Human Resource Management | McDonalds

McDonald's

McDonald's has been around since 1937, and has created a household name for itself being the number one ranked Fast Food Chain across the globe ("Human resource management at McDonald's," 2009). In 1993, their annual sales reached a jaw-dropping $23 billion dollars. In the United States, the organization has well over half a million workers, making it one of the biggest employers in the nation. McDonald's has around 10, 000 locations, covering 137 countries and operating over 30, 000 restaurants worldwide.

One of the main strategies of McDonalds is to increase revenue by selectively designating locations where it is believed a franchise would benefit ("McDonald's Corporation," 2010). This is done by the company placing restaurants not only in neighborhoods, but also in malls and airports to expand its target market and gain revenue. McDonalds targets markets mainly families with children, suburban communities as well as teenagers. These reasons are- for families with children, automatically, Mcdonald's will sell at least three meals per family dining, suburban communities, for greater brand recognition and comfort with the brand within a community and for teenagers, it gives them a place to "hang out." The strong brand recognition of those golden arches gives McDonalds an advantage because of repeat customers.

McDonald's has been pursuing growth for the past few decades; they boast about their billions of burgers sold each year. However, throughout the past years, McDonald's has been facing a decline in sales with current law suits, negative media coverage and health issues relating to their contribution to the growing number of children suffering from obesity ("Human resource management at McDonalds," 2009). McDonald's became in desperate need to attract more customers in-order to stabilize their sales, or better yet increase them. They had attempts to change their menus and offer different products aside from their regulars. Some new products proved as failures and were rejected by the public, causing McDonalds' sales to decline more. McDonald's strong strategic orientation when it comes to marketing is assumed to be one of the main reasons why it is leading in the fast food industry.

Competitive Advantage

Recruitment and Selection

Employees of McDonald's fall under three groups -- franchise owners, restaurant staff and corporate staff. Corporate staff members work in corporate headquarters which can be located at the regional offices of McDonald's. Human resource management is defined as the strategic and coherent approach for a company towards their employees, who are considered their most valuable assets. In other words, human resource management takes care of the human capital in an organization ("HRM function," 2008). It focuses on recruitment, management and pointing out directions for people who work in that certain organization (Heathfield, 2010). It includes a variety of activities such as deciding what the staff may need, compensation, hiring, etc. (McNamara, n.d.).

Crew members or the restaurant staff is the majority of McDonald's employees. These positions are mostly entry-level, and part-time. Amongst the restaurant staff are the managers and the assistant managers, they watch over the performance of the crew members and ensure that the quality of the products and services provided are kept consistent. Human resource management is often seen as a reflection of the distribution of power within a system (Schuler, & Jackson, 2007). The goal of human resource management is to achieve the goals of the organization. For McDonald's the goals of their organization highly depend on the job structure.

Since most McDonald's staff is comprised mostly of the youth, the organization is committed to prioritizing education. McDonald's ensures that all school-aged employees see their education and school work as their top-priority.

McDonald's and management

Management and operations of McDonalds is very well organized and has kept McDonalds' doors open for decades and decades to come. Management of McDonalds is mostly commended for its great customer service. It follows management policies, and has strict rules each branch follows, no matter where it is across the globe. The branches are well kept and well organized. It is supervised by head branches to ensure that quality is met every time. McDonalds also encourages customer feed-back, and requires its employees to greet customers with full respect. Also, McDonalds keeps its promise as a fast-food restaurant, continuing to serve its customers promptly and hassle free. The drive-through feature of most-branches adhere to this fast-food claim, and employees are well trained to be able to give customers full satisfaction in the delivery, presentation, quality of taste and consistency of their products offered.

The company's production and operations have been running for decades...

Food is still delivered promptly and has kept its general look. Even though McDonalds has come up with new products throughout the years, it still keeps the original food offered when it first opened. Production of new food usually follows a fad, or starts because of a certain season. Although, it still retains its name in selling burgers and fries, the products which gave McDonalds its humble beginning ("McDonald's," 2010).
The organizational culture of McDonalds values its great customer orientation. The whole system of the company is very much customer-centered, which is why McDonalds has a number of regular customers. It is also under the strict management of a higher power, or a mother company. The branches of McDonalds gets regular supervision from these mother companies to ensure that service is on the spot and there are no issues concerning customer service, hygiene and the like. This keeps the quality of the company intact. McDonalds employees also focus on its quality of food. Ensuring that the food is consistent from the day before, or decades before, and they make sure it stays that way. Consistence lies in presentation as well as taste, this gives customers a feeling that they are well-connected with the products McDonalds offers and most of the time, these repeat customers have their "usuals." McDonalds' customer value is also backed up by good training for employees. A McDonalds' employee is not just simply hired; he or she has to go through training to make sure he or she is equipped for the work place to give customers the McDonalds experience they come back for.

Human Resource Management of McDonald's

Different types of organizations come up with different strategies and approaches to be able to control their workforce. This all depends on what their market is, and how they compete. It is argued that there are three main bases to gain competitive advantage. These are:

1) Innovation

2) Quality

3) Cost

Strategies which revolve around the quality and innovation of products and/or services sold are dependent on a committed workforce ("Human resource management at McDonalds," 2009).

The Human Resource Management at McDonalds (2009) states that: "Control at McDonald's is not merely achieved by direct supervision, machines, the physical layout of the restaurant and the detailed prescription of rules and procedures but also through recruitment." And this recruitment is the responsibility of the human resource management department who is in charge of attracting human capital.

The hiring of unskilled or inefficiently trained workers can take a toll on a company's level of quality and innovation. Since McDonald's is known for their consistency in service and products, they would require workers who are able to deliver up to standards. There is a need for workers to be aware of the elaborate system and rules which govern the organization. These rules include the grounds for promotion and for punishment.

Since McDonald's is such a big organization, falling second to Walmart in the United States, they would require efficient and skillful leaders with ample knowledge in human resource management (Asuka, 2010). To be able to reach these sales, a strong organizational management needed to be built. This can be done by setting up common goals between employees and the organization ("Human resource management at McDonalds," 2009).

McDonald's is a place which emphasizes training and development of its employees in order to achieve an efficient and productive workplace. The organization provides career opportunities for people to maximize their potential which is flexible in terms of their family and education ("McDonald's company facts," n.d.).

Training in McDonald's

Since McDonald's opened its doors, the training process in which all employees must undergo has been emphasizing on consistent restaurant procedures ("Hamburger university," 2010). Like all companies, McDonald's likes to reduce their chances of error, to ensure this, all employees must be well trained and familiar of their work (Williams, 2006).

The organization of the training process at McDonald's is highly structured. Entry-level employees are taken through basic crew training. The program includes on-the-job training which ensures that the employees get hands-on experience before being out on the field and working independently. As the level of employment advances, so does the training requirements and programs advance as well. This all depends in which field an employee enters in, and McDonald's provides ample training to make sure all its employees understand the system and can work efficiently within it.

Training begins immediately after employees are oriented on the company. Each restaurant is equipped with its own video-training room, and all hand-out step-by-step manuals which cover all aspects…