Succesful Teams

Thinking back on the many teams I’ve been lucky to be a part of in my life, I’d say the most successful was at Jimmy John's.  I worked at Jimmy John’s for two years (on and off), and in both a franchise and a corporate store.  The management was a little different for both stores.

The corporate store was very efficient and definitely more well run.  At the head was Alex, the General Manager of the store.   Below him were two other Managers.  All three of them had similar responsibilities, and each of them was very connected to the workers below them (all of which are at the same level on the hierarchy).  They all worked about the same number of hours per week (at any one time at least one of them is in the store), but Alex definitely had more on his plate.  Unless two of the three Managers were there at the same time, it felt like the simple One Boss hierarchy was in place.  When two were there, either could be looked to for help or leadership.    Day to day, the responsibilities (making sandwiches, bread, cleaning) were divided out to the various workers by the manager, who was aware of who could do which job the best and most efficiently (and if there was a down time, they would help by making newer employees better at each responsibility).  The managers would almost always be assisting the workers as well, which led to more comfort with the authority.  The manager’s made sure everyone knew their responsibilities, which led to a higher performing team in my opinion.   I think corporate Jimmy John’s fit the profile of a high performing team very well, and things ran very smoothly there.

At the franchise store, things were a little different.  I think this team was less successful.  At the top there was Jake, the Manager of the store.  Under him was one Assistant Manager, and below those two were a number of PCs (Person in Charge).   This type of management worked a little differently.  The Manager would work six days a week, almost always in the morning and lunch as that was when we were busiest, and when he would leave for the day the PC would take over his responsibilities.  This was difficult, because PCs were chosen from among the lower employees, and anyone who could close the register and was deemed responsible could be made a PC.  I knew multiple who were not exactly fit for the job, so this didn’t always work out that great.  The assistant manager was also a worker that had been promoted because Jake needed help, but I think she did a fantastic job.  We did run into a problem there.  People had a problem with Jake, and occasionally he would act inappropriately.  There was a Regional Manager of the stores in the area, but he wasn’t one to go to with complaints.  I think this led to resentment with the boss, because even the Assistant Manager wasn’t sure how to handle the situation.  People ended up quitting the job, and I think it definitely led to a less productive team.  Was this because of the structure? Possibly.  If there was someone else with the same job as Jake (another Manager, like at the corporate store), then the workers might have felt comfortable saying something to that person, and possibly resolving the issue.