"Male announcer:" "The economy is going through tough times." "Many hardworking americans blame wealthy ceos" "Out of touch with what's going on" "In their own companies." "But some bosses are willing to take extreme action" "To make their businesses better." "Each week we follow the boss of a major corporation" "As they go undercover into their own company." "This week, the president and ceo of hooters," "A billion dollar-a-year business." "With nearly 500 restaurants in 27 different countries," "The sun never sets on hooters." "The boss is going to trade in his corporate jet" "And red carpet treatment for a basket of wings" "And a tight t-shirt." " Got some free wing samples here." "Announcer:" "He'll assume a new identity." " What's your name?" " Scott archer." "Announcer:" "And pose as a new recruit." " Want me to grab one of the girls to help you out?" " No, no." "I got it, I got it." " Today, you're the new guy." " I'll be the old, sage, wise one." " I'm not the wise one--not when it comes to restaurants." " But, hey, we'll get you there." " Put him to work." "Make him do the hard stuff." "Announcer:" "By working on the front line," "He'll be surprised to find out what's really going on" "Inside his company." " All right, ladies, you wanna leave early today," "You're gonna play my reindeer games." "Yeah!" "Whoo, doggy!" " I just wanna pull him by his ear and say," ""hey, you can't do that."" "Announcer:" "He will find the good." " I'm marcee." " See, sometimes as a manager you gotta get dirty." "Team work, team work, team work." "Announcer:" "He will find the bad." " You know, I just think it's degrading for women." "Announcer:" "And he'll discover the unsung heroes" "That make his company run." "Male announcer:" "How will his coworkers react" "When they find out he's really the boss?" " My name's coby brooks" "I'm president and ceo of hooters of america." " More than I would've ever expected" "Anyone to do for me." "Announcer:" "And how will it change their lives?" " I'm gonna work harder," "And we're gonna make this company better." "Announcer:" "Find out next on undercover boss." "All:" "Hi, welcome to hooters!" "Announcer:" "Headquartered in atlanta, georgia," "Hooters is a $1 billion- a-year business" "Based on three principles:" "Wings, beer, and beautiful women." "And ruling this roost is one man." " How are you?" " My name is coby brooks," "And I am president and ceo of hooters of america," "The best company in the world." "I've obviously got the best ceo job in the world." "I mean, we go to openings, and the limo's waiting for us," "And the red carpet for the new store openings," "And the girls always around." "[cheers and applause]" "We have 460 some odd stores." "And we are in 27 different countries" "Including the United States." "Basically the story goes, in 1983 in clearwater florida" "Six individuals wanted a place that they could go and have beer" "And not get thrown out of." "Then my father went into business with them," "And he was the one instrumental in building the concept" "Outside the state of florida." "Long story short, he ended up with" "The franchising rights for the entire world." "My father and I, we had a lot of" "Fundamental differences of opinion." "A lot of arguments and "disagreeances."" "From day one to the day he passed away," "It was very contentious." "There really was no plan for my brother or I" "To step in and run the business." "I was, um, one of two sons." "My brother unfortunately died" "In, uh, one of our corporate plane crashes in 1993." "The plane ended up going down, and no one survived it." "So that was a very dark day." "I was not planning on, um, working for my father." "I had planned on doing, uh, something in law enforcement." "When I was 34, we went into the board room" "And he came in and he said," ""I just let, uh, the current president go." "Coby's your new president-ceo." "He's gonna take over."" "He had never discussed it with me." "Not a word." "I was not ready for it." "Luckily I stayed and I--I-- I made the right decision." "The life of a ceo has its benefits and perks," "But it also has drawbacks." "There's a lot of responsibility on you." "I do have to do quite a bit of traveling." "There's a lot of time away from the family." "Here, pass it." "I got married to my high school sweetheart." "Unfortunately, it didn't last." "We had three beautiful children together." "I am a single father with my kids when I have them." "I love being a dad." "It's the best thing in the world." "That's it for ellie." "This might be a fast game." " This is rigged." " The hooters name," "It is not only our biggest strength," "It is also our biggest weakness." "Because some people, they don't like" "What they think it stands for," "And they won't even try our business" "Because of our name." "And we are in a terrible economy," "The sales are down." "We've talked about expanding our customer base." "Maybe there's a way by me going undercover" "To see if we can, uh, increase our sales." "Or maybe it's something big that's gonna have to take place." "We'll find out." "I'm heading into the board room" "To talk to the