McDoozies Managment Process

Part 1

Step 1: I knew I needed to find a McDonald's quickly. Evidently, there was one right by my train station so I made my way there before I went to school.

Step 2: As I approached the counter with my money, I had a feeling that this “special” order would be met with puzzled looks. I asked “Hi, can I have one small hamburger with EXACTLY four pickles AND one small order of fries with NO salt. AND can I have a receipt showing four extra pickles and a small order of fries with no salt.” The cashiers face was of confusion. She asked me to repeat the order so I did. She responded by saying that she couldn’t do it. I did not give up and urged her to try. Of course the manager was beckoned. I repeated my request to her as well.

Step 3: Upon my request, there was a lot of side talk (in Spanish) and perturbed looks towards my direction. The manager yelled to the lady that makes the burgers to put four pickles on my hamburger and told the French fries lady to put no salt on my order. I thought I caught a sneer from the French fries lady… At this point I had been at that cash register for almost ten minutes explaining my instructions. I check the time and it was about twelve o’clock and some change, lunch time… I turned around and there it was a line right behind me a few bodies shy from the door. I was met with stabbing glares. To be honest I was a little embarrassed and I tried to avoid eye contact.

Step 4: As I checked my order, surprisingly, they did what I asked. There were exactly four pickles on my burger and my fries seemed salt-less. However, I looked at the receipt, and it was all wrong. They got the “no salt on fries” part but they only documented one extra pickle on the burger. I was disappointed; I asked them if they can redo the receipt. The manager said no. She stated that they can’t print receipts without placing an order. I had no choice but to place another order. They got it right the second time around.

This whole management process was a little frustrating but interesting. I was frustrated because my instructions were very clear but it still took them about 15 minutes from start to finish getting my order right. Surprisingly, I was not mistreated or disrespected. The stares and looks towards me were negligible.


Part 2

As I witnessed the management process, the McDonald's staffs’ reaction was predictable. I had a feeling that my request was a little strange and would cause some confusion. I just didn’t know it was going to take longer than 15 minutes.

If I were to rate the staffs manufacturing process on a scale of 1 – 10, I would give them a 9. They just take the order and make the burgers, they do there job pretty well. If I were to rate the communications, I would give them a 6. There was some miscommunication up front but my order came out the way I asked. However, they did screw up my receipt. The coordination was good enough; I give them an 8 being that it is not a complex structure. Lastly, I give the customer service a 7. Yes there was some confusion but they were patient with me and plus I didn’t feel mistreated, even if I’m four dollars poorer.

If I were brought in as a consultant to McDonald's in efforts to improve their efficiency in regards to special orders, I would suggest one thing. Just like supermarkets that have express lines; McDonald's should have a Special Orders line with a cashier who is trained in taking particular orders. Depending on the size of the McDonalds, I would also add and express line. This would enhance efficiency during peak hours such as lunch. People buying one or two items can shoot straight to the express line; people with specialized orders can join the Special Orders line and all regular orders to the regular lines. During non-peak hours, all registers are open for any order. I think this would be a great plan.