Papa John’s CEO Todd Penegor: ‘Helping Others Succeed Is The Biggest Win’

If you were to poll a group of football fans and ask them which position on the field is most like the CEO, the majority would point to the QB. But not Papa John’s CEO Todd Penegor. He’d focus on the offensive linemen.

For Todd, success is not about racking up your own big statistics or looking the best under the bright lights. Instead, it’s about helping others succeed in their roles. That’s where the O-line comes in.

In football, it’s the linemen who open holes for the other players. It’s the linemen who protect the QB so he can do his job. In that way, Papa John’s CEO believes, leadership starts in the trenches.

For Todd, who has more than 20 years of executive experience in the food service industry, it’s important to roll up your sleeves. He isn’t someone who wants to view things from a high perch. No, Todd wants to get down into the nitty-gritty.

“You learn more in a day in a restaurant than you do in a week in the office,” he explains on a recent episode of the Corporate Competitor Podcast.

And he should know. After working as the CEO for signature companies like Wendy’s and Kellogg’s, Todd decided to retire. But his time away was short-lived. After just five months he returned to take on the leadership role with the famed pizza company.

Why? It was simple. Todd didn’t need the paycheck or the pressure from the position—but he missed working with people. He missed developing the next generation of leaders.

For the CEO, that meant sharing his philosophy on team building. As he says, it’s all about the unit—from the glamor positions to the grunt work.

“No one is bigger than the brand,” Todd says.

That’s how you build a winner.

He talked about all this and more on the podcast, including:

• Stay team-first. For Todd, building a team is about just that. It’s not creating a roster of All-Star individuals. Instead, it’s about creating a unit for connected people who work well together.

• Leadership ain’t easy. To be a great leader means making difficult choices. You have to make calls some might not like. The object, though, Todd says, is to be respected. If you invest in smart decisions and then “put some runs on the board”, people will respect your vision.

• Get uncomfortable. The only way to find success through growth is by getting uncomfortable, Todd says. If change was easy, it wouldn’t be worth it. Growth requires risk. So, if you want to lead at a higher level, you have to bet on yourself.