Human Assets: Loop Ministry Working with Teens

The Loop Pizza Grill’s in-store chaplains help raise morale, benefiting both the company and its customers.

By Mary Boltz Chapman, Editor-in-Chief -- Chain Leader, 8/1/2007

We’re not exactly living in Mayberry," says Mike Schneider, co-founder and CEO of The Loop Pizza Grill, explaining the need for a chaplaincy program.

Introduced eight years ago as part of the Jacksonville, Fla.-based fast-casual chain’s employee-assistance program, the program places chaplains in the restaurants to work with staff and counsel them.

In the Beginning

Schneider became a man of faith about 15 years ago and struggled with balancing his faith with his work. Other businessmen suggested that perhaps his work was his ministry, so he began looking for ways to be a better steward to his employees.

"When I was working in the restaurants on a daily basis, it was easy to be aware of what’s going on in their lives. So I would naturally try to be a problem solver, a friend, a father figure," he says. "But as we grew, it became more unlikely that I was going to have face time with the employees." The Loop plans to have 75 units operating and another 50 in development by 2011.

Credit serendipity or divine intervention, but at the time, Schneider came across an article about corporate chaplaincy. The seed was firmly planted.

A friend from the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, on whose local board Schneider sat, helped create a program for The Loop. Eight years ago, it started putting chaplains in the units, first in the company stores. Today, Schneider says, seven of the 29 stores have chaplains, and four more are exploring the idea or actively searching for a chaplain.

The chaplain is an employee of the restaurant and treated administratively as any other part-time worker. They generally work only four to six hours a week in the units, but business cards, fliers and posters tell employees how to reach them 24/7.

Most are youth pastors affiliated with a local Christian church, but they don’t preach or recruit. They work alongside employees, doing tasks that don’t require special training like busing tables or cutting pizzas. They then can get to know and earn the trust of the young workers.

Business Benefits

Depending on the franchisee, Schneider says he presents the program within a spiritual context or a business perspective. He ticks off "hard" benefits such as improved productivity, reduced absenteeism and employee retention.

The Loop can’t quantify changes in turnover figures linked directly to the chaplaincy program; the current 12-month rolling average is 177 percent for company restaurants. "But when I talk to my managers who do have a chaplain that is an additional resource for them, they all feel that it’s a positive thing," Schneider claims. He says he also gets thanks from employees and their parents.

Rob Zeigler, co-owner of The Loop Pizza Grill in Mount Pleasant, S.C., didn’t need to see a balance sheet to decide to hire a chaplain. He’s glad Schneider is encouraging franchisees to implement the program. "I’m a firm believer in the fact that, as employers, we owe more to our employees than a paycheck," he says. Though he also notes the high cost of turnover, inconsistency and poor customer service.

As he began to recruit a chaplain, Zeigler had his decision reinforced by the death of the unit’s general manager in March. "I had 40 employees looking to me for answers when I needed help myself," he says. A pastor from his church was able to help in the crisis, but it stressed the need for an in-store chaplain. Zeigler has been talking to a few potentials, who are trying to fit the job within their current pastoral positions.

At the Unit Level

After interviewing managers and employees who are already part of the program, The Loop Director of Training Sandy Friend put together a training manual for franchisees who want to implement the voluntary program. "I thought I would find more information that people would be uncomfortable, thinking that they were pushing religion on people," she says. "I was surprised to find out that there’s been virtually no complaints about this being in the workplace."

The guide offers suggestions for finding a chaplain within an owners’ own faith community or through a corporate chaplaincy organization. It also gives chaplains standards of conduct and ideas for getting involved in the store and with managers and employees.

Schneider believes the program has an impact on customer service as well: "If we demonstrate that we’re about serving them, they will be more likely to catch the whole concept of servitude, and they’re going to feel better about serving the guest."