executive team now" "To explain to them exactly what I'm gonna be doing." "I think they're gonna be shocked" "That I'm gonna be doing something like this." "It's gonna be interesting." "Good morning, everyone." " Good morning." " I know I called you here under the notion" "Of talking about 2010 budget numbers," "But, uh, we're gonna be talking about" "Something a little bit different." "I will be stepping down as your ceo and as your president" "For the next week." "I'm gonna be going undercover within our system." "You know, we've had a bad few-- few months lately." "There's a good possibility we have lost, uh," "Maybe some contact with a store level in the field." "I'm gonna see if there's anything else" "We can do different." " How will you be undercover?" "'cause we have your photo everywhere." " I am a little bit nervous." "Obviously, all of you know," "But let's try to keep it as quiet as possible," "Because we all know that the word spreads very fast" "Through the hooters nation." "I think it's probably gonna be difficult." "Absolutely." " Can we trade cars?" " No." "[laughter]" "Everyone, thank you for your time," "Coming in today and" " Good luck to you." " I need it." " Bye, dad." " Give me hugs and kisses." " Love you." " Bye, guys." "Give me a hug, buddy." " Bye, dad." " While I'm undercover, I'm changing my name" "From coby brooks to scotty archer." "My cover story is that I've come from" "My family construction business," "And construction's not doing well with the economy," "And I am going to branch out" "And try something completely different in my life." "The coworkers I'll be working with" "Will be told that I will be followed by a documentary crew" "Doing a documentary on entry level positions." "Good evening, sir." " This is the key for the room." " All right, perfect." "Thank you, sir." "While undercover, I'm gonna be staying at a budget hotel" "That anyone trying out for an entry level position" "Would be staying at." "It's the first day and, uh, I'm anxious." "I woke up, I think, every two hours," "Uh, anticipating what's gonna happen today." "You know, hopefully my cover won't get blown." "With a little bit of luck, I'll pick a store" "I haven't been in in a while and no one will see." "I'm here at the west end store in downtown dallas." "This is our largest store." "I think it's over 15,000 square feet." "We put a lot of emphasis on the hooters girls." "It's very obvious." "But we really don't look into the back of the house," "Which is the kitchen staff, and really" "Where a lot of the magic happens" "That makes the hooter girls look so good." "The last time I worked in a kitchen," "Other than the one in my house, is 20 years ago." "So it's been a long time," "And I'm sure I've lost a lot of skills." "So I'm a bit nervous." "I'm looking for dave, the manager." " You see the exit sign right down that way?" "He should be waiting for you right down over there." " Okay." " How you doin', man?" " Dave, how are you?" " Been a little bit of time." "We've been waitin' on you for a little bit." " Thanks--thanks." " What's your name?" " Scott archer." " Scott, david." "We're gonna get you set up today." "But we're running a little bit behind right now." "Rush is starting to start." "So I need you to get yourself all changed up" "And head on back this way, so chop-chop." " All right, let's go." " Thanks, man." "[crowd chatter]" " All right, dave, I'm here." " For lack of a better term, man, you're canon fodder." " Okay." " You're gonna be absorbing the blast today." "You're gonna get a huge amount of people coming in." "You're gonna be cleanup." " Okay." " I do." " You're gonna put them in the freezer." " Coming behind you." " You got to pop that thing on the top of that?" "Come on, get some muscles." "Want me to grab one of the girls to help you out?" " No, I don't." "I got it, I got it." " There you go." " I got it." " Scott, freddy;" "freddy, scott." "If he doesn't keep up, take the little strings," "Tie it onto you, and just drag him along with you, all right?" "We're gonna take it out here to our big compactor." "It holds about 20 tons of trash." "It's gonna be up here on the side over here, fred." " All right." " Just follow freddy on this side over here." " All right." " Chuck everything in." " Just piece by piece?" " Yeah, just chuck it in." "The faster we get it in, the faster we get inside," "The faster we get everything rolling." " Not too pleasant in here." "What did you do before here, dave?" " Uh, I was actually a police officer." " And before that, I'm supposing marines." " Police officer--then I was-- yeah, I was a marine," "Then a police officer." "What did you do before you come down here" "And try to be one of my guys?" " I worked in construction." "It wasn't much easier." " Construction?" " Yeah." " They let you work this slow during construction?" " No, not really." " Get in there and mix those wings up." "Pop it around a little bit." "Be real quick with it." "You ain't gonna hurt 'em." "They're already dead." "All right, let's go wash our hands up real quick." "We gotta start throwing some frozen mugs." "We're gonna see