I am not a big fan of McDonald’s food. Even though there are a few McDonald’s around my neighborhood in Ridgewood Queens I had to make a little research before I went. First I decided to pick a place that is not usually very busy. I wanted the employees to take my order very seriously and complete all my special side orders. I also decided to take a friend with me who could enjoy the special McDonald’s meal with me.
As soon as I walked in I realized that the store was full of people and little kids. I then realized that I have no choice but wait on line and place my special order. While I was waiting online I realized one thing there was only one cashier handling the line and from what I noticed she was new and not very familiar with the menu. At that point I realized that my order would have been complicated for her and that managers need to be involved. But I did not ask for a manager. I acted normally and told her my order I also asked her specifically that I needed a receipt specifying all the details of my order. The girl looked at me and did not react at all. She didn’t say we can’t do it. She was just looking at the register trying to figure out ways to describe my order on a piece of receipt.
While the girl was trying to figure it out, the line behind me kept getting bigger and bigger. I had people looking at me weird for holding the line for no reason. A lady behind me who had enough of waiting on line screamed out loud: “Girl stop being difficult and take your order.” I preferred to ignore her for a minute, and was still waiting for my receipt and my special order to come out. As the line kept getting bigger and bigger the manager had to walk in and ask about the situation. The new cashier then explained to her my complicated order.
I acted very serious and made it clear that I would not walk out of the store if my order was not completed. The manager trying to calm down the situation and reduce the line behind me gave me a smile and said: “Of course Miss we can help you”. She asked me to step down to the next register as she would take personal care of me. I was then moved to an empty register and started explaining my order again.
The manager specifically explained to me that they weren’t able to put 5 pickles on the receipt but just extra pickles. She insisted that in order for me to have a receipt which would say five extra pickles I had to make 5 orders. She also explained to me that they cannot specifically put the extra Mac sauce on the receipt but just one sauce.
My friend takes the order and I take the receipt. I wasn’t happy. My five pickles were not showing on the receipt. I told the manager: I wasn’t going to step out the store without my complete receipt. She than kept insisting and insisting that the only thing she could do is hand write on the receipt 5 pickles and initial them. I agreed to that but I also wanted her business card stapled to my receipt. She did not have a business card. She specifically explained to me that the top of the receipt with the address and the telephone number serves as a business card for all the mangers of that location. She was very sorry that she couldn’t satisfy me with that. She was very nice and polite. She was the general manager of the store and she was the one personally involved with me
Now after taking my attention away from the receipt I made sure my order was ok. I opened the burger and the five pickles were there. My fries were well done too. And then I see a little soda cup with the extra Mac sauce. I wasn’t happy with that. I asked for extra sauce but that didn’t mean they had to put in on a soda cup. I then politely asked the manager to put my extra Mac Sauce on a regular sauce container. I knew at that moment the manager had enough of my order. She got a little irritated and showed me a very small container. I then walked down the store and preferred to take my extra sauce on my little soda cup. This was my experience at McDonald’s.
If I would have to rate the management process, Would Igive them the maximum? The answer is no. As far as organization goes they were not well organized. They were not set up to handle extra orders. There was only one register open with a new girl which was handling the entire store. The moment she was encounter with a difficulty she didn’t even asked for help. If I was the manager of the store I would always had a cashier for back up to take special orders. And not have the manager of the store get involved with the long lines and special orders. McDonald’s are always busy, back up is always important. It was a small store but not well organized.
As far as communication I think that it wasn’t effective. There was no commination between the employees and the manager. The manager would take over the situation without asking what is going on. She did underestimate the cashier and did not ask her if she wanted help or try to explain to her how to solve the situation. There was no communication. She wasn’t a very effective manger, she was the type of manger that would do the work herself not assigning other people to do it. In this case there was lack of communication between employees. The communication between the employees and the customers was then very effective. I think that me and the manager had a very effective communication. She explained with details the whole process and answered all my questions.
As far as the training process I don’t think the employees were well trained. The cashier was just hired. She had problems using the register effectually. She wasn’t very familiar with the menu and the special orders that come on the side. After the manager was done with my order no one explained to the new girl how to use the register in these special cases. I think the training process for the new employees at McDonald’s consisted of very basic things that are most commonly used.
As far as the leadership, the fact that the manger was the one who handled my special order and was with my throughout the process made me realize that she did have a lot of good managerial skills but not leadership skills. A leader leads and others follow. She wasn’t leading she was involved in the process. I still believe she was a good manager even though she was the type of manger that would rather do things herself than assignothers that will not do the jobcompletely. I believe she was a very good manger. I think she should get her employees a little more involved ,in that case their job doesn’t get boring. I think McDonald’s is the place that doesn’t need leaders but good mangers. McDonald’s stores do not encounter a lot of challenging situations every day. They don’t have to make important decisions or follow business plan. All is needed is good employees and good managers. No leaders need to be involved.
Overall the service was good. My order was made according to my desires. The staff was calm and tried to help me with my special order. I didn’t get any attitude from any of the employees or the manger. They all tried to follow my instructions and give me the best service. Looking at things on the big picture everything was good. Looking at things from a manager prospective some things need to be improved. I had a very pleasant day and my friend really enjoyed the McDonald’s meal. It was a fun experiment that made me realize a lot of things about the management process.
