Do Ray Kroc, Bill Parcells, And Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf Ring A Bell?
June 1, 2009 // By John Carroll Dennis Hitzeman has had some legendary mentors in his life. First there was McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc, who hired the 16-year-old Hitzeman as a crew member for his third location. Later, as a West Point Cadet, he played football for assistant coach Bill Parcells and studied under Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr. “So much of what I learned at West Point is helpful in my business,” says Hitzeman. “The biggest single thing is the value of building strong teams. Then of course there are all the things you learn at West Point: integrity and management and organizational skills. They are all critical to running a business. I probably learned more about business at West Point than I did at business school.” Hitzeman has always enjoyed learning from people, including Jack Cowin, Australia’s Burger King master franchisee (it’s called Hungry Jack’s down under), or during lunch with best-selling author Clive Cussler. Hitzeman and his partner, Tom McDonald, have put th
