Andrew T. Cathy, CEO of Chick-fil-A and University of Georgia (UGA) alumnus, spoke to students at the UGA Chapel on September 9 as part of the Shoukry Leadership Speaker Series organized by the UGA Institute for Leadership Advancement.
Cathy recounted his early experiences with Chick-fil-A, recalling how he would help in the kitchen as a child but said there was no expectation from his family that he would join the business. “My parents never put any pressure on me,” Cathy told students. “They were always adamant that, ‘You have to do what you feel like your passions are and what you feel like God is calling you to do in your life.’”
He discussed balancing two interests while growing up: a passion for business and a desire to make a direct impact on others’ lives through teaching or coaching. As an undergraduate at UGA, Cathy took an interest in advanced finance topics and day trading but also considered becoming a teacher or coach.
“I was torn,” he said. “But I thought, ‘If I don’t teach or coach, I’ll always wonder if that was my calling.’” After graduating from UGA, Cathy spent several years teaching and coaching before returning to work at Chick-fil-A.
Cathy explained how his experience as a teacher continues to influence his leadership style. “To get the very best out of somebody (as a coach), you’ve got to really get to know what drives and motivates them. With a different person over here, it could be a totally different thing.
“It’s the same thing with business … you also have to adapt as a leader and know each person well in order to get the best out of them. So, there is a lot from teaching and coaching that I still do every day in the work that I do now.”
Over more than twenty years at Chick-fil-A, Cathy has held roles including restaurant operator and overseeing franchise operations for thousands of locations. He described not expecting to become CEO but wanting to contribute positively wherever possible.
In 2020, when asked by his father—then CEO—to take over leadership of Chick-fil-A, Cathy initially felt unprepared for the responsibility. “I think that you never feel prepared for the biggest opportunities,” he told students. “There’ll be opportunities that you’re not going to feel prepared for. But if you just dig in and learn from others, then you can grow into the role. I think it’s helpful for all of us to learn: We have to get comfortable being uncomfortable and learn how to grow into new roles.”
Cathy also addressed challenges facing successful organizations such as maintaining core values while adapting for future growth: “The danger for any business or organization — for any of us in terms of personal growth — is that as you get down the road where you’ve had success, it can be dangerous. You can start creating this protectionist mindset, thinking, ‘This is what got us here, and we can’t change these things.’
“For businesses — even those that have been at the very top of the game for years — it’s important that while they maintain their core values and purpose that they must evolve and change so they don’t miss the next big thing. It’s incumbent upon all of us that we are constantly growing and learning.”
Chick-fil-A currently operates more than 3,200 restaurants across several countries including Canada, England, and Singapore.
