Economy Was Booming a Decade Ago, Before

¶ … economy was booming a decade ago, before the financial crisis that hit hard in Southeast Asia. During this time of economic prosperity in Bangkok, I landed my first job with an American franchised fast food restaurant: Popeye's Chicken. At first I was amazed when I realized that the manager had only hired two workers to run the restaurant. With the crowds that came in at peak times of day, it seemed totally unreasonable to expect efficient service. However, it was even more surprising how much I was capable of doing. The tasks that I once thought were overwhelming became less daunting and the operation ran incredibly smoothly. My colleague and I ran the franchise with aplomb, belying our young age. With a work schedule planned by our manager, which was based on the American franchise system, my coworker and I supervised and operated Popeye's with enthusiasm and competency. It was tiring at times and fun: if I was taking orders from customers, my colleague was in the kitchen preparing the food, placing the frozen meals in the frying machine. I would continue taking orders from the next customer, and with our organized system, my customers only waited a few moments for their food. I knew that if I worked at a local Thai restaurant that it would have been chaotic and confusing. My coworker and I would be running back and forth between the kitchen and the cash register, trying to multitask. It might seem like we were getting more work done, but in reality it would take much longer for customers to receive their food. Although workers would be taking care of both food preparation and customer service, in my experience the American system worked far better.

As a Thai national, I can't help but compare my experiences in an American restaurant chain with my experience as a customer in Thai restaurants. I remember how it would take much longer to receive my food in Thai restaurants. Working at Popeye's caused me to imagine a scenario in which local Thai restaurants applied the principles of the American franchise to their operations. Ironically, when I envisioned the juxtaposition of American and Thai business principles, I couldn't see it working out. For one thing, the nature of Thai food negates placing frozen meals into a frying machine. The delicious flavors would be destroyed. However, I did learn key business management strategies while working at Popeye's. It inspired me about the world of business and led me to my current path in pursuit of a higher degree in business administration in the United States.