PROVIDENCE, R.I. - June 23, 2003 - A landmark survey of senior- and middle-managers in the foodservice and hospitality industry has exposed an acute need for leadership development, particularly among those most likely to climb to the top of the corporate ladder.

Johnson & Wales University;
"The Next Generation of Leadership Research," a study released by The Elliot Leadership Institute at Johnson & Wales University, examined responses from 208 executives and managers who were asked to evaluate their own leadership skills, how they learned those skills, and areas in which they could develop and improve.

The study found that current training is geared towards teaching how to manage, but not how to lead. Middle managers, in particular, felt that professional development courses currently offered to them covered very specific subjects, such as menu planning. They also indicated a strong desire for more advanced training, perceiving it as necessary to achieve career goals. The majority of respondents asked for more educational opportunities in the areas of people skills, creative and strategic thinking, time management, and financial management.

"Their responses validated our original hypothesis that, as an industry, we have a leadership crisis," said Kathleen Wood, president of Elliot Solutions, LLC, a subsidiary of The Elliot Group, a leading executive search and strategic counseling firm specializing in the hospitality, foodservice and manufacturing industries. "Our leadership crisis is not about issues that other industries are challenged with - our leadership crisis is about the lack of development of the next generation of leaders."

Formed in January 2003, The Elliot Leadership Institute is a collaborative effort among The Elliot Group, Johnson & Wales University, Pepsi-Cola North America and Nation's Restaurant News. Its mission is to help develop future industry leaders, already at the executive or middle-management level, through a portfolio of research, products and services. "The Next Generation of Leadership Research," is the first project to come from the Institute.

"A major tenet of our educational philosophy is to work with employers to develop curriculum that reflects the needs of the marketplace," said John J. Bowen, president of Johnson & Wales University's Providence R.I. campus. "With the release of these findings, clearly the marketplace has spoken, and it has said there is a void in leadership competencies."

Another major study finding was the discrepancy between senior and mid-level managers on the role that mentoring has played in leadership development. Three-quarters of senior-level executives said they are currently mentoring someone, while only 35 percent of middle managers said that they are being mentored. Yet, the overwhelming majority of those who had had a mentor believed that mentors helped to build leadership competencies.

"Look at people like Ray Kroc (McDonald's) and Norm Brinker (Chili's Grills & Bars) and the people they have mentored and influenced," said Kevin Hall, co-founder, president and chief executive of Utah-based Guru's Enlightened Eating, as well as a member of the Institute's Advisory Council. "This industry is the best industry to foster leadership development and new ways to lead. People are so innovative. Everyone does it differently, and they are willing to share."

Information gleaned from the survey will be used to draft the first wave of products and services produced by the Institute.

"Given the ongoing labor challenges and steady growth projections for the food service and hospitality industry, we need to recognize that the development of both middle managers and senior executives is paramount to our collective future success," said Steve Caldeira, vice president of industry relations for Pepsi-Cola North America. "As we move forward, The Elliot Leadership Institute at Johnson & Wales University will serve as a much-needed catalyst to prepare the next generation of leadership."

Johnson & Wales - America's Career University® - was founded in 1914. It is a private, non-profit, accredited institution offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs in business, foodservice, hospitality and technology. With an enrollment of more than 15,000 students, Johnson & Wales is based in Providence, R.I., and maintains campuses in Charleston, S.C., Norfolk, Va., North Miami, Fla., Denver, Colo., and Göteborg, Sweden, with plans to open a new campus in Charlotte, N.C. in 2004. For more information about Johnson & Wales University, visit www.jwu.edu