Connect
To Top

Meet Rebekah Goldman of Taking The Wheel Consulting in Mesa

Avatar photo

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebekah Goldman.

Rebekah, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today?
I’ve been in the Hospitality Industry (specifically Food and Beverage) for 20 years. I worked my way up through various restaurants, bars, bakeries, and my all-time favorite, catering companies. At 27 years old, I was offered an opportunity to take over as the Executive Chef of a multi-million-dollar Catering Company in Arizona. I was very young and very inexperienced but I had heart, grit, commitment, and passion. At the end of the day, I was willing to work as hard as I could and commit even more in order to be great at my job. I studied and learned from the best and excelled in my position. But the industry very quickly took over my life and I knew I had to do something about it. I was working 100+ hours a week, always on call, I could never take a break…

And one day I couldn’t recognize myself in the mirror. I had gotten so caught up in feeling like I had to be in control of everything that I forgot I was only one person. I was so worried that if I walked away for just a second the whole place would come crashing down around me. I realized the solution to everything was right in front of me. It was my team.

I chose to dedicate every ounce of my being to building a team of rockstars and that is exactly what I did. Because I focused on the growth of my teams, the business thrived more than ever. We were able to provide better quality products and services and the company as a whole was more profitable; which gave us the ability to grow and take on more work. Suddenly the industry was no longer taking over my life. I fell in love with this industry again. In the process, I created better teams teams around me that were able and willing to accept bigger challenges and more opportunities. Before I knew it, we had a well-oiled machine.

I believed then that I had a gift. I was able to build and lead teams that could take on anything that came their way. I knew I wanted to share my gift with other struggling businesses in this industry, so I started planning for that next chapter in my life. That’s when “Taking the Wheel Consulting” was born.

Has it been a smooth road?
I would say it hasn’t been a smooth road. Starting a business requires time and money, we know “it takes money to make money”. I didn’t know anything about starting a business. I had no money and no real experience, but I knew that I needed to invest a lot into learning how to build my business the right way.

So I took out a second mortgage to fund my dream. I looked at building a foundation to invest in myself and my business first. When it came down to tech matters, I had zero clue what I was doing. That was a huge learning curve I had to overcome. From understanding how to reach potential clients through marketing, learning what an email list is and why it is so beneficial, building a brand, writing copy, business taxes, public speaking, and hiring attorneys and employees. I was used to leading from behind the scenes and all of a sudden I had to learn to be the face of my entire business.

While I was building the foundation of my business and putting all the pieces in place, I was also working a full-time job (60+ hours a week). Many days began at 3 am and ended at 10 pm.

Something I had to learn about my business is how to inspire the employees of my clients that look down on the job I’m hired to do. This usually requires me telling them things they don’t want to hear. I’m the person who comes into their workplace and tells them, “everything you’re doing isn’t working” and then I have to tell them, “this is the new solution we’re going to use to fix it”. So it becomes a very personal process, which is understandable, since nobody wants to hear from some stranger that they’re failing at their job. It takes carefully working with them, building their trust, and standing by them to help solve these sorts of problems. Another difficult part of my job is teaching clients that asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. This can be very hard for many people to understand and accept, but the ones that do really THRIVE!

Tell us about your company. What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of as a company? What sets you apart from others?
My company is Taking The Wheel Consulting. We are a full-service consulting in the Food and Beverage Industry. We offer several solutions across all aspects of the business. This typically includes:

Team Development/FOH and BOH training
Cross-Training
Appraisal of Establishment and Venue Image Maintenance
Vendor and Venue Relationships
Leadership and Management Development
Functionality and Organizational Advancement
Customer Experience
Quality Control
Recipe and Menu Development
Menu Execution
SOPs
Inventory management
Food and Labor Costs
Employee Relations
Recruitment, Staffing, and Employee Retention
Safety, Sanitation, and Food Handling procedures
Sales.

What I am most proud of and known for is the fact that my team members and I are hands-on. Most consulting companies can point out insufficiencies and offer solutions and then ask for their payment, but what they don’t do is get in there and show them how to execute these solutions. We focus a lot on Leadership and Team Development so that they are strong enough to implement new policies and procedures after we leave. It’s one thing to say to a client “you need to get your food cost down” “you need to have a stronger team” or “put out a better product”… BUT, if they knew how to do those things, they would be doing them already. That’s why we get in there and show them how to do it right. We don’t just point out the problem, we help them actually fix it!

The problem is rarely the chicken itself. It’s about training the person ordering the chicken, preparing the chicken, and serving the chicken. At the end of the day, our bottom line comes 100% from the people we employ. Our mission is to “build rockstars who want to create a sustainable and efficient business by training the owners and managers to create teams and systems that execute their vision and brand. A system that increases profitability and decreases wasting time and resources. So, we get in there, put an apron on, and get down to business.

We pick up the broom and show the team how to sweep properly. We get in the dish room and show them how to maintain a safe and sanitized dish area that is efficient. We test the sanitizer with the team so they know what to look for. We meet with their vendors to show them how to re-negotiate and what expectations they should have. We do inventory with them, work on the hotline, work in the dining room… We really get into all of it!

When I decided to launch Taking The Wheel, I knew I had to show them how to take the wheel. But in order to show them, they have to learn to trust myself and my team. We earn that trust because we jump in and help. And in turn, we are able to really affect change because they now know we are on their team. Instead of pointing at a mountain of problems and leaving, we show up and help every step of the way. That’s what sets us apart from the rest and is why I am so proud of what we do.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I’m probably the biggest fan of the Phoenix area!! I absolutely love living in the valley. I love the heat, I love the sunshine, I love the blue skies. I love that so many people migrate here. I think our food scene is getting better each year! I really don’t think I could live anywhere else! I moved here from Michigan 12 years ago and it was the best decision I’ve ever made. I don’t care for the traffic. It’s terrible. I really can’t think of anything else I don’t like.

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
Marriah Soldevilla and Stephanie Slezak

Suggest a story: VoyagePhoenix is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.

Related Items

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

More in