"Undercover Boss" Heads to Hooters
Nearly 40 million people watched the new CBS reality series "Undercover Boss" when it premiered after the Super Bowl. This Sunday night, we'll see Cody Brooks, president and CEO of Hooters of America, Inc., leave the corner office and get up to his elbows in Buffalo wings and beer.
Brooks sat down with Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith to discuss what made him decide to go undercover.
"It was an opportunity. I didn't know if it was ever going to happen. We talked about it for a long time. It was a new series. I wanted to get back into it. It's been 20 years since I've been into the field - as we call it," he said.
In 1983, Brooks' father, Robert, joined six of fellow entrepreneurs to start the company in Florida and he ended up with the franchising rights and then the actual name. (Robert Brooks passed away in 2006.)
While out in the field, Brooks took notice of the different views his employees had of him and his father.
"Well, my father and I are different characters. He was much more strong armed. I'm more laid back. I manage by majority movement and my whole executive team gets together. My father was more of a single person; this is what we're going to do. There are some differences," he said.
Differences aside, Brooks took away a lot of valuable lessons taking on the jobs of his employees.
"Hooters is a private company, is a very family oriented company. And we're one big huge family and we bleed orange," he said. "So to find out that after 20 years of me being in the stores and after 26 years of the existence of the concept, Hooters still makes you happy, which is our mission statement.
"Our employees are happy, our cooks, our girls are happy, our managers are happy and the customers are happy. So we're still - after close to 27 years doing exactly what we started out do."
Although Hooters has stayed on target business-wise, many people still have a perception that Hooters isn't a "woman-friendly place," Smith pointed out.
"We work in a glass bubble, Hooters does. And we're held to a higher standard because of our name and what we do," Brooks said.
According to Brooks, Hooters "empowers women all the time."
"Thirty-seven percent of our corporate office and management staff are women, seventy-five percent of all of our employees are women," he explained. "We raised a lot of women. We just sent one of our vice presidents, who was a Hooter girl, to Rwanda recently to help better educate women and empower women. So there's a lot of things that Hooters does behind the scenes that we never get credit for, but the bad things you always hear about."
Copyright 2010 CBS. All rights reserved. Brooks sat down with Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith to discuss what made him decide to go undercover.
"It was an opportunity. I didn't know if it was ever going to happen. We talked about it for a long time. It was a new series. I wanted to get back into it. It's been 20 years since I've been into the field - as we call it," he said.
In 1983, Brooks' father, Robert, joined six of fellow entrepreneurs to start the company in Florida and he ended up with the franchising rights and then the actual name. (Robert Brooks passed away in 2006.)
While out in the field, Brooks took notice of the different views his employees had of him and his father.
"Well, my father and I are different characters. He was much more strong armed. I'm more laid back. I manage by majority movement and my whole executive team gets together. My father was more of a single person; this is what we're going to do. There are some differences," he said.
Differences aside, Brooks took away a lot of valuable lessons taking on the jobs of his employees.
"Hooters is a private company, is a very family oriented company. And we're one big huge family and we bleed orange," he said. "So to find out that after 20 years of me being in the stores and after 26 years of the existence of the concept, Hooters still makes you happy, which is our mission statement.
"Our employees are happy, our cooks, our girls are happy, our managers are happy and the customers are happy. So we're still - after close to 27 years doing exactly what we started out do."
Although Hooters has stayed on target business-wise, many people still have a perception that Hooters isn't a "woman-friendly place," Smith pointed out.
"We work in a glass bubble, Hooters does. And we're held to a higher standard because of our name and what we do," Brooks said.
According to Brooks, Hooters "empowers women all the time."
"Thirty-seven percent of our corporate office and management staff are women, seventy-five percent of all of our employees are women," he explained. "We raised a lot of women. We just sent one of our vice presidents, who was a Hooter girl, to Rwanda recently to help better educate women and empower women. So there's a lot of things that Hooters does behind the scenes that we never get credit for, but the bad things you always hear about."
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Should he have gone along with it? Well when you are in a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation, what do you do? Pressured by the CEO to do it, or go along and hope for the best... Either way - he lost. Because of the backlash of the show - he resigned. ... See More
Hooters has had a VERY protective policy against any kind of harassment in place for at least 2 decades. I was there for 5 years and if ANY manager crossed any line, the girls put a stop to it by either contacting their regional managers, the franchise owner, or the toll free corporate hotline number that all employees are given. I don?t know one Hooter?s Girl who would put up with the antics that they had Jimbo pull in the show for even one shift.
There are several inconsistencies in the filming of the show as well. Anyone who works at Hooters could spot them a mile away.
Coby should be ashamed for trying to pull off this scam and CBS cannot be trusted with reality just like Kanye can?t be trusted to be on LIVE tv.
Please forward this message to Colby Brooks, President/CEO
Dear Mr. Brooks:
I am writing in response to the Undercover Boss show I saw on TV.