if we can get him to load up some mugs" "Without breaking them all." "And then you break one." "Good job on that." "I knew you was gonna break some mugs today." " That was me." " You getting the bus tubs stored away." " I see." " Let's go." "That trash don't get out by itself, guys." " Coming through." "I'll run you over, I don't know any different." " You need to step this up a little bit." "'cause right now, you're creating a traffic jam." " Yes, yeah, I got it." "I got it." " Scotty, got thrown into" "What everybody else gets thrown into," "And that's just a meat grinder." "He wasn't fast enough, tonight, for sure." "I don't know if you're gonna be a keeper now." " I'm exhausted already." "It's been 20 years, so..." "Since I haven't done any restaurant jobs," "And it's, uh, it's tough." "I learned that, uh, we put a little too much emphasis" "On the hooter girl," "And the back of the house can get forgotten" "From time to time." "At this point, you're kinda becoming" "A little more of a hindrance with that first day." "So were probably gonna call today quits." "I'm gonna pull somebody back from the back," "And I'm gonna bring them back here," "And we're gonna finish up all this work." "They'll get this knocked out pretty quickly." "Probably the worst thing about scotty tonight" "Is the fact that I'm gonna have to cut him." "Scotty left a whole lot of work behind" "For everybody else tonight to now have to clean up." " We'll let you keep the hat and the, uh, shirt" "Kind of as a memory of why not to lose the current job" "You may have now." " It was tough." "I guess I wasn't cutting the mustard," "And I was sort of getting in the way." "So I don't think he's gonna be inviting me back anytime soon." "I know I've got quite a few more days in front of me." "But after today, I'm tired." "I'm really tired." " Thanks again, dave." " Take it easy, brother." " Enjoyed it." " Head on out of here, man." " All right." " Would I ever hire scotty?" "Probably gonna lean towards no." "Announcer:" "Coby finds out what people really think" "Of his family business." " You know, I think it's just degrading to women." "And later, coby is troubled" "When a manager takes things too far." " The first girl that finishes her plate of beans" "Will go home." "Go!" " The things I saw today were" "Were inappropriate." "I don't want any part of it." "Announcer:" "Coby brooks, president and ceo of hooters," "Is undercover in his own company." " I'm exhausted already." "It's tough." "Announcer:" "His employees" "Think he's being filmed for a documentary" "About someone trying out entry level jobs." "We're gonna see if we can get him to load up some mugs" "Without breaking them all." "[glass breaks]" "And then you break one." "Good job on that." " I'm back at the downtown dallas store." "Today I'm gonna be out running a promotion" "With two of our hooters girls." "I know our concept is controversial." "So today I wanna walk around with some of the girls" "And see what kind of feedback they get from the public." " Jp?" " Jp." " Scotty, how are you?" " Nice to meet you." "Right this way." "This is scott." "He's gonna be going winging with you girls." " Hi, I'm brittney." " Brittney, nice to meet you." " Amanda, nice to meet you." " Nice to meet you." " This is gonna be your jumpsuit that you wear." " All right." " And for our shirts," "We have extra-extra-small, extra-small or extra-small." "Which one would you like to wear?" " I don't think I'm gonna fit in all--any of those." " Well, we have to fit into them, so you have to too." " Oh." " There you go." " Oh, goodness." " I always break my seams in my shirts, 'cause I have big boobs." " I don't have that problem." " Oh, well." " I don't either." "[laughter]" " And we're off." " Okay." "We're going out now to do a sales promotion," "And basically give away wings and talk to the public." "You know, I hope to get the real gut reaction" "Of different individuals." "Because if I don't find out exactly what the public feels" "And what they're really thinking," "I can't increase my customer base." "[bell dinging]" " Are you ready for promotions?" " Yes." " Ready?" " You'll be like, "hey, guys," "We work at hooters downtown in the west end." "Come visit up sometime."" " Gotcha." "Okay, I've got some boneless wing samples here from hooters." "Would you guys like to have them?" "We have $1.99 drafts, 4:00 to 6:00, Monday through Friday" "And $2.50 wells." " We're looking for a bar" " Well, you should come to hooters." " With beer, naked girls, and tv." " We don't have naked girls." " Beer, naked girls, and tv?" "No--we got two." " Okay." " We got tvs and beer." " Oh, uh, I understand why you guys are hooters servers," "But, uh" " I will not be a hooters girl." "I have the wrong parts." "[laughing]" " "I have the wrong parts."" " Got some free wings samples here." "I gotta tell you all about the liquor" "And the beer specials." " We work at the downtown west end hooters," "And we're going around giving out free boneless wings" "As a promotion--would y'all like some?" " No." " No, okay, thank you." " You take rejection well." " We're used to it." " Y'all