Most people don’t associate the word “unexpected” with corporate leadership. Yet for Shirin Behzadi, that very quality became the cornerstone of her success. From humble beginnings as a gas station cashier to the helm of a billion-dollar franchise company, Behzadi’s journey is a study in how resilience, curiosity, and empathy can redefine what it means to lead.
Her new book, The Unexpected CEO: My Journey from Gas Station Cashier to Billion-Dollar CEO, chronicles that remarkable ascent.
When Behzadi became CEO of Home Franchise Concepts, she was stepping into a role defined by growth pressure and high expectations from new private equity partners. She knew the company’s entrepreneurial DNA well, but she also sensed that the next phase of success demanded something different.
“We often lead in ways that are customary and expected especially during times of challenge and change,” she explains. “Though performance was important, I knew that achieving results while maintaining the integrity of our franchises’ health required a more unexpected leadership plan. I began with a listening tour engaging teams, franchisees, and customers to uncover what we didn’t yet know. That process led to a full brand and operational overhaul. Leading by listening proved to be the most ‘unexpected’ strategy of all and it delivered exceptional results.”
Listening became her superpower—but it wasn’t forged in a boardroom. Behzadi’s story begins with personal struggle: arriving in the U.S. alone, supporting herself through hourly work, and later surviving a life-threatening illness. Those experiences, she says, were not setbacks but training grounds.
“Each challenge taught me to solve problems by changing perspective, a skill that later helped me lead through growth and change,” Behzadi says. “Having once been overlooked, I learned that real engagement comes from involvement. When people help shape the vision, they bring their best ideas forward. My journey shaped me into a leader who listens, involves, and empowers others.”
That philosophy was tested repeatedly. Behzadi admits that self-doubt often surfaced—especially early in her career.
“Self-doubt was part of the terrain. I was often the only person in the room with my story having started as a gas station cashier. But I reminded myself that I belonged because I had earned it. Even when I struggled, I focused on learning and doing the work. Confidence doesn’t come from being perfect; it comes from persisting anyway.”
Persistence soon became resilience. Behzadi compares it to a muscle that grows stronger with use.
“I learned to see adversity as a teacher and to ask, What can I learn from this? Each time I found my way through a challenge, I grew stronger. Smaller challenges prepared me for the bigger ones ahead.”
When Home Franchise Concepts partnered with private equity, Behzadi faced the daunting task of scaling without losing the culture that had fueled its entrepreneurial growth. She led a shift from loosely connected “tribes” to a unified, accountable organization.
“We had to grow faster and operate more efficiently,” she says. “My leadership style had always been collaborative, but now we needed alignment and accountability across the organization. I helped move the company from loosely connected ‘tribes’ to a unified culture with clear roles while keeping our entrepreneurial spirit alive. This cultural shift required me to bring clarity and champion change. Change is hard, so I modeled confidence and openness every step of the way.”
The transformation was anchored in strategy as well as mindset. A rigorous brand overhaul revealed opportunities that sparked dramatic growth.
“We realized that we had to re-define ourselves and our brands,” Behzadi recalls. “Over the years, we had lost clarity and consistency in our brands and their voice. We went through a rigorous exercise of creating new brand bios. This process highlighted gaps and inconsistencies in our systems. It also showed areas of opportunity. Built on the new brand bios, we changed everything. The payoff was a growth of nearly triple the industry average.”
Throughout the company’s evolution, communication remained Behzadi’s north star.
“Alignment starts with communication—and it has to go both ways,” she says. “During growth, we made time to engage teams in honest conversations about who we were and where we were headed. People contributed ideas that shaped our direction, and we communicated progress back to them. That cycle built trust, alignment, and ownership.”
Trust, she believes, is built not through perfection but through transparency.
“Be honest, early, and human,” she says. “I learned to quiet fear-based voices and speak plainly about what we know, what we don’t, and how we’ll decide. When I addressed our teams, I paired data with a personal promise: every decision would reflect our people’s best interests. That transparency built trust we could rely on when the path wasn’t clear.”
Even the language leaders use, Behzadi insists, shapes culture.
“Clarity and simplicity matter. Say what’s important in the fewest words possible like, ‘Here’s what we’re solving.’ I also believe in naming the quiet part out loud. Acknowledging what people may be anxious about creates calm and trust. When leaders validate concerns, people feel seen and safe.”
As for the challenges facing leaders today—from economic shifts to the rise of AI—Behzadi points to a timeless principle: focus on purpose.
“Leaders today face constant uncertainty from economic shifts to AI to geopolitical unrest. The best way through is to anchor the organization in its mission and vision. When you stay clear on the value you deliver to customers, confidence follows both for you and your teams.”
What question does Behzadi hope more leaders will ask themselves? Her response is simple and profound: Am I the person my people hope shows up today? “When the answer is ‘yes,’” she says, “you’re likely operating with authenticity, courage, and care. That’s the work: to be someone whose presence steadies the room, who carries the system’s anxiety long enough for others to do their best thinking and work. If we get that right, the unexpected won’t derail us; it will define us.”
Behzadi’s journey proves that leadership isn’t about control—it’s about connection. In a world where volatility is the norm, she reminds us that the most powerful leaders don’t silence uncertainty; they listen to it, learn from it, and lead through it.