Michael Cox, the CEO of MCrowd Restaurant Group (Mi Cocina, Taco Diner, Mercury), resigned yesterday. In a short statement he writes:
I am happy to inform all my friends, family and work associates of my decision to resign my position as CEO of MCrowd Restaurant Group. I enjoyed these last three years with MCrowd and the relationships I have developed. I am excited to take some time off to consider new opportunities and pursue other interest.
Really? The suddenness of the announcement and departure makes me curious. How many people are happy about resigning from a high paying job? Calls are out. Story developing.
Update: I just spoke with Ray Washburne, the head enchilada at MCrowd Restaurant Group. The phone connection was awful but my takeaway from his reaction is this: Washburne was not surprised by Cox’s decision but he was a bit amazed by the timing and the fact that his last day is Friday. “Michael has been running big companies for a long time,” Washburne said. “I think running this growing company with 2,000 employees is hard. He’s worn out. He told me he’s 56 and wants to assess what he wants to do with the next 15 years of his career.”