want some boneless wings" "From hooters?" "Negative?" "No, okay." " You guys ever been to a hooters?" " Yes." " Do y'all like going?" " No, I think it exploits women." " Really?" " It would be hard to justify taking our kids there." " It probably has a lot to do with" " What we wear?" " What we wear, yeah." " Whenever I first started-- whenever they handed me" "My uniform, I was like, "oh, that's a joke." ""you want me to fit in it?" "No." "That's a joke." - yeah." " But it really is-- it's not as bad as" "You think it's gonna be." " Okay." " Hi, how are y'all doin'?" " Good, how are you?" " We work at the hooters downtown on the west end." "We would like for y'all to come visit us." "What do y'all think about hooters?" " I love hooters." " Do you like to come to hooters too?" " No, I have a different opinion that vince does." "You know, I just think it's degrading to women." " You--you think it's the name," "Or is it the uniform, or is it both?" " I think it's the uniform, 'cause either your rear end's hanging out" "Or your boobs are hanging out, one or the other." "I think it could just be a little bit longer" "And cover up a little bit more." " I feel like I have clothes on." "We go out to pools, we wear bikinis." "That's way less than what we have on right now." " Would you make as much money at a different restaurant" "As you do at hooters?" "Do y'all--do y'all do it so that you can wait on tables" "Or so that you can make really good money 'cause you get really good tips on what you wear?" " Yes, guys do come in because of what we're wearing." "But if you have--if you give poor service," "They're not gonna tip you well." " It's degrading to women, and I wouldn't want" "My daughter--you know, I have a 20-year-old son" "I wouldn't want his wife, I wouldn't want my sister" "You know, I just--I just wouldn't want them to do that." " One of our cornerstones is the hooter girl" "And the hooter girl uniform." "But apparently there's still that stigma out there." "Did it make you feel less as a hooters girl" "Or less as a woman?" " I don't know how I feel right now." " People's strong opinion" "Really does affect our bottom line." "So I gotta figure out some other way" "To bring the customers in without really messing with" "The hooter girl uniform." "Do you think that those comments" "Would change your opinion about working at hooters?" " Not at all." " Uh-uh." "At the end of the day," "Their husbands are still gonna come in." " I discovered a lot of things today." "Yeah, there was one woman that said that she would never, ever" "Let her daughters, you know, work at hooters." "But my two daughters, if they say," ""hey, I wanna work at hooters,"" "Absolutely." "The public perception today, which I knew was out there," "I've never seen it firsthand, you know," "With the public versus our hooters girls, one on one." "I've never seen that before." "That was--that was a little bit eye opening." "That's definitely a burden that lies on my shoulders." "Today, I'm in south arlington texas" "And I'm gonna be, uh, assistant general manager" "Inside the store." "The g.M. In the store is-- he's the coach." "He's got all his players underneath him." "He's gotta make sure the entire team works good together." "I'm gonna listen to the way he conducts himself" "And how he talks to his staff," "And just see exactly, you know," "What kind of a coaching job he's doing?" " Excuse me." "Yeah?" " Hi, scotty, how are you?" " Scott, jimbo." "Yeah, I'm doing good, man." "How are you?" " Pretty good." " Dude, we gotta get rocking and rolling." " All right." " So I got you a shirt." " All right." " Get changed and then, uh," "We will hook up in two shakes of a lamb's tail." "There's a restroom straight back." " Straight in the back." "Okay." " And to your right." " All right, thank you." "All right, dude, chop-chop." "Come on." "Today, you're the new guy." "I'll be the old, sage, wise one." " All right." " I'm not the wise one--not when it comes to restaurants." " But, hey, we'll get you there." "You with me?" " Yeah, I'm with you." " The first thing we're gonna do is uniform lineup." "All right?" "Bam." "We're gonna line these girls up," "And we're gonna have to inspect them." " Okay." " All right--bam." "Because we're not gonna put out an inferior product," "And it all starts with the girls with hooters." " Okay." " Make sense?" "Today, your goal of the shift is to blow me away." " Okay." " 'cause I've got 50 other people lined up that wanna" "Want a set of keys." " I'm gonna try to blow you away." " Cool!" " All right, ladies, I'm sure you are wondering" "Who the man to my left is." "This is scotty, okay?" "You can call him scooter, all right?" "A.K.A. Scotty." "You with me?" "He's running the show." "I'll probably be back in the kitchen helping out." "Okay, he's your man in amsterdam today." "All right, let's go!" "Form this line!" "Form a perfect line." "Make it straight." "Bethany, front and center." "Looking at the hair." "Is it styled?" " It looks styled to me." " Okay, makeup, is it on?" " Yes." " She looks like a hollywood starlet?" " Yes." " Right?" "Okay, that's what