Creating Consistency: Meet the Operations Leader Behind the Scenes, Bobby

You’ve been part of the Meats by Linz family since 2011. What first brought you here, and what has kept you growing with the company for more than a decade? 

I love telling this story. My senior-year football season had just ended, and my parents said it was time for me to get a job. So I came here. They actually hired another guy instead of me. He only worked for a couple of days and then quit because he couldn’t handle the freezer. And then I started during spring break of my high school senior year and just never left. I worked my way through college here and kept doing a bunch of interesting things around the company, kept learning and growing with the support of Meats by Linz. I never would have thought I’d be here almost 15 years later, but I’m thankful I am in an environment that encourages growth and allows me to strive for more in my career. 

Your background in HACCP and SQF gives you a valuable perspective. How does that experience show up in the way you work today? 

I am definitely happy that I worked in HACCP and SQF because most people don’t consider the food and safety aspect of the operational side. It’s truly great experience to have because there are a lot of moving parts that happen on projects we’re doing, and we can’t afford to skip steps or not look at big-picture facts, which always leads to: “Is this going to compromise the product or customer?” 

You also help manage cruise line accounts and contribute to planning our new operations facility. What part of that work has been the most exciting or meaningful for you? 

I like to think big picture. When you’re on a cruise, it’s an experience you won’t forget, and to me the biggest part of these types of experiences is the food. Being able to see people enjoy a steak from Meats by Linz on a cruise ship and knowing the full story of how that single piece of steak got there makes me appreciate it even more. 

In your eyes, what makes Meats by Linz a special place to grow your career? 

They reward hard work and consistency. Their expectations are for you to do your job to the best of your ability. I mean, look at my story, the idea that you can start at a company in shipping and receiving, working part-time, and just steadily grow and grow and grow, and that’s just based off work ethic and results. Working here gives you something to strive for; there are always further steps to take in your career. You bust your butt here, and you’ll absolutely get rewarded. 

Looking back, is there a moment or project you feel especially proud of? 

Opening this new building is one of the projects I feel especially proud of. 

It was a lot of work—from USDA inspections to physically moving everything, but here we are almost two years later with a new building. The biggest pain was working with the government because we wanted to shut down the old building on a Saturday, then transfer and open this building up on Sunday. Mind you, they are closed on the weekends, but we did it. 

For someone just starting out in operations, what’s a piece of advice or encouragement you’d want to share? 

Learn every aspect of your company because it’s all going to be applicable the more you climb the corporate ladder. I really pride myself on knowing that there’s not a job here I can’t do… well, besides cutting. I am deeply terrified of knives. 

Meats by Linz is constantly evolving. In your view, what sets our operation apart from others in the industry? 

The whole basis of Meats by Linz is quality and consistency. We as a company all expand on that same sentiment in our work ethic. We have an expectation, and that expectation is perfection from bottom to top and top to bottom. To produce perfection, we have an incredible ability to rebound and problem-solve as things come up, which is always the end goal of taking care of the customers. If you have high-quality product and matching customer service, you grow around this atmosphere and match it.