Raising Cane's employee smiling at the camera with a resturant kitchen in the background

CASE STORY

Connecting motivated, high performers with a national leader in the QSR space

DELIVERABLES

Employment Brand Strategy
Employee Personas
Recruiting Campaign
Recruitment Website Redesign
Campaign Collateral
Activation Ideas

THE BACKGROUND

In early 2019, it seemed everyone who wanted a job had one, as evidenced by historically low U.S. unemployment numbers. The job economy was healthier than ever, and that created challenges for growing brands. Raising Cane’s, one of the nation’s favorite fast casual concepts, and certainly a leader in the popular chicken segment, was growing rapidly. But as they grew, they noticed some slippage in the quality of their talent. Turnover was increasing while promotions from within were slowing across their 500-plus-unit restaurant system.

Worker handing steaming plate of chicken fingers and frys through a resturant window

The Challenge

Raising Cane’s is a brand that values high performance. They have a track record of precision, they optimize operations, and they seek to hire that way too. Raising Cane’s didn’t want any old burger flipper to join the team. They wanted the high performer. The captain of the track team, who was also first chair oboe and a National Honor Society member. In a competitive job market, it’s vital to communicate an employment brand at every touchpoint.

And while internal communications were extolling the brand’s benefits, recruitment materials favored transactional messaging like “now hiring” that blended in with the competitions’ and failed to echo the amazing employment brand they had built. MindHandle uncovered the challenge by pointing out the disconnect between the current recruiting campaign language and the mindset of the target personas. “Now hiring” simply would not appeal to someone with standards set that high.

The INSIGHT

Magnetic brands speak to their employees like they speak to their customers, and vice versa. The Raising Cane’s consumer brand is built around “focus” (we have “One Love” – chicken finger meals) and “expertise” (we’re the authority on this because it’s all we do). MindHandle discovered that standing on this higher ground was appealing to their target employee too. That led to stronger, more ownable, more differentiated communications.

The SOLUTION

Built on focus and expertise, the Chickenthusiats campaign reminded these high performers that Raising Cane’s could be so much more than a J.O.B. Raising Cane’s asked applicants if they were “chicken enough,” interrupting the typical hiring process by hijacking a common expression. A career at Cane’s (yes, you can have a career here) teaches valuable skills, all that result from planting a flag and claiming authority in a space. The campaign telegraphed confidence to the aspiring fry cooks, inviting them to be the best versions of themselves.

THE RESULTS

In 2020, Raising Cane's thrived.

10000

Crew members hired

17^%

Sales growth

13^%

Unit growth

By early 2020, Raising Cane’s was equipped with a brand army. Chickenthusiasts all over the country had flocked to their local Cane’s to apply, which provided tailwind to not only survive, but thrive, in the early days of the pandemic. In 2020, Raising Cane’s hired 10,000 crew members, who carried the business to 17.5 % sales growth and 11.4% unit growth.