Stephen Carley

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Stephen Carley is an American businessman known for his role as Chief Executive Officer for Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc.. Carley also served as CEO of El Pollo Loco, Inc. from 2001 to 2010.

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Education

Carley attended the University of Illinois College of Business where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in finance. He later attended Northwestern University where he received a master's degree with a concentration in marketing. [1]

Career

Carley began his career in the food and beverage industry with PepsiCo Inc. During his 12 years at Pepsico during the 1980s and 1990s, Carley held several posts at Taco Bell. [2] Carley also served in various management positions with several companies, including, PhotoPoint Corp., and Universal City Hollywood.

Carley served from April 2001 to August 2010 as the Chief Executive Officer of El Pollo Loco, Inc., a privately held restaurant company headquartered in Costa Mesa, California. [3] [4] He became the CEO of El Pollo Loco after being laid-off from three positions. Carley credits the layoffs with his success saying, "I wouldn't have this phenomenal opportunity without those layoffs, and would have missed out on one of the most gratifying leadership opportunities of my career". [5] Carley was featured in NBC's The Apprentice alongside Donald Trump. During the sixth-season episode, Carley was the first person other than Trump to delegate an assignment to the contestants. [6]

Carley joined Red Robin as Chief Executive Officer and as a director in September 2010. [4] Carley retired in 2016. [7]

References

  1. ↑ "Stephen Carley Named President and CEO of El Pollo Loco" (Press release). Business Wire. 2001-04-10. Retrieved 2009-04-10– via FindArticles.[ dead link ]
  2. ↑ Reckard, E. Scott (2001-04-11). "Carley Takes Over at El Pollo Loco". Los Angeles Times .
  3. ↑ Jennings, Lisa (12 August 2010). "El Pollo Loco CEO Steve Carley to step down". NRN. Retrieved 20 November 2025.
  4. 1 2 Shunk, Laura (2010-08-17). "Former El Pollo Loco CEO Stephen Carley takes the reins of Red Robin". Denver Westword. Retrieved 2025-11-20.
  5. ↑ Jones, Del (2009-02-24). "From laid off to company leader". USA Today .
  6. ↑ Cebrzynski, Gregg (2007-02-19). "Having words with Stephen Carley: president and chief executive, El Pollo Loco". Nation's Restaurant News. Retrieved 2009-02-25– via FindArticles.[ dead link ]
  7. ↑ Sealover, Ed (8 August 2016). "Red Robin CEO retires as restaurant chain reports disappointing quarter". Denver Business Journal. Retrieved 2025-11-20.


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