Matt Pires is the Taco Bell Area Coach of Area 94 for Desert De Oro Foods (DDO) known for his ambition and passion for the business. We recently sat down with Matt to learn the “why” behind that drive. Today, Matt can be described as a true gem, but this hardworking self-starter had a rocky beginning during his formative years.
Matt is the youngest of four siblings and a self-described “tough kid” with a rough early life. His parents immigrated to the U.S. from Portugal; Matt has Portuguese citizenship. He attended an alternative school for troubled kids and fell in with a bad crowd, ultimately getting kicked out of school his senior year. One of Matt’s teachers told him he wasn’t ever going to amount to anything. Fortunately, Matt used that negative reinforcement as fuel, and ultimately went back to get his GED — a well-deserved point of pride.
“Conquering obstacles in life is what builds character.” – Matt Pires, AC
Building a Better Life
Matt started with Taco Bell around 16 years old, and wasn’t looking to make a career out of it. Like most teenagers, Matt was interested in earning some money, getting his license and buying a car. All important pursuits! He didn’t know it at the time, but joining Taco Bell was the beginning of a beautiful life.
While working at Taco Bell, Matt met his now-wife, Harmony. Matt says meeting Harmony gave him purpose and she became his motivation to stay out of trouble. A calming force, Harmony gave Matt the confidence to go after his dreams. “She makes me a better person simply by being her,” he says.
Almost immediately, Matt set out to accomplish his career objectives. His goal was to become a Shift Lead by age 17, but he had to wait until he turned 18 years old. A mere nine months later, Matt was promoted again, this time to Assistant General Manager (AGM). By age 21, Matt became a Restaurant General Manager (RGM) on his continued climb up the career ladder.
Proud Leader
Throughout his promotions, Matt moved to multiple stores, which can be a challenge all its own. But Matt’s Portuguese roots helped him find common ground with the diverse members of his teams.
As an AC, Matt loves seeing people grow and develop personally and professionally. There’s an ever-growing list of team members Matt has watched get promoted, have children and buy their first homes. “I’m definitely a proud ‘Uncle Matt,’” he says.
“The responsibility lies with us to guide people through life’s challenges when we‘re able to do so.” – Matt Pires, AC
One of Matt’s favorite DDO memories is when a former employee called out of the blue, years after leaving the company, to say thank you for helping him and inspiring him to be the best at whatever he decided to do. In a serendipitous turn of events, that same employee went on to become a successful real estate agent who sold Matt his first home at age 19.
Numbers Guy with Know-How
Matt describes his management style as “fair, firm and fun.” Setting expectations is an important part of that trifecta. He looks for loyalty; to Matt, this means everyone shares responsibilities and helps each other without being asked.
These days, Matt is a renowned numbers guy, sought out in Region 9 for his scheduling know-how. He sees gaps in how people are scheduled and uses math to allocate labor fairly. Matt has a knack for seeing what needs to be done and quickly determining the best way to do it — a character trait Matt learned in part, from his father, while helping him build and fix things as a kid.
When he’s not hanging out at home with Harmony and their daughter Isabella, Matt likes building things as a way to relax in his downtime. Perhaps the most important thing Matt has built, is the confidence to persevere when dealt a challenging hand. We’re grateful life brought you to DDO, Matt!