You’re Accepted to Hamburger University

*click the picture above to see what goes on in the facilities

Hamburger University was created by Fred Turner, McDonald’s former senior chairman, in 1961 in the basement of the McDonald’s located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. The purpose of Hamburger University is to generate “consistent restaurant operational procedures, services, quality and cleanliness” (www.abourmcdonalds.com). The university’s mission is to educate the students to be the “best talent developer of people.” Their active effort to produce quality workers has earned them the right to receive college credit recommendations from the American Council on Education.

There are multiple Hamburger Universities around the world. It also not as easy as one would think to be accepted. According to “McDonald’s Hamburger University: Step Inside the Most Exclusive School in the World” by Vivian Giang in Business Insider, McDonald’s Hamburger University is often called the “Harvard of the fast food industry.” In China’s university, the acceptance rate is at a mere one percent. The curriculum of the university is constructed with a combination of lab activities, computer modules, classroom instruction, and goal-based scenarios. There are currently 19 full-time professors have an expertise in restaurant operations who aid in the training curriculum developed at the university. The curriculum for each position varies; their path at the university depends on their specific career paths.

Crew development is handled within the restaurants that are supported with professionals from Hamburger University. Restaurant managers are required to complete shift management and systems management courses in addition to attending one of the many regional training centers. After their courses are completed, the managers must attend Hamburger University where skills and knowledge specific to McDonald’s restaurants can be acquired. The mid-management career path is for department heads and business consultants. The courses for this section is emphasized on building their leadership and consultation skills. It allows the individuals to be able to teach other individuals effectively in order to keep the restaurant running smoothly. The last branch is the executive development path. This path also builds upon leadership that is essential to sustain their employees, sales growth, and owners.

Today, Hamburger University enrolls more than 5,000 students each year. Once their courses are complete at Hamburger University, it is their hope that the student is able to apply their knowledge from the core curriculum.

McDonald’s Over the Years

“Look for the Golden Arches” (1961) “You deserve a break” (1971) “Nobody can do it like McDonald’s can” (1979) “It’s a good time for the great taste of McDonald’s’ (1984) “We love to see/make you smile” (2000) “Every time is a good time” (2002)  “I’m lovin’ it” (Present)

Over the years, McDonald’s has created numerous slogans in both the U.S. and other countries. Each country has a variation of the slogan. However, the focus of this blog will mainly be the slogans popularized in the U.S. One of the earliest slogans that is still remembered and rather popular today is the slogan of 1961, “Look for the Golden Arches.” This slogan was easy to remember and very recognizable and relatable. When a customer thought of the “golden arches” it was almost an instinct to associate the arches with McDonald’s. Then, seconds after picturing the arches, the consumer would see French fries making them crave the food, possibly urging them to drive to the nearest McDonald’s and order themself some fries.

In the earlier years, the slogans were very literal. The slogans would create visuals of the physical place such as the arches or quite simply mentioning McDonald’s. But as their consumers began to expand, McDonald’s started to create slogans that would create some sort of emotion within the customer. The slogans suggested that the customer held the power. McDonald’s was working for them and their main goal was to make them happy – “We love to see/make you smile.” Then, McDonald’s slogans became about the way one will feel when they’re eating at a McDonald’s restaurant: “Every time is a good time,” “Food, folks, and fun,” and “Good time, great taste.”

Today, almost everyone will associate McDonald’s with “Mmm, I’m lovin’ it” while humming it to a certain tune. Once someone hears that little jingle, they can immediately recognize what corporation it is for. This little slogan is one of the most effective. It is short and sweet, paints of a picture of happiness, and it is never confused with any other company. The slogans has changed dynamic over time, but nonetheless, the golden arches remain recognizable.

McDonald’s: A Corporation’s Mission and Vision

“McDonald’s brand mission is to be our customers’ favorite place and way to eat and drink. Our worldwide operations are aligned around a global strategy called the Plan to Win, which center on an exceptional customer experience – People, Products, Place, Price and Promotion. We are committed to continuously improving our operations and enhancing our customers’ experience.”

Above is McDonald’s mission statement. After reading this statement, one is able to clearly pinpoint the core values of the McDonald’s Corporation. The statement emphasizes the most important core value to McDonald’s – customer service. Line after line McDonald’s makes it very known that they want to provide customer services that exceeds the consumer’s standards, “…be our customer’s favorite place and way to eat and drink,” and “…center on exceptional customer experience.” It is quite obvious that customer service is their objective, but its core values expand beyond consumer satisfaction. The mission and vision of the corporation also include: believing and supporting its system, making ethical business decisions, giving back to the communities, continuous improvement, and nonetheless, a growing business profit.

Believing in the McDonald’s system and making ethical business decisions is part of their “Plan to Win.” This plan to win involves all of their suppliers, owners, operators, and employees. All of those included in this plan for success are held at certain standards that will uphold McDonald’s fairness, integrity, and honesty. If any of these standards are not, McDonald’s states that they are “individually accountable and collectively responsible”(www.aboutmcdonalds.com).

The ultimate goal for the plan is to make the business successful; thus, making a substantial profit, which also heavily relies on their most important value – customer service. Essentially, their business decisions fall back on customer service because it is, in reality, the consumers that will fund and keep their corporation in motion, similarly along the lines of “happy wife, happy life,” but in the scenario, the consumer is the wife and life is McDonald’s corporation. Although the value of community give back is not stated verbatim in their mission statement, McDonald’s does support community organizations such as the Ronald McDonald House Charities. The last core value is continuous improvement. McDonald’s specifically states, “We are committed to continuously improving our operations and enhancing our customers’ experience.” It is their mission to adapt and respond to the evolving world, consumers, and employees.

McDonald’s has a very clear mission statement embodies all of its core values. Consumer satisfaction is the ultimate mission for the McDonald’s Corporation. It is also the consumer that shapes the McDonald’s vision; the evolving consumer forces the vision of the company to evolve. However, the mission is still clear – keep the consumers happy.

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com