Following a year of positive gains for Church's Chicken - including improved sales, more guest traffic, and the launch of third-party delivery, the brand has announced another bold initiative for enhancing restaurant performance – The Excellence Advisory Council. Designed to work in concert with Church's Independent Franchise Association, the EAC will be comprised of U.S.-based franchisees and corporate leadership to strategically address key and satisfy business initiatives, opportunities for the brand, and solutions for overcoming challenges. The Council will meet on a quarterly basis, and will be built from a maximum of 22 members, with CEO, Joe Christina acting as President, and CLO, Craig Prusher serving as Custodian of the Council.  

"Throughout the past several months, we've had the pleasure of meeting with multiple franchisees, restaurant managers, and other employees across the country," explained Christina about the formation of the group. "What we realized is that the CIFA board's greatest strength is identifying what topics we need to be addressing as a system. The EAC will then follow through on those areas of focus by implementing tactics and strategies to achieve those goals. It's very much a collaborative effort aimed at delivering outstanding results in a timely manner."

The formation of the EAC was announced system wide today, after which interested franchisees and employees were invited to submit nominations for membership. Franchisee and employee candidates must have a direct impact on restaurant operations and profitability in their respective regions and must also have a track record of success within a specific business area (sales, marketing, retention, compliance, etc.). Members will be appointed in the beginning of December 2018. To ensure the EAC serves as an accurate reflection of all those working within the Church's system, members will be appointed to 2-year terms, and will be limited to a maximum of two terms (4 total years).  The EAC will also provide regular updates to the CIFA board, which meets on a bi-annual basis.

"When corporate leadership steps up to engage everyone in Church's future, that's energizing for the brand," said David Newman, President of CIFA. "We're looking forward to the many achievements that measurable results shared between CIFA and the EAC can make possible."

The EAC also represents the brand's commitment to deepen their relationship with the broader franchisee community, a core initiative of the company's Strategic Plan. The EAC also represents the brand's commitment to deepen their relationship with the broader franchisee community, a core initiative of the company's Strategic Plan.