Summary:

Lisa Ingram is the President, CEO, and Board Member of one of the most iconic hamburger chains in the country, 95-year-old, 4th-generation, and family owned, White Castle. The brand has been affiliated with the likes of Alice Cooper, The Beastie Boys, and Stan Lee, just to name a few, and it’s even been the centerpiece of a Hollywood blockbuster, Harold and Kumar go to White Castle. In this episode Lisa takes us through her path to running the company, what it was like growing up in the family business, what drives her to want to be successful, overcoming gender bias in the work place, and the vision/future/goals for the White Castle brand!

Mile Markers:

(00:00:00) Episode 65 – Lisa Ingram
(00:00:35) Subscribe to the Conquering Columbus Podcast!
(00:01:05) AWH
(00:01:30 The SunDown Group
(00:01:50) Facilities Management eXpress (FMX)
(00:02:28) Conquering Columbus Intro Music
(00:03:25) Introduction to Lisa Ingram
(00:04:00) A typical day in the life with 4 kids
(00:05:00) Childhood in the Ingram family
(00:06:30) College in Texas, an internship with John Glenn, and waiting tables
(00:07:30) Lisa’s first job post-college
(00:08:30) Growing up, there was no expectation that we’d come back and work in the family business
(00:09:30) MBA and internship with Hewlett Packard
(00:12:00) I loved the tech-industry because everything was constantly changing!
(00:13:50) Coming back to White Castle, and there were three of us interested in the CEO position… I had the support of the family!
(00:18:30) Building a culture: 98.6% of general management at White Castle, started behind the counter!
(00:20:20) The challenges of climbing the professional ranks as a female
(00:24:50) Becoming a strong leader and working in the castles
(00:28:00) Balancing the tradition of White Castle while keeping up with ever-changing food trends
(00:33:30) Harold & Kumar go to White Castle
(00:35:00) Stan Lee & Alice Cooper, the original cravers
(00:35:30) Competing with brands such as McDonald’s
(00:37:30) Building White Castle from the outside-in
(00:38:55) Goals and vision for the next 5-10 years: growth, profit, and being one of the best places to work
(00:39:40) Becoming a great place to work!
(00:42:10) The short-term goals
(00:44:00) Live Uncomfortably
(00:46:15) Subscribe to the Conquering Columbus Podcast and share the episode, if you liked it!
(00:46:40) AWH
(00:47:00) The SunDown Group
(00:47:25) Facilities Management eXpress (FMX)
(00:47:58) Conquering Columbus Outro Music

Links:

Lisa Ingram
White Castle
Facilities Management eXpress (FMX)
The SunDown Group
AWH[Subscribe]