Community leaders often wrestle with a persistent challenge regarding how to close the skills gap and create genuine upward mobility in their communities. We frequently look to large-scale government programs or major corporate initiatives for the answer. However, a recent panel during the National League of Cities’ City Summit conference revealed a different solution that is likely operating right down the street.
The conversation featured Chick-fil-A local Owner-Operators and Riverton, Utah Councilmember Andy Pierucci. They shifted the focus from transactional economics to transformational relationships. The consensus was that when local businesses and city officials view each other as partners instead of adversaries, the entire community benefits.
Here are the key takeaways for city leaders looking to tap into the human capital development happening in communities across the country.
Developing the Whole Person
In communities across the country, there’s a lot of talk about the growing need of “soft skills” development like leadership, conflict resolution and communication. These are the building blocks of a healthy civic society, but they are increasingly difficult to teach in a classroom.
For local business owners, teaching these skills is a daily operational necessity that turns into a lifelong benefit for the employee.
Andrew Allman, a Chick-fil-A local Owner-Operator in South Jordan, Utah, shared that effective mentorship requires intentionality. He didn’t just hope his team would learn leadership by osmosis. Instead, he created a “Director of Growth” position within his restaurant. This leader’s sole job is to mentor emerging talent by running monthly sessions on tangible skills like handling conflict and peer leadership.
This investment pays dividends beyond the restaurant walls. Josiah Brown, a Chick-fil-A local Owner-Operator in San Bernardino, Calif., reflected on his 15-year journey from Team Member to business owner. He described a culture of psychological safety where his mentor viewed operational errors as necessary investments in his development rather than failures. This freedom to learn through experience didn’t just make him a better businessman; he credited it to also “making him a better husband, a better father, and a better friend.”
A Visual Representation of Advancing Opportunity
Access to education and career pathways are top priorities for many communities. Councilmember Andy Pierucci noted that he was struck by the massive numbers of high school graduates employed at his local Chick-fil-A and the tangible pathways to education they were offered. He described the brand’s scholarship programs as a great visual representation of upward mobility in action.
The panel highlighted how the franchise model uniquely supports this:
- Removing Barriers: Jeremiah Cillpam, a Chick-fil-A local Owner-Operator in Hollywood, Calif., noted that the low barrier to entry enabled his own journey to ownership. The franchise fee was just $5,000 when he started 19 years ago and is still only $10,000 today. Now, he removes financial barriers for his staff by providing access to debt-free, four-year degrees.
- Funding the Future: Andrew Allman’s restaurant has awarded nearly $100,000 in scholarships to Team Members. Beyond education, Jeremiah highlights benefits that are often uncommon in the quick-service industry, such as 401k plans, health insurance, and paid time off in his restaurants.
- The Leadership Ladder: The pathway from entry-level to ownership is real. 76 percfent of Chick-fil-A local Owner-Operators selected in the last two years were former Team Members. Jeremiah noted that nine of his former Team Members have gone on to become Operators themselves.
Extending Hospitality to the Community
When a business is truly rooted in its community, the “four walls” of the building disappear. The panel discussed how private enterprise can function as a “community gathering place,” which is a concept city planners usually reserve for parks or libraries.
For Josiah Brown, this means using his business to heal fractures in the community. In San Bernardino, he hosts “Coffee with a Cop” to facilitate dialogue in a neighborhood where law enforcement is sometimes feared. This offers a safe and neutral space for connection.
Jeremiah Cillpam takes a similar “co-laborer” approach in Los Angeles. Rather than operating in a silo, he actively engages with the Mayor’s office and City Council members to discuss complex local issues like homelessness and food insecurity. His restaurant even established a business endowment at Los Angeles Community College to invest in the local student body.
The “Big Idea” for City Leaders
How can city officials replicate this success? Councilmember Pierucci challenged attendees to shift their mindset.
Too often, city leaders get bogged down in the day-to-day work of permitting and regulation. Councilmember Pierucci suggests we need to stop viewing businesses merely as tax revenue sources or regulatory hurdles — we must start viewing them as partners in solving community problems.
He offered a simple framework for collaboration:
- Identify Core Strengths: Know what your community needs, such as youth development or food security.
- Start the Conversation: Proactively reach out to business owners. Do not wait for them to come to City Hall with a permit application.
- Let it Snowball: Once that relationship is established, the opportunities to serve the community together will naturally multiply.
As Josiah Brown summarized, “A rising tide lifts all ships.” When cities and local businesses collaborate to develop people, we do not just build better workforces. We build stronger communities.
Visit the NLC Strategic Partnerships page to learn more about the organizations like Chick-fil-A dedicated to making NLC the premier resource for local governments.
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