we're looking for." "All right, bethany, have a seat." " Okay." " Call your next name." " Raina?" "Is that right, raina?" "[indistinct chatter]" " What's up?" " Compliment her on her lack of nails." "My, those are some non-glamorous nails you have." "Have a seat." " When I first came in this morning," "Jimbo made it very clear that, you know," "We are about the hooters girl." " You know, nail polish is nice." "Hey, why don't you grab a" "Get another tattoo before tomorrow too, okay?" " He was very clear on what the brand's about." "But I don't--I don't think he's really" "I don't think he's clear on how the brand should be" "Should be treated." " We're now live and open, okay?" "We've got our first guests in the door." " How you doin'?" "First day on the job, they're trying to teach me" "How to be a manager here, so..." "If y'all have any problems, it's me, it's not her." " Spinning a tray is rule number one" "To be a restaurant manager." "Oh, ho, ho, ho." " Hello, have a seat anywhere." "Aw, look at the baby." "He's as cute as he can be." " Uh, scooter." " Yes, sir." " Can't look at the babies, right?" " Yeah, I mean, you know," "That's enough kissing the babies." " All right, cool." " Rookie." " The lunch rush is over." "You don't need as many girls on the floor," "So they start being cut." "You know, you make less tips as the restaurant is less full." "So a lot of girls prefer to get cut." " All right, ladies, today you wanna go home," "You wanna leave early today..." "No ifs, ands, or buts about it." "You're gonna play my reindeer games." "Yes." "Okay?" "Uh, scooter." "Come with me." "So maybe we'll do a bean eating contest." "We'll get all the girls" "And shove their faces down in the beans" "And have them clean it up, you know?" " All right." " Mmm." "Suck 'er down!" "Good times!" " Do they seem to like those kind of things?" " Hey, no rules." " No rules?" " Okay?" "Just go with it." "You come up with something, you wanna do it," "Bam, we'll make it happen." " Okay." "You wanna play some games," "There's other games you can play." "It's disheartening." " Oh, no." " That's a heart attack." " No." "Announcer:" "Jimbo's management style..." " Whoo, doggy!" "Announcer:" "Horrifies coby." " What I saw in there has got me quite aggravated." "I just wanna pull him by his ear over to the sign and say," ""hey, you can't do that."" "Announcer:" "Coby discovers he's still living" "In his father's shadow." " No one here talks about the son too much?" " Nobody, really." "Announcer:" "Coby brooks, president and ceo of hooters," "Has found a manger who is way out of line." "He continues his shift with jimbo." " No." " Oh, not like that." " That's a heart attack." " No." " Here's the rules of my game." "The first girl that finishes her plate of beans" "Will go home." "You cannot use your hands." " Are you serious?" " Okay?" "So go!" "Oh, get you some of that." "Come on, girl, who wants to go home?" "Mmm--oh, look, whoo, doggie!" " [squealing]" " Brianna, how is it, baby?" "Oh, they look tasty." "Who doesn't wanna spend the rest of the afternoon with me?" " It's hard for me on this one, though," "To bite my tongue." "If--if I could break cover I would sit down" "And have a very long, serious talk with jimbo." " Mmm." "Yeah!" " The things that I saw today were inappropriate," "They were wrong." "I don't want any part of it." " Come on, get 'em up." " What I saw in there just a minute ago" "Has got me quite aggravated." "So I'm gonna be making a phone call" "To the owner of the franchise." " Please leave a message after the tone." "[beep] - it's coby." "You've got a manager there in the dallas market" "That, uh, the way he approached and interacted with the girls" "Is just, it's really not acceptable behavior." "I think it is a serious matter." "I think it needs some, you know, some immediate action." "After my shift yesterday," "I've got some strong feelings about the way" "Jimbo's running that store." "Now I'm in fort worth, texas," "And I'm gonna be following the position" "Of one of our female managers." "The female manager has got to have some different obstacles" "Than a male manager-- I don't know what those are." "We'll find out." "I'm looking for marcee." " Yes." "I'm marcee." "Are you scott?" "Nice to meet you." "Are you ready to get hooterfied?" " I am." " Are you ready?" " Sure." " Are you scared?" " No." " Don't be scared." "Let's go." " Not at all." " All right." "You ready?" " What are we gonna do?" " We're just kind of go around and kind of scan the area." "It can get pretty chaotic." " This is scott." " How are you?" " Scott--scotty." " It doesn't matter." " She needs to be clocked in." "How long have you been working for free?" " Do they get a discount?" " Not that I'm aware of." " Okay." " 43." "Have you been drinking today?" "Well, I can sense that you're under the influence," "So I'm not gonna allow you to drink that beer, sir." "It's all about multitasking." "Yes, ma'am." "This is the time that gets chaotic." " Yeah, I see that." "Uh-oh, look what I did." "We got a spill on aisle two." " See, sometimes as a manager, you gotta get dirty." " [laughing]" " That's