The Microbrewery Handbook

Chapter 15The Start to a Successful Brewery: Keys to Strong Leadership

I'M A BREWERY owner, but one thing that has been vital in our success is having an understanding boss. This brewery wouldn't exist without Quint Studer, who not only was willing to be flexible with my hours as his chief of staff to allow me to invest time in the brewery, but also taught me so much about employee culture and opening a business.

Quint is a household name in healthcare. After a successful career turning around the customer satisfaction at two large hospitals – Holy Cross Hospital in Chicago and Baptist Hospital in Pensacola – Quint began Studer Group, a national healthcare consulting firm, in 2000. He owned and operated the company for 16 years, becoming the gold standard in the industry. His company worked with every health system you've heard of, and if you know someone in healthcare, they probably know him or Studer Group, implement some of their teachings (AIDET is a popular one), or have read one of his many books on healthcare or leadership.

One of the biggest influences Quint has had on me, both philosophically and tactically, is striving for strong employee engagement. When Quint was brought into Holy Cross and Baptist, he was handed the same problem: terrible customer satisfaction. Healthcare at the time invested little into the customer experience. You needed a doctor, they had one. That was it.

Many hospitals – and breweries are no different – attempted to improve customer satisfaction ...