如何幫助自己在職場(chǎng)上一往無前的。在Hooters晉升期間,科爾并沒有得到多少人指導(dǎo),但她“學(xué)會(huì)了做自己最好的教練”。
這意味著不能讓自己被成績(jī)沖昏頭腦。每月至少一次(她解釋說,現(xiàn)在更頻繁),用她的話說,把自己當(dāng)作一個(gè)“糟糕的土豆夫人”,設(shè)想如果是一名優(yōu)秀的高管接手了自己的工作會(huì)怎么做??茽栒f,這個(gè)方法教會(huì)她認(rèn)識(shí)自身的弱點(diǎn)、自我反省,糾正偏見,從而幫助她保持緊迫感。她指出,最近,這種“高手法則”幫她認(rèn)識(shí)到,需要更換團(tuán)隊(duì)的一些管理者?!拔乙庾R(shí)到自己開始接受一種新的績(jī)效水平,只是因?yàn)樗冗^去更糟的情況稍好些。雖然我團(tuán)隊(duì)里表現(xiàn)最差的那些人其實(shí)屬于普通水平,但還是業(yè)績(jī)墊底的。我需要提升?!彼€說,如果不解決這個(gè)問題,就會(huì)辜負(fù)那些表現(xiàn)不佳的員工。
科爾將自己的職業(yè)成就廣泛歸功于“躁動(dòng)的內(nèi)心”,以及兒時(shí)在殘酷環(huán)境中所養(yǎng)成的勇氣和一些個(gè)人品質(zhì)。因?yàn)楦赣H酗酒,從9歲起,她就由母親獨(dú)自扶養(yǎng)長(zhǎng)大。為了養(yǎng)活自己和妹妹,母親要做三份工作。作為家中長(zhǎng)女,科爾承擔(dān)了很多責(zé)任,她說,成長(zhǎng)中混亂和充滿挑戰(zhàn)的環(huán)境,以及無論何時(shí)都保持從容平靜的母親,給了自己在商界中他人所不具備的優(yōu)勢(shì)。
科爾還提到了Focus最近收購的老牌鮮榨果汁零售商Jamba Juice,它是Focus旗下首個(gè)“純健康”品牌。對(duì)其將會(huì)給人們帶來怎樣的期待,科爾介紹了她的一些計(jì)劃,包括大舉投資某些技術(shù)一流的應(yīng)用程序,將飲品變得更加健康。這意味著,Jamba Juice未來將更傾向綠色,少糖的產(chǎn)品??茽栠€承諾,在飲品中增加植物蛋白,以及不含乳制品的乳類替代品。她說,對(duì)客戶而言,“我們完全奉行健康之道。不會(huì)開倒車?!?/p>
但不要指望Cinnabon也會(huì)有同樣的變化。這個(gè)品牌以綿密的大塊肉桂味蛋糕卷聞名。在峰會(huì)上,有位聽眾問科爾,Cinnabon是否可能推出有利于生酮飲食減肥法的肉桂卷??茽柣卮鸬溃骸盀榱藸I(yíng)養(yǎng)價(jià)值考慮,不會(huì)這樣做?!彼赋觯^去曾經(jīng)嘗試過推出低糖低脂的蛋糕卷,但市場(chǎng)表現(xiàn)不好。而那些成分相同、體積較小的蛋糕卷倒是賣得不錯(cuò)。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)) 譯者:Charlie 審校:夏利 |
Kat Cole, the COO and president of North America for Focus Brands, private equity parent of Cinnabon, Auntie Anne’s, Jamba Juice and four other food chains, has charted an enviable and inspiring career course—quickly rising through the ranks at Hooters to open her first international franchise at 19 and later leading a skillful turnaround of Cinnabon. But she often tries to forget all that success and think about what a “hot shot” executive would do in her place.
Cole, speaking at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Next Gen Summit in Laguna Niguel, Calif., on December 25, 2018, explained how the self-developed technique—she calls it the “hot shot rule”—has kept her moving forward in her career. Climbing the ladder at Hooters, Cole didn’t have a lot of mentors, but she “l(fā)earned to be my own best self coach.”
That meant teaching herself not to get blinded by her progress. At least monthly (now she does it more frequently, she explained), she imagines what a hot shot executive—“a Mrs. Potato Head of badass-ery,” as she described it—might do if she took over Cole’s business that day. Cole said the strategy has taught her vulnerability, reflection and a bias for action that helps her maintain a sense of urgency. Recently, she noted, the “hot shot rule” helped her realize she needed to make some leadership changes on her team. “I realized I had started to accept a level of performance because it was better than what was worse before. My new worst performers were mediocre, but they were nonetheless the worst. I needed to upgrade.” She added that she would be failing the underperforming employees if she didn’t address the issue.
Cole more broadly credited her business success to her “hustle muscle,” the grit and attributes she developed as a child growing up in less than ideal circumstances. Her father was an alcoholic and from the age of 9, she was raised by a single mother who worked three jobs to care for Cole and her sister. Cole took on a number of responsibilities as the eldest child, and says that that growing up in that chaotic and challenging environment, as well as having her mother, who nonetheless carried herself with grace and calm had given her “an unfair advantage” in the business world.
Cole also offered a preview of what customers can expect from Jamba Juice, the first “purely healthy” brand that Focus recently added to its portfolio. Cole’s plans for the juice brand include investing heavily in tech—best-in-class apps—and evolving the menu to “an even healthier place.” That means Jamba Juice’s future offerings will be more green and less sweet. Cole promised more plant-based proteins and dairy-free alternatives on the menu as well. “We’re all on a healthfulness journey,” she said; for customers, “it doesn’t go backwards.”
Don’t expect the same changes at Cinnabon. When asked by one audience member if she could envision keto-friendly versions of the brand’s famously large and gooey cinnamon rolls, Cole remarked customers “don’t come to it for their nutritional value.” She noted that she’d tried to introduce low-fat and low-sugar rolls in the past and they didn’t sell. Tiny rolls, however, sold with the same indulgent ingredients were a hit. |