The Army Was Tough. But Restaurants Made Her Cry — Lessons from the Drive-Thru by a former KFC Exec

Monica Rothgery is a natural leader. She has trained army soldiers, managed fast-food restaurant teams, built international franchise locations, and wrote a book about it all.

The former KFC Chief Operating Officer’s leadership journey fueled her unique approach to restaurant management and her mission to uplift frontline leaders.

Rothgery’s book, Lessons from the Drive-Thru: Real Life Wisdom for Frontline Leaders, takes readers behind the scenes of her journey. She shares the hard-earned knowledge from her toughest days as a frontline leader.

“I wrote this book for frontline leaders,” Rothgery emphasized. “The ones who think their job is

just running the next shift. But they have the power to shape lives—most importantly, the lives

of the people they manage.”

Watch now to learn about frontline leadership, the value of good training, and Lessons from the Drive-Thru.

Chapters:

[01:50] - Lessons From The Drive-Thru

[05:20] - From Army to Restaurants

[11:15] - Stories and Lessons

[18:48] - Restaurant Management

[36:15] - Monica Rothgery Personal Tech Stack

SPONSORS:

RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS IS PRESENTED BY TOAST —

Restaurant Influencers is brought to you by Toast, the powerful restaurant point of sale and management system that helps restaurants improve operations, increase sales and create a better guest experience.

• Toast AllIn1 Restaurant POS

Episode Links:

Monica Rothgery on The Pineapple Perspective

Monica Rothgery Website

Lessons from the DriveThru book

FranchiseU! Podcast with Monica Rothgery

Takeaways:

Empowering Frontline Leaders - Monica Rothgery’s career in restaurant leadership, from fast-food GM to the corporate world, has shaped her mission to empower frontline leaders.

Wisdom from Drive-Thru - Her book, Lessons from the Drive-Thru, is a candid look at her leadership struggles and triumphs, with real-life wisdom for the people who make restaurants run.

Restaurant Heroes - Monica Rothgery advocates for restaurant managers, calling them the unsung heroes who change lives through leadership and dedication.

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ABOUT MONICA ROTHGERY —

Monica Rothgery started her career as a manager for Taco Bell. Thirty years later, she was the first woman to become Chief Operations Officer for KFC in the United States, and the first openly LGBTQ leader promoted to the C-Suite at Yum! Brands. As a speaker and coach, Monica helps frontline leaders realize their potential to change lives. Monica lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with her wife, Onyxe, and their fur babies, Louis and Sky.

ABOUT RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS —

Restaurant Influencers is a weekly video podcast series presented by Entrepreneur Media and Cali BBQ Media. Every week host and restaurant owner Shawn Walchef (@shawnpwalchef) talks with business leaders like Shaquille O’Neal, Rob Dyrdek, Emeril Lagasse, Mayim Bialik, Jon Taffer, Robert Irvine, Aman Narang, and more, about their secrets to Smartphone Storytelling, marketing, branding, and how to show up where customers are engaging online.

Published by Entrepreneur Media

Produced by Cali BBQ Media