Amy Simmons is the founder of Amy’s Ice Creams, the iconic Austin-based brand she started in 1984 at just 23 years old. Over the last four decades, Amy has grown the business to 19 locations by staying fiercely local, prioritizing people and culture, and resisting traditional growth models like franchising or national expansion. Known for its theatrical customer experience and deep community roots, Amy’s Ice Creams has become a defining part of Austin’s identity. At the center of that longevity is Amy’s belief that great businesses are built by empowered people, not rigid systems, and that belief shows up clearly in how she runs her company.
Why Open-Book Management Starts With Transparency, Not Control
Amy does not treat financials as something that should be hidden from employees. She treats them as a shared tool for learning and decision-making.
“Well, and ultimately, your financial statements are your scorecard, and we practice the great game of business, so our employees know the scorecard.”
That framing changes everything. Instead of numbers being something employees are shielded from, they become something everyone can understand and rally around. Amy sees this as part of her responsibility as a business owner.
“Teaching financials is a way of helping young people becoming financially literate.”
For Amy, open-book management is not about micromanaging performance. It is about teaching people how businesses actually work so they can make better decisions on their own.
Using Open-Book Management to Turn Employees Into Operators
Transparency alone is not enough. Amy pairs open-book management with active education so employees know how to interpret what they are seeing.
“We take their personal financial statements and parallel it with the business financial statements, and so that they can understand how they can build wealth.”
By connecting personal finances to business finances, Amy helps her team understand cause and effect. They learn why margins matter, why costs add up, and why not all revenue is created equal.
“And so, you use that training for that person to understand that gross income is not net income.”
This kind of clarity changes how people show up at work. Employees stop seeing decisions as arbitrary and start understanding tradeoffs. That understanding extends all the way into how the company plans for the future.
“It’s a big part of training, and it is good for the business because our employees build our budget for the next year.”
When employees help build the budget, they understand constraints before problems arise. Instead of reacting emotionally to decisions, they participate in shaping them. Amy has found that this approach strengthens culture rather than creating conflict.
“But it’s a joy. That’s not an argument with an employee. It’s a joy to teach and grow and to see people’s lights turn on.”
How Focus Protects Quality as the Business Grows
Open-book management is only one part of why Amy’s Ice Creams has scaled without losing what makes it special. Another core belief Amy holds is that growth requires focus, not expansion.
“The bigger you get, the simpler you have to make it. You actually have to narrow your choices, not expand them.”
As businesses grow, there is a temptation to add more products, more options, and more complexity. Amy has seen firsthand how that approach erodes quality.
“If you have 400 flavors, you can’t execute any of them really well.”
By narrowing choices, Amy protects execution, consistency, and the customer experience. Fewer options allow teams to do better work, train more effectively, and deliver a product that feels intentional rather than diluted.
Hiring for Commitment and Kindness, Not Just Skill
If you’ve ever tried to hire for a customer-facing role, you already know the problem: most applications tell you where someone worked, not who they are. And in a business like Amy’s Ice Creams, where the experience is part of the product, Amy Simmons isn’t just looking for “can you do the job?” She’s looking for, “will you bring the energy, warmth, and attitude that makes customers want to come back?”
That’s where one of Amy’s most famous hiring traditions comes in: the paper bag application. Instead of only relying on a standard resume and a quick interview, Amy gives applicants something unexpected that reveals far more than a list of past jobs ever could. It’s a simple prompt that tests creativity, effort, and whether someone actually wants to be part of the culture, not just collect a paycheck.
“So, it’s still the paper bag, and we say, ‘Just be as creative as possible, or whatever you want to do to express yourself.’”
The point isn’t arts and crafts. It’s commitment. Amy has learned that when someone is willing to put real thought into a small, unusual step, it signals they’re genuinely invested.
“If they do something like that, then they probably really want to work for Amy’s.”
And once they’re in, that effort translates into ownership. They didn’t stumble into the role. They chose it.
“When you get the job, the job’s worth more to you, so you’re already vested in the organization being successful.”
Because at the end of the day, Amy isn’t building a team around perfect resumes. She’s building a team around the kind of people who can make someone’s day better.
“Ultimately, people get hired for their kindness. Our mission statement is to make people’s day.”
The Bigger Lesson Behind Open-Book Management and Amy’s Approach
Taken together, these tactics point to a single philosophy. Transparency builds trust. Focus protects quality. Intentional hiring strengthens culture. Open-book management works because it treats people like capable adults who want to understand the game they are playing.
Amy Simmons did not build one of Austin’s most beloved brands by chasing shortcuts or scaling at all costs. She built it by teaching her team how the business works, narrowing decisions to what truly matters, and surrounding herself with people who care deeply about making someone’s day a little better.
You can hear the full conversation with Amy Simmons on the Beyond A Million podcast here:
https://beyondamillion.com/audio/amy-simmons-ice-creams-most-beloved-brand/