just part of the job." " Right." " Teamwork, teamwork, teamwork." "Now I gotta go get beer." "Grab a sixer out of there." " What do you do when you're not here?" " I am a mother of two." "I have a five- and a four-year-old, both girls." " Both girls?" " Yes." " I have three." "I have two girls and a boy." " Oh, wow." " Your five- and your four-year-old," "Is that easier or more difficult" "Than managing all the--the people here?" " It feels like I'm a mom here." " Oh, yeah?" " But I was a hooter girl since '99," "So a lot of the stuff that the girls do," "Been there, done that." " It's refreshing to see that marcee" "Seems to have a lot better relationship with" "With her crew than jimbo did." "Marcee respects her girls and the girls respect her." " Now, right here, uh," "Since this is their taking care of beauty room," "This is where we post things," "Such as trainer meetings." " You go through a lot." "Those girls were hammering you, wanting this and wanting that." "'cause it's hectic out there." " Oh, yeah." " You think it's easier for the girls" "To--to connect to a--a female manager" "Than it is a male manager?" " It is, because I've been in their shoes." "Being a mom, I guess I'm more that nurturing" "Nurturing person." " Nurturing." "Is the restaurant industry conducive with family life," "Or is it more stressful?" "That's gonna be some juggling." " Oh, it is always a constant juggle with my kids." "But I just try to spend" "As much time as I can with them, so..." " It's hard to be away from them, I know." " Oh, it is." "It is." " I love my kids, and I don't get to see them" "As much as I'd like to, but..." " Right." "It can be--be very stressful." " I-I think marcee's working real hard to make" "A better life for herself and for her--for her children." "That's gotta be tough when there's not a lot of" "There's not a lot of leniency in time for her." "'cause a person will eventually burn out doing that." " All right, it's nice to meet ya." " Nice meeting you." "I am back in atlanta, georgia, here at naturally fresh." "This is where we make salad dressings and dips" "As well as hooters wing sauces." "My dad began the business in 1966," "And, uh, he loved this company, uh, till the day he died," "And it was widely known as his baby." "The morale here when dad was here" "Was extremely good." "My dad use to walk the halls, talk to them," "Ask them about their families." "This undercover job will be the most difficult" "Of my trip so far." "I know a lot of people still working on the floor here." "There's one person I'm gonna be informing" "And that's patti, and she's the one person" "That will be able to get me in and let me get my job done" "Without being--being noticed." " Hello." " Hello, miss patti." " How are you?" " Um, I am going to be spending today" " Yes." " In the plant." "I haven't been in the plant since I was about," "What, 16 17-- something like that." " It's been a while." " And I'm gonna come in and see that, uh," "Since dad's passing, see if people here" "Are as happy as they were." " I do hear comments from employees," "And, um, I have some concerns about the morale myself." " I'm gonna come in through the back way." "Chip, uh, a long time employee here," "He's gonna help smuggle me in." " Howdy." "How are you?" "You think they're gonna recognize me?" "You don't think so?" " No." " All right, what am I doing today?" " You're gonna meet ricky," "And then go make some wing sauces in some pails." " All right, perfect." "Perfect." " Yeah, ricky, this is scotty." " Scotty, ricky." " How you doing?" " Doing good." " Nice to meet you." " Put him to work." "Make him do the hard stuff." "All right?" " Tell me what to do, ricky." " We run it into the pail." " All right." " Some hooters medium." "It fills up on its own," "So all you gotta do is make sure there's a bucket under there." " It takes two hands." " Two hands, yes." " All right." "Ricky, how long you been working here?" " I'm going on three years." " Who's the owner?" "Is he nice?" " The owner?" " Yeah." " I think in 2006 he passed away." "Right when I started." " Yeah." " I never got to meet him, but I heard he was real nice." "Everybody misses him." "They say he was a real-- a real good guy." " You guys about ready for a break?" " Yeah, we're ready for a break." "Let's go, we can go down to the break room." " All right." " Oy." "The owner, you were here before he died," "Or you were here after?" " When I first started," "I think he had just recently passed away." "Everybody here they-- they really miss him." "They said, uh, when he was still the owner of this company" "Everything was good." "Everybody said it was a real pleasure to work here." "Since mr." "Brooks passed away they said, uh," "The bonuses went down and all this," "So I don't think a lot of people wanna be here." " And his son owns it now?" " Yeah, I think the son's took over the company." " What's the-- what's the word on him?" " They're probably hating the guy right now, but" " No one here talks about the son too much?" " Nobody really--I don't know if they know him." " I feel bad when ricky says, "yeah, the