Local named Taco Bell Franchise Manager of the Year
May 4—Mario Guerrero was named the 2023 Taco Bell Franchise Manager of the Year, quite a feat considering there are over 7,000 franchise managers in the Taco Bell business.
Guerrero credits his success to the general manager and leaders who taught him, as well as the team he works with now.
"The general manager that was there, Eric Walsh, took over the store about two months after I started working there," Guerrero said. "He took me under his wing. He really taught me most of everything I know now. It was him and a few of the leaders that were there, they really inspired me and showed me that this is a career path I could take in the future myself."
Walsh now serves as Regional Leader/West, Texas for Southern Multifoods Inc. In a video regarding Guerrero's achievement, Walsh said he didn't think Guerrero realizes how much he has meant to Walsh's own personal journey.
"He was just here to learn, he was a great student, which in turn made me a better teacher," Walsh said.
Guerrero began working for Taco Bell at the age of 16 so he could buy a car. He said his parents were willing to help, but told him if wanted to choose the vehicle he'd have to work for it.
Once employed, Guerrero worked hard and received promotions. Just a week after his 19th birthday, Guerrero was named general manager of the Jacksonville store.
He said most employees accepted him in the position despite his youth, however a few friends couldn't adjust to his being their boss and left.
Guerrero said it is a challenge not just to staff the restaurant, but to hire the right people, train them and get them ready to take care of business.
Guerrero said the Jacksonville store had reached Golden Bell status in 2019, when he first started working, and again in 2020, in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was seeing his boss awarded a trip to Hawaii as a reward for the achievement that Guerrero said made him realize he was working for a good company.
"From there, I knew this was a really good company to work for and I want to give it a shot," he said. "I wanted to try it out."
Guerrero said he tries to connect with the staff, especially the new hires, so they know he cares about them. He said getting to know the employees and letting them know he cares makes them more receptive to his coaching.
"It's not just tacos and burritos, it's the people part," Walsh said. "That's where he excels and for him to be so young and for him to understand that concept and put it into play is incredible."
Guerrero also said he wanted to be able to do for current and future employees what Walsh and others had done for him, showing them the opportunities available through Taco Bell and Southern Multifoods.
It's the people employed at Taco Bell and the culture they've created that Guerrero said makes everything work well.
"I'm very grateful for the team that I have," he said. "We're like a machine and they're the moving parts that help make it run. I'm just a leader, but without my team I could not have accomplished what I have accomplished."
What Guerrero accomplished was seeing the Jacksonville restaurant reach Golden Bell status. Only 200 managers of Golden Bell restaurants are invited to a celebratory trip to Hawaii and Guerrero was among them. While there with his wife, it was announced he'd earned 2023 Franchise Manager of the Year.
"It was a moment not just for me, but for her as well," Guerrero said. "To finally see me achieving something that I've wanted for so long, after sacrificing many things, it was an amazing feeling. She's always supported me along the way and she still supports me now."
President and CEO of Southern Multifoods, Inc. Drew Durrett, whose father opened his first restaurant in Jacksonville in 1977, also commented in the congratulatory video.
"With Mario leading the charge now, my dad would be very excited to understand and know that the restaurant today runs a little bit better than the restaurant 47 years ago," Durrett said.