🐄 Chick-fil-A and Lessons on Innovation from an Unexpected Place
I have exciting news to share with you... On May 14, I’ll be speaking at Chick-fil-A’s Impact Accelerator Conference in Atlanta, GA!
The Chick-fil-A Impact Accelerator is a conference dedicated to supporting nonprofit leaders across the nation, hosted by the folks at Chick-fil-A HQ. The event is sold out in person, but there is still room to register to attend virtually if you are interested.
It’s a huge honor to be asked to speak on innovation, specifically on leveraging AI to grow innovation and impact.
But I have to be honest. Until recently, I didn’t think of “innovation” when I thought of Chick-fil-A. Wasn’t the idea to keep things the same and not innovate?
I did not grow up with Chick-fil-A.
I still remember my first time at Chick-fil-A. I was at the Orlando Airport and had heard of this chicken restaurant chain, but I didn’t know much about it. All I knew was that people seemed to put it up there with In-N-Out – something I’m much more familiar with as a Southern California native.
I placed my order with anticipation – a classic chicken sandwich and fries.
What I got back was… less than impressive.
A smushed chicken sandwich consisting of a piece of breaded chicken, a couple of pickles, and a bun. Was this what all the hype was about?
Fast forward years later, and we LOVE Chick-fil-A. Quality ingredients, great flavor, exceptional service. That Chick-fil-A Sauce. And sweet tea! It’s like a little bit of the South, no matter where you are.
The nearest Chick-fil-A is 45 minutes away, so we try to go whenever we can.
But as much as I’ve enjoyed the food, I would not have described the restaurant as “innovative.” Then I met Patrick Miles, and everything changed.
Chick-fil-A and Innovation
Patrick serves as the Senior Project Lead of Innovation Services at the Chick-fil-A Corporate Support Center in Atlanta.
When Patrick told me he served on an innovation team at Chick-fil-A, my first thought was, “What’s the point?” Isn’t the idea not to change things? Aren’t these the people who serve the same chicken sandwiches I’ve enjoyed for years? The food is excellent, but I expected the company to be completely focused on day-to-day operations, running a playbook they created many decades ago.
Little did I realize how much innovation goes into their mission to serve up memorable experiences for each and every guest.
I picked up a copy of 6Ps of Essential Innovation, written by Michael McCathren, then overseeing Enterprise Innovation at Chick-fil-A.
“The world around us is changing so rapidly, standing still is moving backwards.” – Michael McCathren, 6Ps of Essential Innovation
Not changing is going backwards. Last year, I was privileged to take a tour of the innovation lab, and I learned Chick-fil-A is not the opposite of innovation but rather, in many ways, the embodiment of it.
Above: Taking a tour of Chick-fil-A’s Hatch innovation labs with Patrick and Ryan. Hatch is all about supporting the organization and its operators as they “hatch new ideas.”
The innovation lab is called Hatch, as in “hatching a new idea” – a symbolic reference to an egg as the source of their hero menu item – the original Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich.
💡 Takeaway: We can learn the most about innovation from the least expected places if only we are willing to be curious and ask, “How might this apply to my context?”
In the spirit of innovation and learning from everywhere, let’s look at three lessons we can take away from Chick-fil-A and their efforts to always move forward.
The Two Most Important Questions
In the opening pages of the 6Ps of Essential Innovation, McCathren says there are two questions that are most important:
Are we doing the right things?
Are we doing things right?
I can’t think of a better, more simple, or more piercing summary of how to stay on target with innovation.
How about you – are you doing the right things?
Getting operations right or even “innovating” is worthless if you aren’t focused on the right things for you, your organization, and your team.
My mentor, Bobb Biehl, always says that all planning begins with the invisible phrase “at this stage in our development.” Are you focused on the right things, at this stage in your development?
As we advise clients at Imago Consulting, we seek to understand – on behalf of our clients – whether they are focused on the right things.
When we do an assessment, it’s not uncommon to uncover 40 or 50 things the client can do better to improve their results. However, the most value is when we apply discernment to determine which things to focus on first. It’s about focusing on the right things first. Then, we turn our attention to doing things right.
💡 Takeaway: The two most important questions we can answer as we lead our organizations are, “Are we doing the right things?” Followed by “Are we doing things right?”
Next, let’s look at the elements most important to creating an innovative culture.
Three Elements of an Innovation Culture
The book then shares the results of an industry-wide survey of 270 corporate leaders, asking the question, “What tactics do corporate innovators feel create and support a culture of innovation?”
Of 16 areas that respondents indicated, three came up far more than any others regarding what’s most important to create an innovation culture.
Organizations with a culture of innovation have:
Demonstrated executive support for experimentation
Clearly defined innovation strategy/focus
Cross-functional or cross-business unit collaboration
The most important element for a culture of innovation is demonstrated executive support for experimentation – not just words, but deeds.
If you are an executive leader, how can you demonstrate support for experimentation? Do you need to invest in your team? Set aside budget for experimentation? Break down internal barriers?
The next most important area was a clearly defined innovation strategy/focus. Innovation for innovation’s sake is bound to fail. If you just say, “We want to be innovative,” but don’t cast a vision for why and the world you want to create, it will be short-lived. Innovation is hard – if innovation has a focus and purpose (the world you want to create), then all attention can be focused on that purpose. And from that purpose, an innovation strategy can be developed.
Last, cross-functional collaboration is essential to innovation. This is for at least two reasons, I believe. First, innovation benefits from diverse experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, so the more cross-functional collaboration, the more sources of innovation. And second, innovation requires a village. It requires many different skill sets and experiences coming together to push things forward.
💡 Takeaway: The markers for a culture of innovation start with demonstrated executive support for experimentation, a clearly defined innovation strategy/focus, and cross-functional collaboration.
Progress Not Perfection
On the wall of the Hatch Innovation Lab is a plaque.
“[Hatch] is not a museum or an office space. Rather, it is a creative working space to create new opportunities and/or solve current business challenges. Just try… progress not perfection. This is the spirit that personifies our founder, S. Truett Cathy and the spirit of innovation at Chick-fil-A.” – Woody Faulk, Vice President, Innovation and New Ventures
Just try… progress not perfection. Those are powerful words.
Hatch is a working lab, but they’ve done well to leave some artifacts of “innovation” around to remind people that innovation is about progress, not perfection.
In one example of progress over perfection, they have a table with a half dozen different prototypes designed to help delivery drivers keep the food warm while in transit. One of the key challenges they face is keeping the fries warm and crispy,so they are trying prototype after prototype to progress towards addressing that challenge. The display illustrates what it looks like to focus on progress, not perfection, in prototype after prototype.
Preserving What Works and Innovating to Meet Change
Chick-fil-A is a fascinating study in preserving what works and innovating to meet the demands of rapid change.
With in-dining experiences plummeting after the pandemic but sales up, Chick-fil-A announced a new four-lane drive-through concept store.
Not changing is going backwards. How are you changing?
Until next week… Surfs Up! 🌊
- Dave
P.S. The in-person conference is sold out, but you can still register to attend the Chick-fil-A Impact Accelerator virtually on May 14. Check it out!
About the Author | Dave Raley
Consultant, speaker, and writer Dave Raley is the founder of Imago Consulting, a firm that helps non-profits and businesses create profitable growth through sustainable innovation. He’s the author of a weekly trendspotting report called The Wave Report, and the co-founder of the Purpose & Profit Podcast — a show about the ideas at the intersection of nonprofit causes and for-profit brands.
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