CEO of Code Ninjas Weighs in on Leadership Amid Brand Evolution
My career path has spanned three continents, many big brand names and, along the way, has provided me with learning experiences that have helped me grow as a person and a leader.
I stepped into my first leadership role in 2000 as the Director of Operations for Domino’s Pizza in the European market, then moved to Starbucks where I worked my way up to Regional Director of Licensed Stores, followed by leadership positions at Office Depot and C2. Most recently, I was the Chief Executive Officer of Starbucks India then Tim Hortons in India.
While each experience has been vastly different, they have each guided me to my current role as Chief Executive Officer of Code Ninjas. Stepping into this new role has provided a unique opportunity to reinvigorate the team from franchisees up to the leadership level. I am thrilled to be a part of a brand that I truly believe in, from the brand ethos to the business model.
The goal coming in was to trickle that belief down to the rest of the system to lead all franchisees toward success while expanding our footprint. As a brand, Code Ninjas cannot be successful without our franchisees being ‘all in’ on the brand. We have the opportunity to introduce kids to STEM and prepare them for their future, and it is incredibly gratifying and something I take seriously.
Everything I have learned throughout my career fuels the ability to take the necessary steps to lead Code Ninjas to its full potential as a leader in children’s education. Here’s how we’re cracking the code and finding success:
Teamwork
As I took on the CEO role, my first step was to make sure we had the right team in place to guide Code Ninjas to its next era of growth and strong performance. It is imperative that the people on board have the same, unified vision for the future of the brand. As the CEO, it is not necessarily my job to be an expert in the domain of coding, but rather, understand what our team is up against and how to put the right people in place to face any impending challenges while embracing endless opportunities.
We also moved our headquarters to Atlanta so we could all be in the office together. We’ve seen that being together creates a strong sense of teamwork and openness as we build those relationships to strengthen productivity for us as a leadership team. This has resulted in tremendous collaboration, unlocking immense creativity to guide us into the future.
Strategize
My next step was to build the strategy with my team. It was important, as a leadership team, to ensure we were all on the same page. If a brand’s leaders are not on the same page, then it is not reasonable to expect the franchisees to know how to move forward.
Additionally, an unclear strategy represents dysfunction and confusion for a brand, ultimately not yielding positive results. With a clear direction in place of where we want to see Code Ninjas go, I was able to take the next step in reinvigorating the brand from the top down, making it exceptionally clear that everyone – regardless of position – had a crucial and unique role in actualizing our brand goals.
Listen
From there I put boots on the ground, visited the dojos and spoke face-to-face to the franchisees to truly learn and understand what they think and feel about the brand in its current state. This is an important step to help guide the direction of Code Ninjas, or any brand. It shows that the C-level executives care and that franchisees have full support in their entrepreneurial journey.
We added regular conference calls and town halls for the franchisees, making our team approachable through frequent and open communication. We also created a newsletter to keep our franchisees informed of what is happening internally at the brand.
I have a very participative leadership style where everyone’s opinion matters in terms of how our company operates. It helps remind franchisees that my door is open and that they are valued as stakeholders in the growing Code Ninjas. Those opinions lead to us making the most informed decisions possible.
At the end of the day, the franchisees are the ones who are involved on a daily basis with the consumers, and have the most passion for the business and the kids. They understand what we need to have in place to generate long-term success so it is important to have their uninhibited insights.
Action
With the right team and strategy in place, after hearing the input from the franchisees, the final step is to take action. It was my job to bring all the feedback to the rest of the team and see how we can effectively put the words into actions as we set our franchisees up for success to become fabrics within their communities.
The various leadership roles have taught me that being decisive and learning how to embrace change and innovation when leading a company is essential.
These steps have led to a positive response from the franchisees as many have raised their hands to expand the footprint of Code Ninjas to new kids to help push the brand’s growth forward.
Despite being early on in my tenure with Code Ninjas, the fresh energy throughout the system has truly reinvigorated the company and put us on a track for continued success.