Page 180 - Everything I Know About Business I Learned

Everything I Know About Business I Learned at McDonald’s

multi-billion-dollar organization, but you can pick up the phone
and get a hold of someone, a callback. The operators know that
they can go right up to the top people and have a conversation.
They look you right in the eye; they don’t look over your shoul-
der to see who’s coming next.”
Although I never doubted the importance of communications
in business, I didn’t fully appreciate it until serving on a man-
agement team in 1974 that ran individual restaurants for a New
York franchisee. We held monthly meetings, reviewing opera-
tions, profits, and people on a regular basis. We’d go around the
room and be put on the spot to respond and report on each
area—and it forced us all to do our homework as well as hone
our skills in speaking and communicating effectively.
One of my favorite perks of the job was the post-meeting din-
ners, eye-opening affairs for most of us in the 1960s, coming
from lower-middle-class or blue-collar households and having
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never dined out that often. It was an entirely new experience, and
besides making us appreciate a fine dining experience, it provided
an outstanding forum for discussion, debate, and lively conver-
sation. This, too, proved to be another opportunity to learn and
absorb how to conduct business discussions—or, maybe some-
times, how not to! I learned to enjoy having my own disagree-
ments and conversations with my peer group. It was both
encouraged and expected. Just like the fry man in the restaurant,
who was frowned upon for not keeping up with the rush of cus-
tomers in the store, you had to join in the fray and participate,
lest you be viewed as too quiet. Your opinions mattered. Though
I didn’t realize it at the time, we were developing the communi-
cation skills we’d need as we climbed the corporate ladder.
I enjoyed the lively conversations. I began forming my own
opinions on subjects about business issues such as increasing
sales, managing personnel issues, and more. And I did my best