Flores is gone

[munchjr]

Mark Flores was fired this afternoon after he refused to be demoted. No word on who or if anybody will take his place.

[ChuckEZone]

:( I hope things work out alright for him.

[Aaron]

Wow, just wow. I'm for once at a loss for words.
All I can say is I hope things work out, too.

-NJ

[pizzacam]

Isn't this kind of a good thing? Wasn't he kind of a scab at CECE? Made bad decisions...? IDK I remember there was something people didn't like about him...

[CEC3066]

Flores: "I know We'll eliminate curtains on the show!"

[TreyTX]

well, he needs to move on, but for CEC that is great...they need some 'new blood' in the company as they need to reinvent themself. They are 'treading water' in my opinion.

[pizzacam]

"I know we'll eliminate curtains on the show!"

I knew this douche was responsible for something stupid in the company.

Well, good ridance then!

[sungun12]

lost our regional mgr too, same day

magusiak is now acting vp in midwest region until further notice

[pizzacam]

Better hope you guys don't have a visit from him...:lol

[sungun12]

wouldnt bother me.....i dont run my store well in fear of corporate guys coming - i run it for the guest and my cm - simply to be the best, no matter who shows up.

id actually like to meet him. flores was the highest corp. guy i ever met

[CECBC]

I heard the reason for firing was "poor performance" for the past year...I personally think that they should look at GM's and DM's for poor performance before they go firing the real higher ups...I have noticed that this company is not very good at following up on things...esp. training

[ChuckEZone]

lost our regional mgr too, same day

magusiak is now acting vp in midwest region until further notice

Oh wow.. I didn't know about that. If he does drop by, he's a great guy. Nothing to worry about. :D

[munchjr]

Yea...Gary Springs and Flores was fired the sameday...the reason he was fired was for Spring's performance. Mike wanted him gone, Mark said one more chance (Springs worked for CEC 20+ years) Mike said no to the second chance. Told Mark he was going to fire Springs....and asked Mark if he would run the area until further notice. Flores said no and thus was fired.

[pizzacam]

Damn, 20+ years and they just threw him out on his ass...even at corporate level they screw you over, unless he got a good severance package...?

[CECBC]

Heard from my GM/DM today that Todd Horchner is also being "demoted" and won't be the director of training anymore...anyone hear anything of the sort???

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

( jaw hits the floor in stunned reaction)

"****"!!!

WOW....did'nt see this coming.

Here i go away to Fl for a few days and all Hell breaks loose within the Company....geez!

All i can say is that i'm stunned at this move...but in another way it does'nt surprise me. I feel sorry for Mark....that was not a decent way to end his 25+ career with CEC regardless of the Curtain Saga. It does'nt surprise me at all at how the Company handled this, as i have first hand experience of the way they "deal" with people who in their eyes "outlive there usefullness".

I think big changes are in store for us folks. Remember, Mark was a major mover on the Magic front ( Curtain Saga aside..cough..) and with him now out of the picture i'm not sure what's in store for the future as far as Magic Aspects go. Sounds like a major shakeup to me...which i agree could be a good thing in the end. God knows CECE needs something major to happen to get it back on track and re-focused on what it should be doing and in what direction it should be going in. However, firing Mark simply because he refused to take over a position he was not interested in seems grossly unfair to me. I don't know all the gory details...only what MunchJr. has already posted here, but based on this and my own dealings within the Company this seems to me that Mark was given a very raw deal.

Let's be honest people...the ONLY way we are going to see the changes we would like to see within CECE is if Dick or Mike are booted out. We will probably not see this until they finally retire in a few years....as i highly doubt they will ever be dismissed in this ubrupt way since they make the stocks look rosey to the CEC investors.

All i can say is wow.....this is shocking news to me.

I feel very bad for Mark.

[pizzacam]

Mark was a major mover on the Magic front

Well, hopefully they'll get someone in there who gives a damn about the "magic" again...I know, fat chance.:rolleyes

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Of course..this in therory may turn out ot be the real reason he was booted to begin with.

Mark was a longtime supporter of Magic Making in the resturants and we all know that for a long time now it seems that the Company frowns on such things.

Maybe the fact he was "let go" was because they were looking for a excuse to boot him since they no longer seem to value those of us who are dedicated Magic Makers. In other words, his intent on keeping the "E" in Chuck Entertainment Cheese worked against him and made him a "enemy" of this once great Company. I know this feeling well....

Dammit...this makes me angry! I feel a rant coming on...you know...that ol' chesnut, "Magic vs. Money".

Grrrr.....>:

[cec080]

District manager gone as well. Dan the district mgr of the Ann Arbor MI. location is gone as well.

