An Interview With Chad Silverstein
Build systems where doing good and doing well reinforce each other, because that is where sustainable growth lives.
The most successful modern CEOs are rewriting the rules of leadership. They’re not only building profitable companies but building purposeful brands with personal voices behind them. These leaders understand that in today’s world, people invest in people. Their stories, values, and visibility fuel loyalty, attract opportunities, and drive business growth far beyond traditional metrics. In this interview series, we’re sitting down with leaders who’ve learned to balance purpose, profit, and personal brand — and who are using their influence to shape the future of business leadership.
As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Andrew Glantz.
Andrew Glantz is the Founder & CEO of GiftAMeal, a social impact platform that partners with restaurants to turn guest engagement into meals for local food banks. Each time a guest takes a photo at a partner restaurant, GiftAMeal donations funds to a local food bank to help provide a meal to a family in need. Under his leadership, GiftAMeal has grown to more than a thousand restaurant locations across 46 states and has helped provide millions of meals to families in need. Based in St. Louis, he is passionate about leveraging technology and hospitality to drive measurable business results while creating meaningful community impact.
Thank you so much for joining us in this series. Before we begin, our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you share your backstory and what led you to become the leader you are today?
I founded GiftAMeal in St. Louis after seeing two realities collide: restaurants constantly looking for meaningful marketing, and food banks struggling to meet demand. What started as a simple idea, turning a guest photo into a donated meal, grew into a platform now operating in 46 states and partnering with over 1,100 restaurants. Along the way, I learned that leadership is less about having all the answers and more about being willing to iterate, take responsibility for outcomes, and keep moving forward when resources are tight.
What’s the “why” that drives your work? How has your personal sense of purpose evolved as your business has grown?
My “why” is creating models where doing good is baked into doing business. Early on, it was about proving the concept could work. As we’ve grown and helped provide millions of meals, my purpose has evolved toward scalability and sustainability, building something that lasts and creates systemic impact rather than one off wins.
Let’s now move to the core of our discussion. This series is about balancing purpose, profit, and personal branding. Can you help explain why each of those three matters, and why they can sometimes pull against each other? If possible, share a real example from your experience.
Purpose gives direction. Profit provides oxygen. Personal branding builds trust.
They can pull against each other when short term financial pressure tempts leaders to prioritize immediate efficiency over long term mission, or when visibility feels uncomfortable compared to staying heads down on operations. In our case, we faced moments where we could have deprioritized impact to simplify the business. Instead, we doubled down on proving that purpose itself was the growth lever, investing in data to show restaurants increased visit frequency and check size. That proof allowed us to stay fully aligned with the mission while strengthening profitability at the same time.
Many CEOs focus heavily on strategy and profitability but hesitate to invest in their personal brand. What do you think about that? What have you seen work best?
I understand the hesitation. It can feel self-promotional or distracting. But in today’s environment, people partner with people. When a CEO communicates clearly about values, strategy, and lessons learned, it accelerates trust with investors, customers, and employees. The key is ensuring your personal brand amplifies the company mission rather than overshadowing it.
What are some misconceptions you’ve encountered about personal branding in the C-suite, and how do you challenge those narratives?
One misconception is that personal branding is ego-driven. Another is that it is optional. In reality, if you are not shaping your narrative, someone else will or your narrative will be non-existent. I challenge that by focusing on substance over style. Share real metrics, real failures, real trade-offs. When visibility is rooted in transparency and service, it strengthens credibility rather than diminishing it.
What’s one specific way your visibility as a leader, through interviews, speaking, or social media, has directly impacted your organization’s success? Walk us through what happened. How did you know it worked, what changed in measurable terms?
After being featured in industry publications and speaking at restaurant conferences, inbound interest from multi location brands increased meaningfully. We tracked a noticeable lift in enterprise level conversations following those appearances, which contributed to expanding into national chains and surpassing 1,100 locations. The measurable shift was a higher average contract value and shorter sales cycles because trust was partially established before the first call.
Balancing profit and purpose is easier said than done. What practices or principles guide your decision-making when those two goals seem to conflict?
First, I ask whether the tension is short term or structural. Second, I look for data before making emotional decisions. Third, I ask whether the decision compounds over time. If protecting purpose strengthens long term differentiation, it is usually the right move even if margins are tighter in the short run.
Can you share a story about how aligning your personal values with your company’s mission created a breakthrough in performance or growth?
I have always believed that transparency builds resilience. When we shifted from a consumer app focus to a more frictionless, app-less model, I communicated openly with partners about why the change was necessary. That alignment between my belief in adaptability and the company’s mission to serve restaurants better resulted in stronger retention and growth within franchise systems.
In your view, what separates a leader who simply “runs a company” from one who builds a movement around their message?
A company delivers a product. A movement delivers identity. Leaders who build movements connect their mission to something bigger than a transaction. They articulate not just what they sell, but what they stand for.
How do you integrate storytelling into your leadership, both internally with your team and externally with your audience or clients?
Internally, I share customer wins, challenges, and metrics in narrative form so the team understands the human impact behind the numbers. Externally, I tell stories of restaurant partners who increased engagement while helping feed families. Storytelling bridges data and emotion, which is where lasting decisions are made.
What are your “Top 5 principles for balancing purpose, profit, and personal visibility?” (Please include a short example for each, plus one action a reader could try this week.)
1. Design mission into the model.
Example: Our donation mechanism is triggered by customer engagement, not detached from it.
Action: Audit your revenue streams and ask where purpose can directly tie to performance.
2. Measure what matters.
Example: We quantify visit frequency, check size, tip size, guest sentiment increases to prove impact for our restaurant partners.
Action: Identify one mission aligned metric you can track this quarter.
3. Lead with transparency.
Example: Sharing both wins and pivots built stronger partner trust.
Action: Publish one lesson learned publicly this week.
4. Align brand and business.
Example: My public messaging consistently reinforces our dual focus on ROI and impact.
Action: Review your last five posts or interviews and check for consistency.
5. Think long term compounding.
Example: Protecting purpose strengthened differentiation and retention over time.
Action: Before your next big decision, ask how it looks three years from now.
Finally, if you could summarize your leadership philosophy in one sentence, what would it be — and why?
Build systems where doing good and doing well reinforce each other, because that is where sustainable growth lives.
How can our readers continue to follow you or your company online?
Follow GiftAMeal on Facebook, Instagram, X, or LinkedIn (all @giftameal) or visit giftameal.com or download the free GiftAMeal app to view a list of our participating restaurants. Or follow me on LinkedIn to follow along with updates I post.
Thank you so much for sharing all of these insights. We wish you continued success and good health!
About The Interviewer: Chad Silverstein is a seasoned entrepreneur with 25+ years of experience as a Founder and CEO. While attending Ohio State University, he launched his first company, Choice Recovery, Inc., a nationally recognized healthcare collection agency — twice ranked the #1 workplace in Ohio. In 2013, he founded [re]start, helping thousands of people find meaningful career opportunities. After selling both companies, Chad shifted his focus to his true passion — leadership. Today, he coaches founders and CEOs at Built to Lead, advises Authority Magazine’s Thought Leader Incubator.
The New CEO Playbook: Andrew Glantz Of GiftAMeal On Balancing Purpose, Profit, and Personal Brand was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.