In this episode of Partnering Leadership, Mahan Tavakoli speaks with Steve Robinson, former executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Chick-fil-A. Steve Robinson shared lessons from his decades-long experience leading marketing at Chick-fil-A, including stories from his book Covert Cows and Chick-fil-A: How Faith, Cows, and Chicken built an Iconic Brand. In addition, Steve Robinson shared what made Chick-fil-A culture and marketing unique and continues to help the brand differentiate in a competitive market.  

Some highlights:

-The importance of hiring the people who fit the organization’s culture and value

-How Steve Robinson come up with the Blue Ocean Strategy and its vital role in the successful branding of Chick-fil-A

-The impact of the leadership of Chick-fil-A’s founder, Truett Cathy, on the organization’s culture

-Lessons that Steve Robinson learned on the 2-million dollar mistake

-Steve Robinson shared marketing and business insights in building a brand that people cannot live without

Also mentioned in this episode:

-John Rossman, author of The Amazon Way book series (Listen to John’s episode on the Partnering Leadership Podcast here (https://www.partneringleadership.com/how-to-lead-and-innovate-by-learning-from-the-amazon-way-with-john-rossman-global-thought-leader/) )

-Truett Cathy, founder of Chick-fil-A

-Dan Cathy, CEO of Chick-fil-A

-Jimmy Collins, former president of Chick-fil-A

Book by Steve Robinson:

Covert Cows and Chick-fil-A: How Faith, Cows, and Chicken Built an Iconic Brand (https://www.amazon.com/Covert-Cows-Chick-fil-Chicken-Iconic/dp/1400213169)

Book Resources:

The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill by William Manchester, Paul Reid (https://www.amazon.com/Last-Lion-Winston-Churchill-1874-1932/dp/0385313489)

Blue Ocean Strategy by Renée Mauborgne and W. Chan Kim (https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Ocean-Strategy-Uncontested-Competition/dp/1591396190)

Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (https://www.amazon.com/Built-to-Last-Jim-Collins-audiobook/dp/B0813QCVN9/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3O8T6ICF1THO3&dchild=1&keywords=built+to+last&qid=1634657210&s=books&sr=1-1)

The Bible: Book of Proverbs, Psalms, Ecclesiastes, Joel

Connect with Steve Robinson:

S. Robinson Consulting (https://srobinsonconsulting.com/)

Steve Robinson on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/srobinsonconsulting/)

Connect with Mahan Tavakoli:

MahanTavakoli.com (https://mahantavakoli.com/)

More information and resources available at the Partnering Leadership Podcast website: 

PartneringLeadership.com (https://www.partneringleadership.com/)

Connect with Mahan Tavakoli:

Mahan Tavakoli Website (https://mahantavakoli.com/)

Mahan Tavakoli on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mahan/)

Partnering Leadership Website (https://www.partneringleadership.com/)