Wade Oney started as a Domino’s store assistant in 1981. Today he owns 112 restaurants across three brands, including 96 Papa Johns locations, and he’s letting his employees in on the big picture success. Bam-Bam Pizza Inc., his franchise group, generates $160 million in annual revenue, Franchising.com reports.

Oney spent over a decade climbing the ranks at Domino’s before Papa Johns lured him away to help grow the then-emerging brand, eventually making him COO. He stepped down in 2000 to focus on being a franchisee full time, scaling from 35 stores to 96 today.

His signature program is letting managers, supervisors and executives buy minority stakes in the restaurants they run. About a third to half of his leadership team now owns a piece of the business. “It helps them know it is a team and a career and not just a job,” Oney said. “That is a pretty cool thing that has happened, and our people love it.”

Wade Oney started as a Domino’s store assistant in 1981. Today he owns 112 restaurants across three brands, including 96 Papa Johns locations, and he’s letting his employees in on the big picture success. Bam-Bam Pizza Inc., his franchise group, generates $160 million in annual revenue, Franchising.com reports.

Oney spent over a decade climbing the ranks at Domino’s before Papa Johns lured him away to help grow the then-emerging brand, eventually making him COO. He stepped down in 2000 to focus on being a franchisee full time, scaling from 35 stores to 96 today.

His signature program is letting managers, supervisors and executives buy minority stakes in the restaurants they run. About a third to half of his leadership team now owns a piece of the business. “It helps them know it is a team and a career and not just a job,” Oney said. “That is a pretty cool thing that has happened, and our people love it.”

Jonathan Small is a bestselling author, journalist, producer, and podcast host. For 25 years, he... Read more