September 2020

LEADERSHIP
PROFILE
FRANK
HENNESSEY
CEO, Recipe Unlimited
BY ROSANNA CAIRA
KAY77 [SWISS CHALET]
When Frank Hennessey
graduated from
Western University in
1985, he applied to
become an OPP
officer. But, on the
way to his part-time
bartending job, he
became involved in a
minor accident. “I was fined for “following too
close” and that ticket, combined with another
speeding ticket — I wasn’t a very good driver
back then — caused me to get bumped from
the program.”
As luck would have it, the following week,
his supervisor at work asked if he would be
interested in restaurant management. The
rest, as they say, is history and 30 years later,
Hennessy leads Canada’s largest and oldest
full-service restaurant chain, Recipe Unlimited,
with purview over 20 restaurant brands
representing 1,350 units and 60,000 associates.
In his role as CEO, Hennessey guides the
team with a healthy dose of integrity peppered
with a focused ability to listen. “Always do
what you say you’re going to do,” he says.
“Having integrity is a must to building trust
with your team. They may not always like
your decisions, but if you always tell them
‘why,’ they know they can count of you to
follow through.”
Hennessey also has a “curious and healthy
imagination,” a quality he believes is particularly
important. “By the time a problem makes
its way up to you, it’s because it couldn’t be
solved at other levels or the options are not
clear cut,” he explains.
While Hennessey is used to leading
through change, the COVID-19 crisis has
been illuminating. “The typical patterns you
normally find in our businesses have been
Frank Hennessey oversees the
Swiss Chalet brand, among
others, in his role as CEO of
Recipe Unlimited
blown up. COVID-19 has accelerated other
processes and innovations: how we work;
remote work; methods of communication;
accelerating tech; floor and kitchen layouts;
ghost kitchens; curbside and frictionless pickup;
and contactless delivery. [Changes] you
thought may not happen for four to six years
are happening now.”
The crisis has also forced him to evolve
his leadership style. “When the crisis was first
starting, the decision-making [process] had to
be centralized. There was a need to be decisive,”
he adds, explaining he made the call to close
the restaurants before being mandated to do
so. “Closing 1,350 restaurants will make anyone
By the time a problem makes
ts way up to you, it’s because it
ouldn’t be solved at other levels
r the options are not clear cut"
FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM
SEPTEMBER 2020 FOODSERVICE AND HOSPITALITY 25