Lynsi Snyder, the highest-rated female CEO you may have never heard of....
How burgers and fries could and should change your views about how to build an engaged and committed workforce.
While the world of work continues to be disrupted by ‘the great resignation,’ there exist today companies that have managed to thrive even in the midst of all the chaos. One such company is cult favorite In-N-Out Burger, a California classic led by CEO legend Lynsi Snyder who has a staggering 92% approval rate on the employee review site Glassdoor. Lynsi also holds the title of the top-rated female CEO, with a whopping 96% approval rating. It’s likely astounding to many of you to see that In-N-Out ranks in the top twenty of all companies in this Glassdoor review, but if you knew about this family and their lasting leadership legacy, being refined since 1948, you might not be so surprised.
Regardless, the story is nothing short of incredible for an industry plagued by low wages, low employee morale, and ridiculously high turnover. Trust me, after spending almost my entire career working in both the quick-serve and full-service restaurant industries, I know how difficult this is to achieve at an individual unit level, let alone an organization level. So, what makes In-N-Out fare so well during one of the most disruptive working times we’ve ever seen? Let’s dig in!!
While compensation doesn’t always pave the way for a happy and engaged workforce, it absolutely helps, and In-N-Out does a legendary job here. With the average restaurant general manager making north of $160k per year, no, that’s not a typo, it's easy to see why there is such a high demand for securing a position at any level of this iconic brand and seeing how 100% of their store managers started in hourly associate restaurant position roles, again not a typo, their commitment to internal growth and development is impressive.
Add to the higher-than-average hourly and salary positions robust health, dental, vision, and life insurance plus profit sharing and a $401k for FT and PT employees, and you have a recipe for strong talent attraction, but compensation doesn't stop there. In-N-Out under Lynsi’s leadership understands that for a business to thrive, you must treat your employees like family, and that goes far beyond how you compensate them for their efforts. In-N-Out does a great job of creating this ‘family feel’ at each one of its restaurants. With annual summer BBQs, holiday parties, store achievement parties, and numerous sports leagues, sports days, and sports tournaments, you can see how a ‘family’ that celebrates together and plays together stays together. This is one of the likely reasons that they have such a low turnover.
Another aspect of the In-N-Out model that helps shape how both employees and customers alike view the business is their commitment to the safety and well-being of children that live in the communities in which they do business. The family foundation, Hope and Change for Young Lives, works tirelessly to help community partners who work to advance initiatives that support foster care, adoption, child harm intervention, domestic violence intervention, and the overall enrichment of children's lives. In the past five years alone, they have raised over $5 million dollars to donate generously towards these causes and donate generously they do. Unbeknownst to many, the foundation takes zero of these funds to pay the administration costs needed to distribute the monies raised; In-N-Out pays for that themselves. Consider, for example, that the average registered charity only ends up donating 67% of the money raised to the charity they raised the money for, and you can see why their stance of ‘100% of the money raised turns into money donated’ is so impressive.
The obvious care and attention Lynsi and her executive team put into how their In-N-Out employees are treated and how the organization chooses to give back to their communities begs the question about who she is as a leader, and one doesn’t have to look far to see her servant leadership approach. She and her family have always believed that for the business to be able to deliver a quality experience to their customer, they, as owners, must first deliver a quality experience to their employees by serving them and their communities well. They know full well that one cannot be accomplished without the other, which is why so much care and concern goes into the entire In-N-Out ‘family’.
Lynsi, an avid drag car racer, aerialist, bass player, and lead singer in the In-N-Out company band .48 Special, also isn't shy about her faith and her desire to serve God, nor is the company itself. If you look hard enough, you can read a bible verse or two written on the burger wrappers, fry containers, and milkshake cups, a tradition started by her Uncle Richard in 1987. Knowing that not all their customers will share the same Christian beliefs, they try to choose verses from the bible that can resonate with us all in one way or another, like the recently added “love your enemies and do good” verse.
Regardless of your faith, there is little doubt that Lynsi and her family have built a burger icon. In-N-Out has an impressive 380 locations and over one billion dollars in total system sales without selling one single franchise or taking the company public. They have proven that an organization that invests heavily in their employees’ coaching, development, and career progression can give you the edge that so many organizations need today – a workforce who is deeply committed to the organization and its purpose. Oh, and did I mention the free burger and fries on each shift?
Work at In-N Out - Employment - In-N-Out Burger
Support the Hope & Change for Young Lives Foundation - Foundations - In-N-Out Burger