McDonald’s Corp Essay

Our company that we chose to research is McDonald’s; whose full company name is McDonald’s Corporation. McDonald’s is the world’s largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, worldwide, serving around 68 million customers daily in 119 countries and counting. McDonalds was founded May 14, 1940 in San Bernardino, California by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald. The focus of McDonald’s at the time was their “Speedee Service System”, they did this by introducing an assembly line style kitchen, which speed and ensured maximum efficiency.

Then in 1954, 52 year old Ray Kroc, milkshake mixer sales man, hears that a restaurant is using 8 mixers and takes a trip to visit them. He becomes fascinated by the restaurant that he becomes a franchisee, and then in 1961 he bought the company from the McDonald’s brothers for $2. 7 million. Now McDonald’s is a multi-billion dollar company and is one of the most recognized brands. McDonald’s is managed as distinct geographic segments. Significant reportable segments include the U. S. and Europe, as well as Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa. This is also known as the “APMEA”. It is owned publicly with a ticker symbol of MCD.

Don Thompson was named CEO and company president on June 30th 2012. Surprisingly for us, the address for the headquarters is in Oakbrook, Illinois. I would have thought it would be in New York City or somewhere like that (Lexis-Nexis). From the Standard & Poor’s Stock Reports Online, we found that for the 2011 year the gross revenue was $27,006,000,000 while the net profit was $5,509,224,000. The stock price range is currently $107. 74 – 107. 01. So McDonald’s is doing quite well for itself, no surprise. From the 10-K report on McDonald’s, we found that two factors affecting the company are brand image and food safety.

Neither of these is surprising. Some years ago I remember hearing about problems about the name and the Scottish clan McDonald (or MacDonald, if you prefer). And lately it seems you can’t go to any restaurant with a meat entree without worrying about food poisoning. McDonald’s has had legal trouble as recent as the 2009-2010 Federal Income Tax. They were under examination from the IRS because they were under a lot audits and foreign tax jurisdiction. The legalities can become so complicated. According to the Standard & Poor’s Industry Surveys, McDonald’s industry name is under Restaurants.

That’s kind of obvious isn’t it? Yeah. Well, according to this source, an issue facing McDonald’s is the higher gasoline prices. Practically everyone has been feeling that pinch, but it affects this company as more of an indirect effect. The gasoline prices have led to a drop in consumer purchasing, as well as a decline in the customer’s willingness to travel and spend. Not surprising result, since many families won’t want to waste gas just to get a fast food meal. According to IBIS World, the top two competitors for McDonald’s are Wendy’s International Inc. nd Burger King Corporation.

Some trends, according to this source, that McDonald’s uses to stand out from its rather similar competitors are drive-through services as well as quick service, and cafeterias and buffets. Also, according to the SWOT analysis, one of the strengths of McDonald’s is its strong brand value and one opportunity is in increasing consumer awareness on health and nutrition. In an April 10, 2013 article called ‘McDonald’s bringing jobs to Fox Chapel area’, author Tawnya Panizzi examines the prospects of opening a new McDonald’s in the Fox Chapel area.

According to the article, there had been many residents asking for a McDonalds to be built, yet there had been no action. However, recently soon-to-be owner Michael Delligatti had announced his intentions of bringing the successful franchise to the area. This is not only good news for fans of the restaurant, because the article had also declared that, “More than 40 jobs will be created specifically for Fox Chapel Area students when the now under-construction McDonalds opens in June” (1).

The good news doesn’t even stop there, because in addition to the jobs that are to be created specifically for students, they will, “create more than 75 jobs in all” (1). Everyone involved seems to be very excited about the opening of the new business and the spark it will provide for the economy of the town. Another article, written by City News Service on April 23, 2013 explains how a McDonald’s in Riverside is planning on providing free charges for all electric cars that attend the restaurant. The article is appropriately titled ‘Riverside McDonald’s announces free charges for electric cars’.

This McDonald’s is the first in all of the United States to provide such a unique service to its customers. The chargers they provide is so efficient, that, “Electric car drivers will be able to charge their batteries up to 80% in less than 30 minutes” (1). This McDonald’s is the same McDonald’s that was picketed last year by PETA, or people for the ethical treatment of animals, for the inhumane way they allegedly kill their chickens. It is possible that they are offering this free electric charge service in an attempt to seem more hospitable to their client base after receiving the bad press from the PETA pickets.

If it is what they are attempting to do, they may be going about it in a smart way, since the kind of people who would listen to what PETA has to say are likely to drive electric cars. However, this is all speculation from one point of view. These two articles can be seen as two examples of the McDonald’s Company’s kindness and good nature. In both instances, they are offering something to the community that both stimulates it economically and benefits from it environmentally. Many people may see McDonald’s as just another corporate giant, and whose owners are only here to make as much money as possible.

However, these two articles are examples of how this is not true. While McDonald’s is one of the largest food chains in the world, they still manage to give something back to the community and the environment. In conclusion, McDonald’s proves to be one of the top companies worldwide. It has had many successes since its creation in 1940, even with several big legal issues. It has spread across the globe and is now taking steps to be more economically friendly, as well as creating many jobs.