Client: Global QSR company

A global quick-service restaurant (QSR) company with operations spanning North America, Europe, and the Middle East, managing a large, geographically dispersed workforce and a complex, multi-market operating model.

The challenge

Amid continued global expansion and evolving operational demands, the organization needed greater confidence in its next generation of general managers. These roles are critical to performance, consistency, and growth across markets.

The company had a long-standing, cohort-based high-potential leadership program in place. However, it was no longer keeping pace with the business. Leadership expectations had shifted, and the program was not providing a clear view into who was truly ready to step into enterprise-level roles.

Internally, this created several risks:

• Limited visibility into leadership readiness and potential
• Inconsistent development experiences across participants
• Uncertainty in succession decisions for critical participants

Externally, the pace of change in the QSR sector, ranging from operational complexity to heightened performance expectations, demanded leaders who could think beyond functional execution and operate at a broader enterprise level.

The organization needed more than a refreshed program. It needed a more rigorous, data-informed approach to identifying, developing, and accelerating its future leaders.

The people

We partnered closely with:

• Senior executive stakeholders
• Internal program leaders and HR/talent teams
• External thought leaders and learning partners

ZRG Bravanti’s team led the design and execution of the assessment strategy and delivered executive coaching across the cohort, working directly with each participant.

The solutions

ZRG Bravanti helped redesign the leadership experience with assessment at its core, shifting the program from a traditional development model to one grounded in validated insight and targeted acceleration.

The solution focused on two priorities:

• Creating a clear, objective view of leadership readiness and potential
• Accelerating capability development in alignment with new leadership expectations

Key components included:

• Assessment and stakeholder feedback: Structured assessment combined with input from senior leaders and stakeholders to build a multi-dimensional view of each participant's strengths, gaps and readiness for General Manager roles
• Executive coaching: Individual coaching engagements translated assessments insights into action, helping leaders shift behaviors, strengthen decision making, and operate at a broader enterpirse level.
• Leadership development aligned to expectations: Targeted development focused on leadership expectations tied to strategy, execution, and talent leadership.
• Luminary speakers series: Exposure to external perspectives on leadership, strategy, and execution to broaden thinking beyond the organization.

The evaluation

ZRG Bravanti’s diagnostic process included:

• Input from senior executives, program leaders, and past participants
• Ongoing feedback loops throughout the program
• Continuous refinement of content, format, and delivery based on participant progress and engagement

This iterative approach ensured the program remained tightly aligned to business needs while adapting in real time.

Why this approach

The organization did not need more content. It needed clarity and precision in how it identified and developed leaders. Assessment-led development enabled more targeted investment, stronger alignment to business priorities, and more confident succession decisions.

Immediate impact

• Participants gained a clear understanding of their strengths, gaps, and readiness for advancement.
• Increased visibility with senior leadership created stronger alignment and sponsorship.
• Leaders began demonstrating broader, enterprise-level thinking and cross-functional collaboration

Long-term impact

• 50% of the cohort were promoted to General Manager roles, directly strengthening the leadership pipeline
• All participants achieved or made measureable progress toward their development goals.
• The organization gained a more reliable, data-backed view of leadership potential and readiness.
• Improved cross-functional collaboration and integration across regions and business unites.
• A stronger, more conncted leadership cohort with both external perspective and deep operational knowledge.

Participant feedback

• All participants rated their coach as "extremely effective" and an "incredible resource"

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