[sungun12]

you mean Dan Blystone?? formerly gm of boardman OH, the training store? wow thats news to me...

as far as Flores and the magic making - i really dont think he was the only one who cared about making magic. i mean really, there could be a billion reasons why he was let go and we'll never know all of them. one person does not a company make.

in my opinion, the stores that do well, will always do well as long as the people running think the same way. the way i was 'brought up' was that you dont do things for the thought of some corporate guy stopping in. its not about any of that. its about having pride in yourself and wanting your store & your cm to be the best, and your guests to have a great time.

last week i happened to still be in the store at the time they were doing an 8:00 party's live show. time for chuck e. i got in the suit. it had been a while. now, how many GM's do you know that still get in that suit??? But doing that live show and the walkaround afterwards and just seeing kids soooo happy that I was showing them attention and getting hugs and seeing the excitement in their eyes - THATS why I go to work everyday. That is what its all about.

It wouldnt matter who was in charge of the company, if the same people were there for 30 years or if they got new guys every 6 months. That will be how I run my store and If everyone thinks like that, we will be in good shape forever.

Like i said, i was 'brought up' in that kind of store. that was drilled in my head ever since i was a cast member. guest service is number 1 - and it only works if you MEAN it.

[cec080]

Sungun12: thats what people are saying about Dan. not sure though.
things are really strange lately. one minute you hear this then the next minute you hear something different. i'm lost to tell you the truth. :D

[Covert06]

So it was Dan Blystone?? We here in the Mentor, OH location were wondering if that's who you meant.

[sungun12]

i asked my dm about dan and he hadnt heard anything yet so....if someone gets some confirmation - let us know

and as far as todd horchner - i just heard he got a new position since theyre not opening as many stores right now so...not a demotion, just a new job.

[CECBC]

Todd Horchner wasn't in charge of opening stores...what is his new position?

[sungun12]

no, but he was the director of training....in charge of the people opening the stores. if theres no stores opening right now, thats a lot of people with nothing to do

[CEC743]

Yeah through one of the few reliable CEC grape vines: Dan quit b/c he didn't like Gary and before Dan even finished his two weeks out, Gary gets canned. That really sounds like a sucky deal to me.

[busytech]

Todd Horchner is moving to Director of Operations for T J Hartfords.

[pizzacam]

Isn't there only one TJ Hartford's? Or a few? :lol

[CEC743]

sounds like an easy gig then

[CEC3066]

as far as i know there's only the Lewisville,TX TJ Hartfords

[pizzacam]

Yeah, just for kicks we should try to go there too during CV3...I'm gonna try to check it out this trip..I said I was last time but never got around to it...

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Sounds good Gabe..let's do it!

[sungun12]

we need to have cheesevention in Charleston!!!!!

everyone can sleep at my house, i have a big tv, haha.
(thats what i did with my first bonus check!;) )

no seriously, someone give me some details about this. maybe i can go. maybe if i cant there needs to be a side trip to my store.

[CEC3066]

Cheesevention 3 already has a spot picked out for this year. we're having it in TX.

[sungun12]

i know, i know. but come on, charleston is only like....probably 15 hours from TX! make a detour!! when is it, maybe i can go

[CEC3066]

CV3 is Friday July 21-Sunday July 23rd

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

SunGun...

All the CV3 info can be found in the 'Events" sections on both the Home Page and here on the Message Board!

Check out the official CV3 website too...it's linked onto the Home Page here at Showbizpizza.com on the "Events" section.

Check it out...and hope you can make it to Irving!!

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

So it's been a while now since Mark was "let go"....

Anyone have any views as to if they have noticed a change since then within the concept?

Have you noted any differences?

Just curious....

[sungun12]

my world didnt change one bit

[CEC3066]

here is what I found out from a former GM out here in the west. :

Flores was asked to take over as RVP but declined as the demotion was against his religious beleifs so he was fired.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

What??

How does being RVP go against any religion?

So he was'nt "booted"...just chose to go?

[Billy Bob Brockali]

Maybe the asked him to be the VP of Evil Satanic Mouse Sacrifices? I'm positive they have that position...

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Wow.......

:eek

Well yeah....if that is the case then i can see that being against someones' beleifs!

[pizzacam]

VP of Evil Satanic Mouse Sacrifices

Wow, they REALLY ruined your childhood. :\ I guess I should be glad you're not a postal worker. :lol

Not that it would matter...

