The Roadmap to Happiness

The Presidents' Forum of Philadelphia
June 10, 2009

Jim Rudolph
Chairman of the Board & CEO
Rita's Franchise Company

Speaker Biography:
A Unique Opportunity:
Jim Rudolph, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Rita’s Franchise Company, acquired the company in 2005 after recognizing the organization’s tremendous po-tential. Rudolph, an experienced franchisee turned franchisor, took the helm of the largest Italian Ice concept in the industry and immediately set into place plans to take the company to the next level. Under Rudolph’s leadership, Rita’s has seen unprecedented growth and continues to thrive with over 500 locations in 17 states.

Lessons of a Franchisee:
Jim Rudolph and the Rudolph family founded and built Wendy’s of Greater Pitts-burgh in 1976 and developed and operated 48 stores in the Greater Pittsburgh area. In addition, they owned and managed five Wendy’s Restaurants in New York, had ownership interests in Wendy’s South Florida and managed several Wendy’s lo-cations in Southern New Jersey. The Rudolph’s received the Wendy’s Award and R. David Thomas Award and Jim was inducted into the Wendy’s Hall of Fame. An ac-tive franchise partner, Jim was also a member of the Wendy’s Franchise Advisory Council and served as its President. In 1995, the restaurants were sold to Wendy’s International.

Jim was also a franchisee of Chuck E. Cheese Pizza Time Theater. Rudolph owned and operated five restaurants and served on the Franchise Advisory Council before selling them back to the company in 2001. In addition, Jim operated several other franchises including Church’s Chicken and Baskin Robbins Ice Cream.

Rudolph and his family have been engaged in both real estate development and construction since 1975 and currently own and manage over 5 million square feet of office space in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas. Jim along with his brother Bill, formed McKnight Capital Partners, a private equity firm based in Pitts-burgh, PA, where he has served as Chairman of the Board since 1996.

Leading as a Franchisor:
After McKnight Capital Partners purchased Rita’s in 2005, Rudolph assumed the po-sition of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at the then 300 plus store frozen dessert concept. Although he had only planned to stay at the company for a few months while selecting the management team, Jim soon found that he could not imagine life without Rita’s. While his family continues to live in Pittsburgh, Jim works each day at Rita’s Trevose, PA headquarters, aptly called the Cool Support Center, and commutes home each week to spend time with his family.

As a former franchisee turned franchisor, Jim brings with him a unique set of lead-ership qualities. He believes that in order to be a success, Rita’s Franchise Partners must have faith in the concept, the leadership and the organization’s practices. Jim is committed to providing each of Rita’s Partners with all of the tools they need to succeed and take the concept to the next level.

Committed to the Community:
Aside from his business ventures, Jim is very active in the community. He has served as past president or chair of the following organizations: Green Oaks Coun-try Club, Robert Morris University Development, Alumni and Community Relations Committee, B’Nai B’rith Hillel Foundation, Mentoring Partnership of SWPA, Vintage, United Jewish Communities Mandel Leadership Institute, Jewish Association on Ag-ing, United Jewish Federation, and Agency for Jewish Learning.

He has also served on the board of directors for the following organizations: Ellis School, Junior Achievement, United Way of Allegheny County, Manchester Crafts-man Guild, Jewish Healthcare Foundation, Jewish Community Center, Congregation Beth Shalom, Congregation Rodef Shalom, Pittsburgh Housing Authority, Jewish Family and Children’s Services and Youth Places.

Currently, Jim serves on board of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, Robert Morris University, and Special Olympics of Pennsylvania.

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