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Podcast: National Restaurant Association’s CEO Dawn Sweeney on the ‘Relentless Resilience’ of the Industry

September 4, 2019
Original content c/o: Nation's Restaurant News
NRN’s editor-in-chief interviews the CEO on what’s next for the association

Listen to this podcast on Apple PodcastSpotify or SoundCloud.

National Restaurant Association CEO Dawn Sweeney is getting ready to pass the torch. 

After spending 12 years as the lead executive of the National Restaurant Association, Sweeney announced this spring she will be stepping down from her role at the end of 2019.

In an interview with NRN at the association’s DC headquarters, she said she is working harder than ever to get things ready to hand off to a new leader. 

When asked by NRN for advice for whoever will be filling her big shoes, she gently declined.

“I have had the most joy I have had in my professional life in this role. And I hope the person who follows me — this is not advice, it’s just a wish — can find the same level of joy that I have had,” she said.

Despite taking the reins of the association shortly before the recession, Sweeney is leaving the association in a good place financially. Sweeney has more than doubled its annual revenue from $50 million to $120 million, uniting all the state associations with the national association, and selling its big NRA Show in Chicago.