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NEW YORK, September 21, 2005—A team of professional assistants from Taco Bell® in Irvine, California, received American Management Association’s (AMA) 2005 Innovation Award for Administrative Professionals. Patty Bauman, executive assistant to Taco Bell’s president and chief concept officer, was on hand today during the 13th Annual Administrative Professionals Conference in San Diego to receive a plaque recognizing the team’s contributions to their organization. Bauman also received a free trip to the conference compliments of AMA.
AMA’s Innovation Award for Administrative Professionals celebrates outstanding examples of creative problem solving and innovation in administrative support. The primary purpose of the Award, now in its seventh year, is to serve as an inspiration to administrative professionals as they advance in their professional development and seek new knowledge and skills.
The Taco Bell administrative professionals team created a program called “Team of Two” to bring together admins and managers to foster a better understanding of the role and influence admins can play. Through small, interactive groups, both admins and managers improve their communication. As a result, their own and each other’s roles are better understood and productivity is greatly enhanced. The success of the program has sparked interest from Taco Bell’s sister brands to extend the program to their corporate offices.
“It is my privilege, on behalf of Taco Bell and YUM! Brands, Inc., to accept AMA's Innovation Award for our ‘Team of Two' program,” said Bauman in accepting the Innovation Award. “At Taco Bell we like to ‘Think Outside the Bun'—and admins are no exception.”
The program allows managers to progress in their appreciation of what admins can accomplish when appropriately empowered. As admins broaden their responsibilities, labor and productivity are maximized.
“The success of the program reveals that managers come away with a better understanding and appreciation for the administrative role. Managers have enjoyed sharing ‘best practices,' have committed to better communication and have seen the benefits of delegating work to the admin so as to increase their own focus and productivity,” Bauman said.
“Admins come away with a feeling of greater empowerment to expand their sphere of influence, to establish stretch goals and, best of all, feel more recognized and appreciated than ever before,” Bauman said.
“The project was indeed a labor of love for the admins on the creation team and I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge Taco Bell's leadership for partnering with us and endorsing our ideas in our quest to get better and better,” Bauman said.
The application deadline for AMA's 2006 Innovation Award is June 9, 2006. Entries will be judged on the basis of documented positive results related to at least one of the following: cost savings, efficiency, productivity, problem solving, problem prevention, employee morale, accuracy and integrity of operations, customer satisfaction, organizational effectiveness and organizational communication.
To be eligible for the award, the innovation must have been developed and implemented by administrative professionals and must provide tangible, sustainable and replicable examples of excellence that can assist others facing similar work and productivity issues. The innovation also must have been implemented for at least six months prior to the application deadline.
About Taco Bell
Taco Bell Corp., based in Irvine, California, is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM) and the nation's leading Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain serving tacos, burritos, signature Quesadillas, Grilled Stuft Burritos®, nachos and other specialty items. Taco Bell® serves more than 35 million consumers each week in more than 6,500 restaurants in the U.S. “Think Outside the Bun” and visit www.tacobell.com.
About AMA
American Management Association is the world’s leading
membership-based management development organization. For
80 years, it has provided valuable and practical action-oriented
learning programs to people at all levels, in all industries,
from companies and agencies of all sizes. More than 500,000
AMA customers and members a year learn new skills and behaviors,
gain more confidence, advance their careers and contribute
to the success of their organizations through a wide range
of AMA seminars, conferences and executive forums, as well
as through AMA books and publications, research and print
and online self-study courses.
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