Bobbi Brant
With Excel Fitness since 2017, Bobbi Brant’s seen the Austin, Texas-based franchisee grow its portfolio of Planet Fitness locations from a little more than a dozen clubs into one of the chain’s largest operators with 165 locations in 11 states and 3,000 employees.
“I’ve seen a lot changes at the organization, but I have to say the thing that we’ve always been is a people-first company, and what I mean by that is along with being committed to creating the best club experiences for our members, we want to create the best work experiences for our employees. We want to give them the training and support to advance their careers,” said Brant who has moved up the corporate ladder several times at Excel Fitness.
Brant was promoted last year from vice president of human resources to the newly created position of chief people officer. Prior to that she was a senior HR manager and director of HR.
Her new responsibilities include working with CEO CJ Bouchard to come up with and implement new strategies to better communicate and engage with club employees. One of their main tasks this year is to establish clear and attainable career paths for employees.
Michael Trifari
“We’ve always been about promoting employees and that starts when we initially interview them and identify those at the club level who express the desire to move up. The big shift for us this year is to provide our corporate employees with new learning and development tools, which we’re looking to roll out later this year with an entirely new online HR system that everyone will have access to,” she said. “The other big part of our strategy is to continue getting the feedback from club employees so we can make better decisions.”
Excel gathers employee intelligence data with a monthly Pulse Survey that asks hourly workers and their managers to rate their club experiences and solicits their recommendations. Brant said they get about 50 percent participation in the surveys and use the results to make company policy changes.
“The surveys have helped us make significant changes in our benefits programs. The reintroduction of a 401(k) company match program and a more generous paid leave policy were some of the things that employees said they wanted,” Brant said. She added that in the last year Excel extended its parental leave program to include non-birthing parents.
Brant pointed out Excel’s employee net promoter score improved by 58 percent overall in the last 24 months and that employee turnover improved by 42 percent during that time.
Brant said Excel will continue to encourage community involvement at both club and corporate levels as she noted it has gone a long way toward improving employee moral by connecting employees to their communities. She said employees volunteered more than 240 hours of community work at 40 events last year and the company budgeted $350,000 to support those endeavors.
Ron Stokes
Bringing the right vibe
With 76 Little Caesars in nine states, 63 Wingstop units in 10 states, five Whataburgers in Oklahoma and more than 4,000 employees, Vibe Restaurants is among the larger quick-service restaurant operators.
The Dallas-based company is also one of the many restaurant groups that doubled down on providing store managers and above-store leaders with clear expectations and career development paths, said Michael Trifari, its president and chief operating officer.
Over the past year, he said, “we’ve prioritized learning and development by establishing a dedicated department led by Michael McDonald, our vice president of learning and development. His leadership underscores our commitment to investing in team members’ growth and reinforcing the belief that a strong team begins with opportunities for advancement and personal development.”
Trifari noted Vibe introduced online tools such as the 9-box grid to identify and cultivate talent across all levels of the organization. This strategic approach, he said, bridges above-store leadership with the performance and potential of in-store employees, ensuring high performers are recognized and effectively nurtured.
“Building on this foundation, we are launching a mentorship program in 2025 to connect top performers with corporate leadership. This initiative will provide participants with valuable insights into the broader restaurant industry and prepare them for upward mobility within our organization,” Trifari said.
Additionally, Vibe is in the process of formalizing a multi-unit manager training program to equip leaders with the tools and knowledge they need to excel, he explained.
“This program goes beyond operational training, emphasizing soft skills and professional development to shape well-rounded leaders,” Trifari said. “As part of this effort, we will introduce a structured development plan for high-potential employees. These individuals will be assigned areas of responsibility and paired with mentors to prepare them for promotions. This approach aims to foster higher success rates, happier employees and improved performance across the board.”
To ensure consistent excellence for team members and guests, Vibe is also rolling out what it calls a “perfect shift module” for managers. This initiative includes additional training and resources to deliver exceptional experiences at every level.
“We are proud to announce our partnership with Dallas College to create an accredited multi-unit manager training program, which will be available to their students as well as our internal team members,” Trifari said. “This collaboration highlights our commitment to fostering external talent while also investing in the growth of our future leaders.”
Excel Fitness, a large Planet Fitness franchisee, encourages employee volunteer opportunities.
Reducing turnover, empowering employees
Another company prioritizing engagement and establishing career paths for their employees is Roaring Forks Restaurant Group, which operates 61 Qdobas and seven Dave’s Hot Chickens.
President Ron Stokes said a key turning point for his company in retaining employees was when it recognized and adapted to the generational differences of its younger workers by adjusting schedules for store managers so they can avoid working weekends.
“Today’s younger employees, especially Gen Zers and young millennials, seemed to be more focused on personal work experiences and want a better work-life balance,” said Stokes.
His Wisconsin-based restaurant group offers six-month leadership training programs for employees and found sharing and celebrating the successes of their employees, no matter what level they’re at, is an effective morale booster. He noted while the industry’s average turnover rate for hourly restaurant employee is more than 140 percent, Roaring Forks has been able to maintain a 110 percent rate.
Stokes said investing in the company’s 1,500 employees and showing genuine interest in advancing their careers is a winning proposition for everyone, regardless of generation.
“It’s really in everyone’s best interest to promote from within and give your employees the tools and vision they need to move up in the company,” he said.
At Empower Brands, which has 10 service brands under its umbrella, CEO Scott Zide and his team invested in the Empower Leadership Foundation for the company’s more experienced executives with high potential to move up. It’s accompanied by a Leadership Exploration and Development training program for supervisors and managers. They are both year-long programs and are designed to enhance the leadership skills at both the corporate and store levels.
By prioritizing people and culture in ways that go beyond buzzwords, franchisors can retain top talent and attract the new leaders required to turn their growth aspirations into reality.