Although now I’m officially finished with the “Roommate Chronicles” series, I had to share another interesting and inspiring MBA story with ya’ll, as he says. This is the story of Mark and Amy Cathy. Mark is a 26-year-old MBA student at Pepperdine with a concentration in Organizational Leadership and Change Management. Mark and I met through playing on Pepperdine’s flag football team. This upcoming spring, Mark and I have signed up for all of the same classes together. I’m hoping having a friend in all of the classes will help keep us on track and motivated during the times when school gets tough.
The Cathy family has a legacy… and its called Chick-fil-A. Mark Cathy’s family is the owner of the Atlanta Georgia based Chick-fil-A restaurant franchise. Chick-fil-A is a quick service restaurant chain specializing in chicken sandwiches and has more than 1,400 store locations in the US. Chick-fil-A is a large, privately held company employing more than 70,000 workers in 37 states with 2.64 billion in annual revenue. The most impressive statistic about Chick-fil-A is its growth as a company; the company has posted 40 years of positive revenue growth, and double-digit revenue growth in the last 14 years.
It all started back when both Mark and Amy worked at Chick-fil-A in high school before they even knew each other. Little did they know that 4 years later at the University of Georgia they would meet and begin dating. Amy’s father has worked for Chick-fil-A for over 26 years and at one point her mother worked for them as well. Mark’s father is a senior vice president and his grandfather is the founder/owner.
Upon graduation, Mark plans on serving the company as either a business development consultant or as a marketing manager. Amy currently works in the human resources department, focusing on recruitment and training. Both Mark and Amy are passionately committed to Chick-fil-A and continuing the family legacy. Who would have thought that two high school students, both working the drive thru at a chicken fast food company would go on to get married and both become important corporate leaders at that very same company!
Outside the classroom, Mark and Amy have a very active life. They do their best to balance their heavy workloads with fun and social activities. Mark and Amy enjoy going to the beach, playing volleyball, biking and surfing. When they need a little time apart, Amy enjoys reading while Mark is very involved with flag football. They have been happily married now for 3 ½ years and are enjoying their new home in Malibu.
Mark and Amy give the MBA program a refreshing, southern United States element. Mark’s high positive energy and Amy’s unending kindness shine through in everything that they do. While being both married and an MBA student is tough work, these two are doing great!
