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J K
G F
T S
MGT 310-03
Professor F T
17 October 2018
McDonald’s
Catering to Convenience
History of McDonald’s
McDonald’s is one of the world’s largest and most successful restaurant chain with
thousands of restaurants in over one-hundred countries. However, McDonald’s success did not
come overnight. In 1937, Patrick McDonald opened a food stand that at first sold hot dogs but
eventually hamburgers were added to the menu. In 1940, Patrick McDonald’s two sons, Richard
and Maurice, moved the original building to San Bernardino. The restaurant reopened as a
carhop dine-in under the new name, "McDonald's Bar-B-Que".
Although the restaurant was successful, eight years later the brothers decided to make
some changes. The brothers decided to rename the restaurant to “McDonald’s”. The new
restaurant was streamlined and went from having twenty-five items on their menu to only,
“hamburgers, cheeseburgers, potato chips, coffee, soft drinks, and apple pie...The carhops were
eliminated, making the new restaurant a self-service operation. Richard and Maurice took great
care in setting up their kitchen like an assembly line to ensure maximum efficiency.” (Bryson
338). A year later milkshakes and fries were introduced into their menu. In 1952 the iconic
“Golden Arches” were created and put in front of a new McDonald’s restaurant in an effort to
attract more attention and business. They achieved their goal of more notoriety and then the two
brothers decided to make McDonald’s into a franchise. The two brother’s ingenuity and vision
helped make McDonald’s a successful restaurant in their local community. In 1954, Ray Kroc
met with the McDonald’s brothers and convinced them to open up more restaurant franchises
throughout the country. Ray Kroc also furthered McDonald’s success by creating advertising and
marketing campaigns. Ray Kroc had a bigger vision for Mcdonald’s and went on to expand its
global presence.
Why do you think the company has been successful?
McDonald’s success can be attributed to various reasons. McDonald’s Standardization,
consistency, and innovation are some reasons why McDonald’s has remained successful.
McDonald’s is consistent with quality, service, cleanliness, and value. Regardless of whichever
restaurant location one visits, they are going to have a similar experience. Along with
maintaining product and service standardization, McDonald’s considers local tastes and
preferences when developing its menu items. At times McDonald’s also offers seasonal or
featured items for a limited time. This is a good marketing strategy that helps increase business
by attracting new customers and gives regular customers a new item to try. Another reason
McDonald’s is successful is because McDonald’s has found ways to give back to the
communities it does business in. One example of this is the “Ronald McDonald House” which is
a non profit located throughout the country that provides families a place to stay at little or no
cost to families with children in local hospitals. McDonald’s has created a good public relation
by giving back to the community.
How do you think a mechanistic organization such as McDonald’s has been able to bring
about a process of of innovation so characteristic of the McDonald’s enterprise?
It is through its emphasis on specialization, standardization and formalization that
McDonald’s is able to innovate. Due to their mechanistic nature they are able to take risks,
generate new ideas, and gain technological advances. McDonald’s is constantly introducing
innovative ways of reaching new customers. In the last few years McDonald’s has been using
technology and partnering up with other companies to continue having its food more easily
available to more customers. Customers are no longer limited to getting McDonald’s food by just
visiting a location in person. McDonald’s now has a mobile app in which a person can order food
from the convenience of their home or any other location, pay for their order, then either pick it
up from the curbside, drive thru, or inside the restaurant. Customers can also order food
through a third party companies such as Uber eats or Postmates and have it delivered. Many
restaurants also have Kiosks in which a person can order their food and have the food brought to
their table.
Many McDonald’s locations have amenities and features that attract customers. A few
examples of amenities customers enjoy are free wi-fi, televisions, and the kiosk to order from.
Some of McDonalds may even attract more families with young children by providing “Play
Place Playgrounds” for children to play in. This provides parents a free place to distract the kids
