UNIT 5

After reading the book "Good to Great", i realized just how important it was to have a good leader running an organization.  Not only that, but having the RIGHT people for the RIGHT jobs is just as important. 
The book made me think of my old job where I was a server for a well known, Columbias steakhouse, in Lexington.  It had been in business for close to 60 years and had a long list of regulars that would come in every week.  The reputation of the restaurant might have been good, but the manager (leader) of the restaurant was the worst boss I had ever had.  Working there was like working for a 15 year old girl who complained constantly, only she was 65.  The book hits on the idea that when great companies realize there is a problem, they implement change to fix it.  Good companies do not recognize these changes and most likely end up in financial trouble or even out of business.  In the case of Columbias, it was very obvious to the employees and some customers that the restaurant was not what it used to be.  People were always complaining that their steaks were undercooked or overcooked or that they flat out didnt care for the food.
Under these circumstances, a great company would probably re-vamp the restaurant by figuring out what the problem was and then making the necessary changes.  But this was not the case for Columbias.  The manager and owner were living on the reputation the restaurant had 30 years ago.  If somebody did not like there food, they could care less and not offer them a discount or pay for their food.  The kitchen was run by a bunch of ex-felons (no joke) that had the sorriest work ethic I had ever seen.  The restaurant only ran as fast as the kitchen and when it got really busy, people would wait 45 minutes to an hour for their food.  I had countless tables complain about the wait and my manager would never go over to apologize or to make sure that everything was ok.
I finally left in March and will never go back EVER again.  While the restaurant (i'm guessing) still does fine, it could easily be one of the better places to eat in town if our manager and owner would wake up and realize the problems.  They are far from a great company and show no signs of doing something about the problems they have.  I'm guessing that over the span of the next couple of years, things will get really bad to where they have no choice but to do something.  All I know is that if they want to be in business for another 60 years, they better wake up and figure out the issues they have.