Transforming jobs at McDonald’s amidst automation

McDonald's is one of the leaders of automation in the fast-food industry in Singapore. But instead of cutting jobs, they have transformed them.
By: | February 24, 2020

We’ve all visited a McDonald’s. But what is it like to work under the Golden Arches? HRM Asia speaks to Lynn Hong, HR Director of McDonald’s Singapore, to find out what the culture is like at the company and how they continue to develop their people. Here is the final part of our feature interview.

Read Part 1: It’s one big McFamily at McDonald’s

Read Part 2: Culture of recognition at McDonald’s

The fast food industry has seen one of the biggest impact of digitalisation and automation. And McDonald’s is one of the first quick service restaurant companies in Singapore to introduce self-ordering kiosks. Today, 90% of their 136 outlets have self-ordering kiosks.

“With digitalisation, we are humanizing the brand to create more meaning to their jobs as they engage and interact with customers.”

So what happened to the job of the cashier?

“With the introduction of self-ordering kiosks, we have fewer people behind counters. But jobs were not lost. They were redesigned from just taking orders to now more customer-facing and hospitality-driven roles,” Hong said.

“With digitalisation, we are humanizing the brand to create more meaning to their jobs as they engage and interact with customers. For example, new roles like Family Ambassadors or Guest Experience Leaders have come about because of job redesign.”

What do you get with 11,000 employees? Lots of data. And Hong said digitalisation has enabled the company to make use of the data to make better decisions and strategies.

“Digitalisation also helped HR in terms of having more data and info which we can use to make better decisions especially when you have 11,000 employees.

“We are able to use this data and help us in our recruitment and retention strategies,” she added.

Why McDonald’s?

As the quick service restaurant industry continues to grow, so will the competition for people. So what differentiates McDonald’s from its competitors?

“We are committed to training every individual into a leader in his or her own right.”

“We all know the labour market is very competitive at the moment. So why choose McDonald’s and what is our strength? What can we offer to people who join us?” she said.

“We can proudly say that people development is a key brand advantage that we have over our competitors. Whether a crew or manager, we are committed to training every individual into a leader in his or her own right. We want every employee to find value and meaning at McDonald’s.”