The Power of Emotional Intelligence in Business with Kelly Roddy
Kelly Roddy, CEO of WOWorks, joins Stephen Sakach and Mike Liwski on emotional regulation for leaders. Running six restaurant brands through delivery upheaval and GLP-1 taught him that staying regulated is part of the job, not a personality trait.
Emotional regulation for leaders is the least sentimental part of this conversation, and Kelly Roddy is blunt about it. Kelly is CEO of WOWorks, the parent company of six better for you restaurant brands including Saladworks, Frutta Bowls, Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, The Simple Greek, Barberitos, and Z!Eats. He previously repositioned Schlotzsky’s as president, doubling average unit sales, and brings two decades of executive experience from HEB, Scholastic, and Walmart. He joined hosts Stephen Sakach and Mike Liwski.
In this episode we explore:
• Why he refuses to accept passion as an excuse for losing your temper
• Values that live in conversation instead of on a poster
• Accountability redefined as an obligation to your team
• Two structural shocks hitting restaurants at once
• What a chief culture officer actually does
• The whirlwind, and why he wishes he had ignored it sooner
He starts from the operating reality: franchisees have often put their life savings in and are self-employed, so nobody is motivating them by default. That makes a regulated leader an asset rather than a nice trait.
On values, he is almost combative about posters. WOWorks has none. Instead they give an award for every value every day, and deep dive one value per month in all-team meetings, letting people describe how they used it. New hires arrive expecting the usual corporate lip service and stay long enough to notice it is real.
His accountability reframe is the most portable idea in the episode. Not I hold you accountable, but I have to do my job so you can do yours, backed by weekly rather than monthly check-ins on the big rocks and a stated personal commitment from everyone on the call. With franchisees, the same logic: share where you are, the average, and best in class, then build the plan together so they own it.
The context makes it harder. Up to 67 percent of some restaurants’ business is now digital, and GLP-1 has taken millions of meals out of the system. His answer is to make the smaller amount of food denser, and to design culture deliberately for a remote team through a chief culture officer, book clubs, and Friday coffee talks where business is not allowed. That is a brand promise actually operated, which is the gap Zero Company works in.
Key Takeaways
• (3:28) Values without a wall: “it’s not platitudes on a wall,” and WOWorks does not have a poster. They give an award for every value every day and deep dive one value a month, letting people describe how they lived it.
• (6:35) The two shocks hitting at once: some restaurants are now “as high as 67% of all their business is digital,” and GLP-1 means “there are literally millions and millions of meals” no longer being eaten. His response is nutrient density rather than complaint.
• (11:59) The job description most leaders skip: “you have to be emotionally regulated.” There is always a war or a pandemic or a housing crisis, and someone has to take the emotion out and point the team at what they control.
• (16:43) Accountability, reframed: “it’s not, I’m holding you accountable,” it is “I have to be accountable to do my job so that you can do your job better.” Weekly check-ins on the big rocks, with each person stating their commitment out loud.
• (23:53) Culture as a role, not a vibe: WOWorks employs a chief culture officer whose whole job is shared values across a remote team, with a book club, Friday coffee talks where “there’s no business allowed,” and a Dare to WOW program for personal goals.
• (33:52) The advice to his younger self, from a mentor: “the whirlwind is always going to be there.” Do not use it as the excuse. And on temper, “you’re not a baby anymore. Learn how to emotionally regulate yourself and deal with the issue.”
FAQ
What does emotional regulation look like for a CEO?
Kelly Roddy of WOWorks describes it as refusing the passion excuse. There is always a crisis running, and the leader’s job is to take the emotion out and focus the team on what it can actually control.
How do you make company values more than a poster?
By talking about them constantly. Kelly Roddy’s team has no values poster at all. They give an award for every value every day and deep dive one value each month with real examples from the team.
What is a chief culture officer?
At WOWorks it is a dedicated role for teaching culture and shared values across a fully remote team, running book clubs, Friday coffee talks with no business allowed, and a personal goals program called Dare to WOW.
High standards and genuine care are not a trade, they are the same discipline. Hear the full conversation with Kelly Roddy, watch it on the video page, hear Angela Coté on emotional intelligence in franchising, and find more on the Bliss Businesses series.
CEO of WOWorks
Kelly Roddy is Chief Executive Officer of WOWorks, the parent company of six good-for-you restaurant brands Saladworks, Frutta Bowls, Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, The Simple Greek, Barberitos and Z!Eats.
Under his leadership, WOWorks has accelerated expansion across the U.S. and Canada and is on a mission to help guests live healthier lives through nutritious, flavorful meals and exceptional hospitality.
Kelly’s career in the restaurant industry is marked by transformative leadership. He served as president of Schlotzsky’s, repositioning the brand from a sandwich deli chain to a high-quality eatery and doubling average unit sales. In 2019, he took over Saladworks, guiding it through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in 2020, he became CEO of WOWorks, leading the growth of the company’s portfolio of better-for-you brands.
Kelly also has 21 years of additional executive management experience at HEB, Scholastic, and Walmart.
