Thread

Culture gets harder to protect as a company grows. Danny Meyer, founder of Union Square Hospitality Group and a key force behind Shake Shack’s expansion, has spent decades learning how to make values survive beyond the founder’s presence. His test is simple: Culture is what happens when the CEO isn’t in the room. Meyer explains how “enlightened hospitality” became a set of concrete behaviors employees can learn and practice, and why hiring should account for emotional skills alongside technical expertise. He also shares how to spot a high “hospitality quotient” and why promotion decisions send some of the clearest signals about what an organization truly values. Listen to the latest IdeaCast to learn how leaders can scale a culture without losing what made it distinctive in the first place. hbr.org/podcast/2026/09/a-leading-restaura...