son's takin'--"" "It's almost like, yeah, the son's takin' over" "And everything's, you know, falling apart and everything." "And, uh, it hurt." "I mean, I felt like I've" "I've let down the brooks family name." "So I'm going up to the executive offices" "To talk to patti about this." "We're in my dad's office." "It's--it's just eerie walking in here." "It really does feel like he's gonna say something" "At any minute." "No one can fill this office." "It's got a different feeling about it." "Empty." " How did things go for you?" " Ricky's a great guy." "A good worker." "He--he thinks the morale could be better." "There could be some, I think, some better vibe, better energy." " What I hear mostly is that they don't see you." "They don't feel the family presence." " I think me coming back in" "And being seen a little bit more," "Um, even just to say hi and walk the floor," "I think it will go a long way to reassure them" "That, you know, they're still in good hands" "And they're still in the brooks' hands." " I think that would really mean a lot to them." "I know a lot of us longtimers and the newcomers as well." " Love you, patti." " I love you too, honey." "Thank you." " You bet." " Bye." " I'll be in touch." " Okay, I look forward to it." " I don't expect to fill my dad's shoes." "I mean, that's impossible." "All I wanna do is-- is I wanna make," "You know, make him proud." "Announcer:" "Coby summons his employees to headquarters." " I could always use a little bit of adventure." "Announcer:" "He'll shock his coworkers" "And reveal his true identity." " My name's coby brooks," "I'm president and ceo of hooters of america." " I've come to the end of my week undercover," "And I'm calling my executive team together" "To tell them what I've learned over the past week." "I'll be talkin' about the good and the bad" "And all the things we need to work on." "Good afternoon." " Holy baby face." " What do you think about that?" "I would've shaved my whole head" "For the experience that I went through." "I've had some high experiences" "And I've--and I've had a couple low experiences." "We have some management that, uh," "He wasn't respectful to the girls." " Who doesn't wanna spend" "The rest of the afternoon with me?" " What?" " That's not good." " And somehow, he has slipped through the cracks," "And he's got some potential to do a lot of damage." " We can definitely retrain from a legal perspective." " Do you think his career can be salvaged?" " I'm not certain, but we need to do something." "Went to, uh, naturally fresh." "I got sense that when my father was around," "It was a lot more family-like," "And how things were so much better," "Uh, when he was alive." "I can't do anything about that fact," "But I can walk down and make sure that, uh," "You know, reassure them that the brooks name" "Is still there and..." "After this week, I love doing my job" "A hell of a lot more than I did seven days ago." "Now it's time for me to reveal my true identity" "To all of the people that I've worked with" "For the past week." "A little bit of butterflies." "Not sure what's-- what's gonna lie ahead." " I feel a little bit excited." "I could always use a little bit of adventure." " Hey, you." "[giggles]" " Uh, my name's not scotty." " Who are you?" " My name's coby brooks." "I'm president and ceo of hooters of america." " [gasps]" " I have spent the last week undercover" " Awesome." " To get back into the hooters brand" "From the bottom level." " You were pretty good at not acting like you" " Yeah." " I play dumb pretty good." " You did." " Thanks a lot for the tight shirt by the way." " Now you know what we go through everyday." " Yep." " Yeah, I do." "Brittney, amanda," "Listening to the things that you heard from" "From the public, a lot of them were good," "Some of them not so good." " I think it exploits women." " Really?" "So what I want you two to do is I want you to help me" "With my marketing department to help me come up with a program and a campaign to educate the public" "On what hooters does each and every year" "For our communities." "I will have my marketing department contact you." "I want you in the print materials." "I want you in the videos." "Is that something you guys can help with?" " I would absolutely do it." "Thanks, scotty boy." " Thank you!" " I think that's an awesome idea," "So people can really understand" "That we're not just hooter girls." " We're not just girls that serve wings and serve beer." "Like, we're real people." " Dave, your demeanor and the way you manage that store," "It was good to see, because it's exactly what it needed." "It showed me again how difficult" "A very demanding and, uh, high volume store is." " You need to step this up a little bit, 'cause right now you're creating a traffic jam." " Yeah, I got it." "I got it." "I know you're a military guy." " Yes, sir." " I'd like to make a $50,000 donation" "To the operation home front in your name." "It's a great military charity" "That you're probably familiar with." " Yes, sir." " Thanks, dave." " No problem, sir, thank you." " I was very, very happy with that." "They're gonna