On Episode 05 Part 1 of the Instant Payments Podcast, Instant Financial’s CEO Tal Clark sat down with Kep Sweeney, CEO of PDQ Restaurants, to talk about the state of the quick service restaurant (QSR) industry, what makes PDQ stand out, and the lessons he’s learned over a career that has spanned kitchens, Wall Street, and executive leadership.

How to Think About Experience in Restaurants

Sweeney’s path is anything but traditional—he started as a chef (even winning an award from Julia Child), became an analyst on Wall Street, and later transitioned into turnaround and executive leadership roles. That broad base of experience, he says, is what made him effective. 

“A CEO once told me he was sick of people saying they had 20 years of experience when it was really the same year repeated 20 times. What sets people apart is a range of experiences, lessons from outside restaurants that apply directly inside.”

He encourages future leaders to seek out that variety: “Whether it’s from manufacturing, cosmetics, or tech, those perspectives give you tools to solve problems in restaurants that others might not see.”

What Sets PDQ Apart

While many QSR concepts compete on speed and price, Sweeney emphasized that PDQ’s model is built around quality and alignment. After all, PDQ stands for “people dedicated to quality.”

“PDQ is unique in the amount of work that goes into the food. We marinate tenders in buttermilk, double bread them, and keep short hold times with tight specs. That focus on one item at a time results in quality and a very good food product.”

Beyond the menu, PDQ has also borrowed from the Outback Steakhouse playbook by empowering its partners at the unit level. (Check out Episode 02 of the podcast where we talk to Outback’s co-founder.)

“We have 50 partners out there, and what we try to do is be supportive of those partners. They run the units, they have a partnership deal, and a compensation plan that encourages them to run it better than we could. All incentives are aligned, which creates a very healthy way to operate.”

This combination of food quality and a people-first operating model has helped PDQ sustain turnover rates far below the industry average while keeping top talent engaged.

The State of the QSR Industry

Sweeney sees the QSR industry as serving two fundamental needs: “QSR can solve either a poverty of income or a poverty of time,” he explained. “That’s why the 16–24 year old, they will use QSR a lot more frequently.”

At the same time, cost pressures have reshaped the landscape. “The key today is pricing and value. There was a big run-up on cost, so prices followed,” he said. “People are becoming more value conscious, and perhaps QSR will once again be viewed as not the low quality, but the low cost alternative.”

Looking Ahead

As the QSR industry adapts to inflation, evolving customer expectations, and workforce challenges, leaders like Sweeney are proving that the combination of disciplined quality and empowered employees can carve out a sustainable advantage. PDQ’s focus on one-tender-at-a-time quality and partner alignment may be a model others look to replicate.

Tal will talk with Kep more in Episode 05 Part 2.

🎧 Listen to the full episodes featuring Kep on the Instant Payments Podcast here: instant.co/podcast.