Working for Norman Brinker - The Next Big Thing

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Lane Cardwell

Working for Norman Brinker
February 8, 2008

It's been several years since I have worked for Norman Brinker but I think about him almost every day. I left Brinker International in 1999 and Norman had his office just down the hall from mine while I was running Eatzi's. Norman used to stop in and ask how things were going. I always kept our daily and weekly sales by location on a white board behind my desk so it was easy to talk about them. Eatzi's was a high volume operation s

o it was not unusual for a store to do $250,000 per week or more in sales. Whenever I would point out a particularly high week to Norman his response was always the same, "But did we make any money?"

Norman is still going strong and is celebrating his fifth wedding anniversay next month to his lovely wife Toni. He is responsible for a lot of what we take for granted today across the casual dining category. His leadership in getting the industry involved in government affairs dates back to the mid-70's with the hiring of Rick Berman at Steak and Ale.

I have many stories that I tell people today of the impact that he has had on me and my education in this business. Some directly relate to the business at hand. Others are more of a style of doing business and a code of conduct.

Norman has more guts than any man I have ever met. If you've ever worked around Norman you know what I mean. I remember once in the early 80's we had a real estate meeting to discuss some troubling trends that were developing. It was an important meeting and a lot of preparation had gone into it. About halfway through the meeting Norman cried out in pain and fell to the floor, writhing in agony. "Heart attack", I thought and headed to the door to call for help.

Norman called out for me to stop and return the room saying that we weren't done with the meeting. It was his back, spasming in pain and he wasn't able to stand. I'll never forget his next request. "Can we project the slides onto the ceiling so that I can see them better?" So, for the next 45 minutes we all turned our heads toward the ceiling and went on with business as if this was the most natural thing in the world.

What are your stories and memories of working with Norman or interacting with Norman? I would love to collect them and dole them out over the next few months in this blog. We owe him a lot.

Posted by Lane Cardwell on February 8, 2008 | Comments (5)

Industries: Expansion, Human Resources, Operations

February 8, 2008
In response to: Working for Norman Brinker
Mary Chapman commented:

I always thought it would be a fun exercise to draw a "family tree" with Norman Brinker at the top and all of the industry leaders he "raised" on the next level, and all the leaders they raised, and so on.

February 8, 2008
In response to: Working for Norman Brinker
Dennis Rowe commented:

I always thought Brinker was the greatest restaurant greatest restaurant company I had ever worked (1996-2001). Today I realize that it was because of the direct influence that Norman had on all of us and it reflected in the way that we the guests and each other. Indeed, his influence has and is felt throughout the industry.

February 8, 2008
In response to: Working for Norman Brinker
Steve Johnson commented:

Success leaves clues and Norman has sprinkled leaders around the world!

August 3, 2008
In response to: Working for Norman Brinker
Vikki Schreiber commented:

I remember Norman coming over to my work area after work one day. He just came to shoot the breeze with us. I remember part of his conversation about how he had to drive another car that day because Marilyn Quayle had scratched his other car. He talked like it was everyday that the Vice President and his wife stayed with him! He was so down to earth and never felt that he was above anyone. That was one of the things that I liked most about Norman Brinker.

August 3, 2008
In response to: Working for Norman Brinker
Lane commented:

I remember walking by Norman's office one day and overhearing his assistant, Margaret, telling a very insistent someone that Norman was in a meeting and couldn't be interrupted. I paused long enough for her to tell me that George was just going to have to wait. George? George Bush, Sr., vice president at the time, was just one more person trying to bend Norman's ear. After becoming president he got right through. Rank has its privileges.