Page 9 - Everything I Know About Business I Learned

Foreword by Ed Rensi

f my 40-plus years in business, 33 were spent at McDon-
Oald’s, 14 of which I served as president and CEO of the USA
division. There, I saw unbelievable strategic leadership, motiva-
tion, and inspiration at play every single day. I was surrounded
by people who taught me something new nearly every day. And
I had the privilege of being mentored by Ray Kroc, a true vision-
ary, and Fred Turner, the operations genius who created an
organization that could replicate success and best practices.
What made McDonald’s so wildly triumphant? If you’d have
asked me this question 15 years ago, I might have answered
“standards.” But, having retired in 1999, I now view that ques-
tion with a measure of objectivity. I look at strategic rather than
tactical things. It wasn’t the Big Mac that drove McDonald’s suc-
cess. It was the auspicious leadership that had the courage to
say, “okay let’s give it a try”—“it” being the introduction of
something new, whether it was Chicken McNuggets, innovative
equipment, an enhanced breakfast menu, or an expansion of the
drive-thru concept. The company had the systems in place to
support such innovation. It delivered messaging—“QSC”: qual-
ity, service, and cleanliness—that everyone in the organization
could easily wrap their arms around. It had great talent. We kept
our focus on the customer, and that’s how we maneuvered miles

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