make a $50,000 donation in my name" "To, uh, to something that's so near and dear to my heart" "With the military" "And those guys doing what they do now," "So it was pretty awesome." " Marcee, what I got out of our time together" "Is we need to come up with some way to" "To lessen the burden of stress." "Because restaurants themselves are inherently stressful" "You know that." "You were--you were tired." " Oh, yeah." " We need to make sure that we don't lose" "The good people in our system." "But one thing I can do for you" "Is I wanna send you and your family on a long vacation." "Could be anywhere in the world." " Oh, wow." " All expenses paid." "You just forget about texas for a little while." " Thank you." " You forget about your store." "Just rejuvenate those batteries and" "And bring it back a little bit healthier" "Than you are right now, 'cause you're stressed." " Thank you." " So all I need from you is you need to tell me" "Where you wanna go, and send me some pictures." " I will." "I will, I'll take tons." " All right?" " Thank you." " Thank you, marcee." " For him to actually give me the opportunity" "To spend more time with my kids," "I mean, it's just awesome." "More than I would've ever expected anyone to do for me." "Anyone." " It's time for me to speak with jimbo," "And I'm not really looking forward to it." " Scotty, what's going on, buddy?" " Good to see you, jimbo." "Uh, I am not scotty." " Okay." " I'm coby brooks, the president and ceo of hooters of america." " Ah..." " Jimbo, the way that you interact with the girls," "Quite frankly, is inappropriate." "You're no better than they are and, um," "You're not giving them the respect that they need." "You said, "don't forget" "All these girls are prima donnas."" " Mm-hmm." " There's no way that your entire staff" "Is made up of completely prima donnas." " Okay." " That's just stereotyping your whole cast of girls." "There's lines that you don't cross." "Apology to your staff is necessary in this situation." "Can you do that for me when you go back?" " Now, if I'm too competitive, and if I'm too harsh..." "Man, it works." "Shame on me if it's a bad thing being uber-competitive." "And I do have a track record of building sales" " Look, you can build profit all you want." "That's not what I want." "It's all about being respectful." "That's the bottom line." "If I wasn't undercover, I would've pulled you aside," "And we would've had a talk, uh, right then and there." "I am a proud father of three children," "Two of which are girls." "I have always said that I have no problem" "With my girls working in hooters." " Right." " But, to be honest with you, I would have a tough time" "Letting my girls work under your management." "Okay?" " He said, uh, "these are my two daughters," "And I wouldn't feel comfortable with them working for you."" "And I took a step back, and, okay, I get it." "I get what he says and-- and, yeah," "I'll--I'll make it happen." " It's time for me to share my undercover experiences" "With the rest of the company." "[cheers and applause]" " Hi, I'm coby brooks, and for the past week" "I've been undercover in hooters restaurants" "All over the country." "It's been an absolutely riveting, emotional" "Seven days for me." "I have had my highs, I've had my lows." "Let's take a look." " Be real quick there." "You ain't gonna hurt 'em." "They're already dead." "[laughter] come on get some muscles." "Want me to grab one of the girls to come and help you out?" "[cheers and applause]" " I understand why you guys are hooters servers, but uh, I" " I will not be a hooters girl." "I have the wrong parts." "[laughter and applause]" "Hey we got a spill on aisle two." " See, sometimes as a manager you gotta get dirty." " [laughing] [cheers and applause]" "I learned, if it wasn't for each and every one of you," "I wouldn't be here, and I feel it in my heart," "We're gonna make this company better." "It's great, but it's gonna be better." "We're gonna work on time management" "To help out single moms and single dads." "We're gonna start a new marketing campaign." "We wanna show the world what a hooters girl is." "A hooters girl is the doctors now," "The lawyers now, the movie stars," "That have worked for us," "That have gone on to do great, amazing things." "They are people." "They're not just hooter girls." "[cheers and applause]" "From the bottom of my heart, and for my father," "Thank you all for being part of the hooters family." "You just don't know how much it means to me." "Thank you." "[cheers and applause]" " It was really awesome to meet him in person." " The people up there actually do care about us." " Yeah." " For someone to actually care, I mean," "I'm just an ordinary person." "There's nothing special about me." "Now that my journey is concluded" "I know why I do my job now." "I don't know if I even knew before." "I'm working for my dad's legacy and what he built." "My dad never was a man of complimentary words." "But on rare occasions, he would look at you," "And he'd just give you that little nod" "And that little wink." "And I think I probably would've gotten a wink today."