Birmingham, AL
April 8, 2020 | Gabriel Carrasco
Two years ago, 26-year-old Courtney Yancey began her role at Chick-fil-A . Within a short time, she climbed the ranks driven by her ambition and love for people. Just a year and a half after starting at the company, she was encouraged to step into the role, Director of Stewardship in Birmingham, Alabama .
“You have to pay your dues,” says Yancey. “So honestly, I didn’t care how I started. I just knew that eventually, I wanted to get to Corporate and I was ready to be at a cash register or wherever they wanted to put me.”
As the Director of Stewardship, she enjoys her current responsibilities of building employment brand and ensuring her designated stores are meeting the company’s financial standards.
“From their first interview with us and joining our staff to celebrating their way out through the next thing the Lord has for them, I get to oversee and administer that,” she says.
She states that one of her favorite aspects of the job is the ability to build relationships with her job requiring her to visit with employees at the various Chick-fil-A locations in Birmingham. She also enjoys the meticulous process of creating and evaluating value-stream methods and processes.
“I love taking a small thing that we do, from start to finish, and figuring out where we can do it more efficiently. I get to question ‘How can we do this better?’ And that is my favorite thing to do. The profit side is essentially ensuring every dollar has a name and fixing any areas that are not reserving as much value as possible. It’s what this role is all about and I love it.”
When Yancey began looking for companies to work for, she mentioned that she was drawn to Chick-fil-A for their competitive spirit, the way they value their employees, their desire to innovate, and their Christian values.”
Reflecting on her time at Chick-fil-A, Yancey credits her time studying at Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) as a positive influence in the way she has approached and managed her career. She received both her Bachelor’s in Church Leadership and Master’s in Organizational Leadership from SAGU.
“The role that SAGU has played in my career is they put me in a setting where I was getting the utility of my education. I was doing it in a setting where I’m not just learning about this thing, this topic, or subject matter, but actually applying it.” – Courtney Yancey
Besides fulfilling her undergraduate and graduate degrees at SAGU, she also served as a Dorm Pastor on the university’s campus.
“I think that was the greatest experience of leadership that I ever had in my life. I learned how to work on a team for a greater goal in a way, how to accomplish goals with a team, and how to lead people without having all the answers… I just hadn’t had that kind of experience before.”
Looking forward, Yancey hopes to continue to grow her career at Chick-fil-A and see God continue to grow and refine her spiritually.
“I’m excited to see where we go as a company and what the Lord uses us as a team to do.”
Courtney was able to hit the ground running in her career because of her drive and the training she received at Southwestern Assemblies of God University. To learn more about our:
Bachelor’s in Church Leadership – click here .
Master’s in Organizational Leadership – click here .
As a leading Christian university, SAGU educates and prepares individuals who want to serve Christ and others. SAGU helps students discover and develop their God-given callings in a Spirit-empowered, learning community.
We believe in affordable tuition, made possible in part through the financial support of donors who embrace the mission of SAGU and the importance of affordable, accredited programs to train Christians for leadership in ministry, business, education, and service.
