In my latest reading of This Is Herman Cain, Herman Cain
talks about meeting the woman who would become his wife (he says that
she didn't think he was all that cool at first), his education, and his
various jobs.
I was interested in Herman Cain's perspective on
such issues as racism, civil rights, and discrimination. Cain
acknowledges that he was the beneficiary of the civil rights movement,
for it made more employment opportunities available to him. He also
talks about discrimination that he faced on one occasion in the
workplace, as others were being promoted whereas he was not. But he
says that he overcame that discrimination when he talked to his boss,
learned that he needed to get a master's degree, and went for it even
though his boss didn't think he'd be successful. I'm not sure if that
technically counts as "discrimination", however, since the boss's
problem did not (at least on the surface) appear to be Herman Cain's
race, but rather his need for further qualifications. But Herman refers
to it as an example of how he overcame a barrier. On the issue of
being denied opportunities, I liked what Herman Cain said on page 35
about how he was denied admission to the University of Georgia because
it "chose to keep enrollment of black students to a minimum", and yet
Herman's daughter Melanie years later attended and graduated from the
University of Georgia. Herman says, "I suspect her decision [to attend
the University of Georgia] had something to do with an option I had not
enjoyed."
I enjoyed Herman Cain's stories about working at Burger
King. Herman went to Burger King's after being a vice-president at
Pillsbury's because he wanted a challenge. And, as a Burger King boss,
he had to deal with challenges. First, on one occasion, when a Burger
King worker accidentally disrupted a piece of the equipment during a
busy lunch hour, and hamburger patties were coming out undercooked or
not cooked at all, Herman Cain had to think fast, especially with the
long lines. Herman had the workers fix a bunch of chicken and fish
sandwiches, and he told people lining up for the drive-through about the
problem. Herman narrates on page 55 that "By the time the broiler was
up and running, we had sold out of the chicken and fish sandwiches."
Second,
Herman was told that he had to increase sales and profits, yet he had
no control over prices or items on the menu. So how would he increase
sales and profits? Herman did so by having the workers at the counter
look each customer in the eye and smile. Herman also says on page 58:
"The reason I did so well in running Burger King's Philadelphia region
is that I treated people like people and the culture at Burger
King was intimidation, fear, and screaming, tactics to which I do not
subscribe. I believe in telling people when they're doing something
right."
Third, Herman had to deal with resentment from those who
feared he would deprive a Burger King veteran of a regional manager
position. Herman was tested and he passed the test, and he became
friends with the person testing him. The reason that this stood out to
me was that I thought about how hard it must be to work in an
environment where people are trying to undermine you. Herman's faith in
God and his steadfast work ethic got him through, though!