Page 71 - BWM Dec 2012

December 2012 | Business World Magazine | 71
PROFESSIONAL
INGREDIENTS
Krouse says that business, sometimes, has
many complicated moving parts. “It takes
clarity of simple values to filter out the com-
plexities and better focus on the few things
that are most important,” he says. At Dona-
tos, beyond the focus on pleasing customers
is that relating to the pleasing of Donatos
Franchise Partners.
“Sometimes, as a leader you put cus-
tomers and associates before shareholders.
Some companies don’t practice that, but we
do. The more our customers and associates
benefit, the more our shareholders benefit,”
says Krouse.
Store level turnover at Donatos is
among the lowest in the industry. Krouse
says this reflects not only the success, but a
sense of connectivity associates have with
the operation. The key to securing that con-
nectivity involves thorough analysis of po-
tential employees. “We take very seriously
how and who we bring into the company.
We want to know if who they are matches
who we are,” says Krouse. Donatos is em-
powered in this process through an analyti-
cal tool called “Zero Risk.” Accordingly, the