Norman Brinker began his restaurant career in 1950 as a partner in the Jack-in-the-Box restaurant chain. As a result of Mr. Brinker's passion for the restaurant industry, he created the concept of casual dining. Opening the first Steak and Ale in 1966 allowed him to bring this concept to life. Subsequently, he developed the Bennigans chain, sold both chains to the Pillsbury Corporation, and took over as vice president of Pillsbury. Brinker International was founded in 1984 after Brinker left Pillsbury to purchase a 40% stake in the Chili's restaurant chain (Nelson & Quick, 2006). With the formation of Brinker International, Brinker was now able to pursue his vision of casual dining in a more progressive manner. According to Brinker International's website, the company has over 1,600 restaurants worldwide that generate approximately $4 billion in sales annually (http://www.brinker.com). Some of these restaurants include Chili's Grill and Bar, Romano's Macaroni Grill, On the Border Mexican Grill and Cantina, and Maggiano's Little Italy. Between 2000 and 2003, these restaurant chains were recognized among the 400 best companies in America by Forbes magazine (Nelson & Quick, 2006). Much of Brinker International's success is due to the management, leadership and leadership of Norman Brinker. Brinker is well known for his leadership skills; however, he became successful for the first time due to his management skills. Being able to plan, budget, organize and hire the right staff to get the job done has led to his success with Steak and Ale. Additionally, Brinker's vision was a key aspect that led him to become an accomplished leader. The leadership process he incorporated allowed him to set goals and directions for his company. His charismatic style empowers and motivates people within his company to work towards these goals and incorporate change within the organization when necessary. Through his powerful leadership style, Brinker molded many followers into future leaders. Brinker's leadership philosophy is that “winners attract winners” (Nelson & Quick, 2006). With this philosophy he has made succession planning an integral part of Brinker International's success. After retiring in 2000, he handed over leadership to Ron McDougall, his protégé since they worked together in 1974. McDougall also handed over the CEO job to Todd Diener, who has been with Brinker since 1981 (Nelson & Quick, 2006) . This is an example of continuous follow-up led by Brinker.