Chick-fil-A restaurant operator instills leadership concepts in young people he mentors

Chick-fil-A restaurant operator instills leadership concepts in young people he mentors

Brent Fielder says he feels like developing young leaders is his calling. It’s a calling that’s ranged all the way from training camp counselors to preparing chicken sandwiches.

“Before I owned a Chick-fil-A restaurant my job was running a program for college students,” said Fielder, a member of The Church at Brook Hills, Birmingham.

In that role he recruited and equipped hundreds of college students a year to work as staffers at Chick-fil-A’s WinShape Camps, a ministry created by the founder of Chick-fil-A, S. Truett Cathy.

“I really spent my time pouring into young leaders,” he said. “Most people in the program weren’t going to run camp for a living, but this was a way to grow them into their leadership acumen.”

Fielder does the same thing now at the Chick-fil-A he operates in Birmingham — he trains his employees to be leaders wherever they might go.

Time and energy

He puts his time and energy behind that in many aspects of his life serving on the board of overseers for Samford University and the board of advisors for Impact 360 Institute, a ministry of Chick-fil-A’s Cathy family that aims to equip the next generation of leaders through classroom and experiential learning.

He also serves on the board of directors for Vapor Ministries, a Sylacauga-based organization that works to establish sustainable centers for alleviating poverty and multiplying disciples overseas.

“Vapor is doing the same thing (empowering young leaders) in a Third World environment,” Fielder said. “There’s a big need in these communities for leadership. The ministry tries to meet basic needs, but once you have things up and running you need local leaders to hand it over to.”

Leadership concepts

What are some concepts he tries to pass on to the young leaders in his life? He offered these six as a starting point.

1. Be the leader you would want to follow. “No one wants to follow a bad leader or to work for a bad boss,” Fielder said. “Learn to be the leader you want to be led by.”

2. Replace yourself in your role. Fielder said he has yet to meet anyone who worked himself or herself out of a job and was no longer valuable to the organization.

“Always be teaching someone something,” he said.

3. You are responsible for your own development. “My job is to provide the tools and the resources for you to grow and develop,” he said. “It is your job to own it, make it yours and grow.”

4. Work hard. Fielder said nothing will replace hard, diligent work in your role.

“The Lord calls us to work as though you are working for the Lord and not for men,” he said. “Why would you not make (your task) great through hard work and diligence?”

5. Why not your best? Truett Cathy often asked, “Why not your best … why not?” Fielder said that should be the question always lingering in the mind of every leader.

“You are building your own brand in everything that you do,” he said. “Make it your best all of the time.”

6. Share what you are learning. “As I pour into you, pour into someone else,” Fielder said. “Once you have anything — experience, knowledge and expertise included — you now have stewardship over those things. Part of being a good steward is being generous with it. Share the things that you learn with others.” (Grace Thornton)