[ChuckEFranchize454]

demotion was against his religious beleifs so he was fired

wow ive never heard that one lol!!!


however i had a guest go balistc on me at kid check bc it was "Agenst" her religion to get stamped on the left hand!!!and she was mad bc i was letting other guest in that were with reserved parties(might i add we were on wait and holding guests at the door and only letting in reserved parites in bc the store was PACKED!!!!). she even said i kicked her out of the store by force. and then she called the store and said she talked to jesus and tell the manager that she lied about it

sorry i kno that was a little off topic!!! nyways i have seen changes at our store but thats cuz my GM is the best!!! thing r looking good here!!!!!

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Wow..that's a bit nutty....

Well you have to keep in mind that some folks use it as a excuse to get out of doing something they would rather not do ( like get there hand stamped).

People seem to forget that a KC stamp is "invisible' and will not leave the dreaded "meat branding" that many folks ( particularly women) hate to have on there skin for the next 5 days...lol!

[ChuckEFranchize454]

ya that woman scared the heck outta me!!!!!!

[bzier]

Afraid of a little stamp...I don't understand people. I have that problem at my store all the time too. Well, that's what the stickers are for!

They act like it's the mark of the beast or something...(well, you gotta be careful when your stamper gets to #666!) :lol

[MatHat13]

Yeah it always happans hear too, one day a middle eastern woman told me to make sure 'not to touch' her hand while i stamped it, and I did just that, hey lady(I'm sorry for the small racism comment here), but welcome to America, where some other humans can actually touch your skin lightly for once.:rolleyes

[CEC3066]

remember when KC was first introduced and they had the shiney red glitterish ink? that was neat.

[pizzacam]

LOL remember when KC was new and you could stamp babies on their foreheads!? Haha "4F" :laugh: :laugh: Bad Egg :cec_thumbs:

[markjr]

This is the son of Mark Flores and I know the entire story. Mike M. wanted my dad to fire Gary Springs to make a statement to the other regional managers, when he said no, Mike said that he was going to go aroung him and fire Gary himself and told my dad that he would have to run Gary's region.

As you probably already know, my dad was the regional vice president for the western region before he was promoted to Director of Operations. When this happened he had to move the entire family out to Texas from California. This was especially hard on us all. Since we have moved out to Texas, several of us have graduated high school and college. Also, my grandmother, Mark's mother, moved out here as well to be closer to us. So basically it came down to two things. The first, was he did not think is was ethical to fire Gary Springs just to make a statement to other regional managers, and the second was he didn't want to move the family again.

[pizzacam]

Damn and again it's brought to light how jacked up this company can be... :(

Welcome to the board though! :laugh:

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Hello Mark Jr. and welcome! Thanks for coming on board and letting us hear your version of the story!

I met your Dad a few times when i still worked for the Company, and we got along rather well. I always thought he was one of the few Corporate types there that actually cared about the concept and the entertainment value aspect of it. When i found out he was let go, it did not surprise me too much as it seems anyone with any real creative imput is booted out or simply run ragged until they leave in disgust. I am very sorry to hear about what happened, and i just want you to know that there are some of us out here who understand and sympathize with what happened.

Can you tell us what Mark is doing now? No need to go into great details as i am sure he wishes for his whereabouts to be private....but a general idea would satisfy the curiosity factor. I personally just want to know if he is ok.

Thanks, and glad to have you join us!

[markjr]

Mark is doing fine, he is spending a lot of time with his youngest son an daughter. Right now he is busy managing his real estate investments and looking to get into franchising.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Great...glad to hear he is doing ok.

Franchising huh? Any thoughts about investing in a CEC Franchise?

[CEC3066]

yeah especially since they are looking at offering them again.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

I think it would be ironic and deliciously sly to see Mark open his own CEC. Just image what kind of place it would be...there he could try out any ideas he has without having to bow to Corporate's wishes.

[Peach]

I haven't been here in a long time and just saw this, I think of your dad now and then because I spent around 20 years or more with him. I want to say I met him in Huntinton Beach in 1981 and along the way I ended up in Pico Rivera. I was the tech in Pico Rivera and he was an Asst. Manager then, my second or third time back in Pico again, he was now my District Manager and from there any store I was in he was now my Reginal Manager. I have been in and out of CEC a few times and he could be a funny guy like he would say; congratulations Mike on your 7 years Again! Tell him Hi for me, he should remember me. Mike Picciolo (aka Peach) the guy who worked Huntington Beach, Fullerton, San Bernardino, Costa Mesa, Upland, Pomona, Lavern, Bell, Diamond Bar, El Monte, Torrance, Carson, Pasadena, Covina, Palm Springs, Palm Desert, Sun Valley, etc... if I wasn't working with him then I was working for him to put a unit back together, back to his standards and they were high and the best of the best while he was in charge.