I am sorry, but you need to get some balls, and fire that Hooters Manager, "Jimbo" for his sexist, and disrespectful treatment of his female employees which I believe was sexual harassment.
Jimbo's behavior was unacceptable and to further proove his unfitness to be a manager, even in your office, when you explained to him your dissatisfaction and inappropriate behavior, Jimbo was arguing with you, stating "That he believed his management style was OK, he had a long track record in food service and he and produced good financial results for the company, and that's what mattered". Jumbo's argumentative response is further proof that he is not management material. Not to mention that he is low class.
If and I say if... your father was really the type of man that you personify him as, I don't think for a minute that he would have accepted Jumbo's attitude and behavior either in the restaurant or at the corporate office.
Your father would have fired him. - Right on the spot.
I hope you get the balls to do so in the future, and be the strong man (and CEO) that your daughters and employees need and will look up to.
Sincerely,
I actually tuned into the show based on a previews I saw on TV and thought it looked like it could be a great new show, I actually loved the first show on the Waste Management Company... Bravo to that show, CEO and employees, I will never look at my disposal service (which is the same one we have to use) the same way again. I was actually proud of that owner/CEO and what he did for his company and employees! What a great family he had. I actually looked forward to the second show on the Hooters restaurant hoping that it would change my opinion on the eatery.....I have to say I was very disappointed! Really disappointed!! I actually was hoping to rally behind them or at least give them another try if the owner changed things....
To back track I had hoped that my opinion on what the Hooters brand represented would be laid to rest when I had a friend that came to visit me and wanted to try Hooters when we were in Orange County CA. She had heard Rev Runs wife rave about the chicken wings on TV and was dying to try them. I actually always stayed away from Hooters due to what I thought was a gimmick, making money based on first selling *oobs , food second.... just a bar selling food ." I have never believed that you needed to package a product like that if the food was actually good. The restaurant just looked like an oversized bar, the servers were nice however the food was not good. I had better chicken wings from Pizza Hut. I actually live in Palm Springs CA and the Hooters that was in the desert closed up because people said it was so bad, now I'm sure that was correct.....anyway's my actual comment is about the behavior of the son Colby, he didn't even come close to being professional or concerned about his employees or patrons (male or female) like the Waste Management CEO. I thought "maybe" his having two daughters Mr Brooks would be more respectful of his female employees, patrons or future patrons, however that didn't seem to affect him, as a matter of fact there was even a sign in the conference room that had a picture and said "bumps"....confirms my thoughts about the establishment and what it truly represents. I'm not sure how to wrap this comment up, but I will start with saying, I won't line your pockets with my money now or in the future because first of all what Hooters represents (confirmed by the show,) second the food is not even good. Mr Brooks it's never to late to make changes for the better weather it has to do with the menu, uniforms, managers, respect or integrity for people.
I'm a 37 yr old attractive young woman and haven't nor would I step inside a Hooters... all it's missing is the disco ball and stripper pole!
.. especially after this episode.
Such a disgrace! and I hope that Mr Brooks reviews this information and improves himself and his company ... or one of those young ladies sue him for "sexual harassment", or for it being a "hostile working environment".
signed,
disguted!
The problem with the Hooters' business decline is NOT the girls or the service. Their problem, as I see it, is poor food quality. I have stopped by to get wings on my way home, and found them served with a "thick batter, dipping in grease". Not one of my food choices, and I have not returned. The service is good and the girls pretty (most of them), but sad to say my interest is only the wings. My opinion others that visit Hookers, looking for food, are not likely to return.
I would strongly suggest Mr Brookers find someone that understands "food quality". Plus,a manager that has his staff eat off a plate like an animal deserves "ZERO" second chance.
Lastly thanks for you donation to our Military.. I salute you for that.,
Jim (his real name) was acting the part of the "evil manager" at the request of the show producers and with the full knowledge of Cody Brooks. Simply put, it was a setup.
People, "Reality TV" just means the people you see in the show are not professional actors in fictional situations. Everything from how they talk (though not necessarily what they say) to the situations they encounter, are planned, scripted and filmed in several takes to get the multitude of angles and reaction shots that would take at least five separate camera crews to obtain if it was being filmed in real-time.
The "we're filming a documentary" line is not there for the people being filmed. It's to distract you, the viewing audience. To make you not wonder how they could possibly film such ridiculous situations as the bean-eating contest without even one of the girls looking right at the camera and saying "I really object to this" and walking out.
Cody did the show for publicity and to present himself as a fair, understanding CEO for future employment. The potential for corporate embarrassment was deemed worth the risk by the board who are now trying to sell the company. Source: http://adage.com/article?article_id=142119
The real losers in all this are the American viewing public who are manipulated by this kind of fakery. It seems a portion of America can no longer can distinguish between reality and "Reality". You want reality on TV, watch the Olympics. You want real reality, turn off the TV and go outside.
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/hot_for_hooters_FCcJCPEhfsGbcdQoM81HVL