Page 214 - Everything I Know About Business I Learned

Everything I Know About Business I Learned at McDonald’s

I hear similar sentiments from other McDonald’s alumni,
wheth er its former corporate people, vendors, or licensees. Visit
their offices, and they are eager to reflect their best achievements
and the high points in their careers. This is part of the McDonald’s
culture.
Ed Rensi told me: “I have boxes of plaques and photographs.
. . . I don’t want to get rid of any of this stuff because it means
something to me. And when I do open it up, I go down memory
lane in such an intense way that it’s like . . . this is my memoir.”
Building such a culture did not cost a whole lot of money—
crystal paperweights, plaques, and letters of written praise do
not require a huge cash outlay, but they sure pay back tenfold
in creating lasting pride and motivation. Pat Paterno, who
worked as a salesperson for a milk supplier beginning in 1958,
spoke with me about the immense pleasure and pride he took
when he was given a McDonald’s ring, signifying 10 years of
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service for an employee or licensee. These were given out by the
corporation on an annual basis. While receiving it was unusual
in itself, as suppliers normally were not a direct part of the
anniversary awards program, what made it even more poignant
was the fact that the operators within the area he serviced
bought it for him. Think about that: A group of customers so
thankful to their vendor that they go out of their way to
recognize him in a very personal way.

Team Awards
Awards that praise individuals are powerful tools, but team
awards also can be equally effective and feature the added bonus
of enabling a collaborative group celebrating the philosophy of
Ray Kroc, who believed that “none of us is as good as all of us.”
Back in 1971, for instance, I served as the manager of a new
Long Island store when I was just 21 years old. We had our chal-
lenges, the biggest among them being that the area was just