Discussion Questions:
1. You will recall that McDonald’s vice president of U.S. Menu Management, Wade Thomas, indicated that McDonald’s relied heavily on statistical data to determine, in part, if its products were meeting customer expectations. The narrative indicated that two important sources of data were the sophisticated register system and the restaurant operations improvement process, ROIP. Describe the types of data that could be generated by these two methods and discuss how these data could be used to determine if McDonald’s products were meeting customer expectations.
2. One of McDonald’s uses of statistical data is to determine when products need to be updated. Discuss the kinds of data McDonald’s would require to make this determination. Also provide how these types of data would be used to determine when a product needed to be updated.
3. This video case presents the types of data collected and used by McDonald’s in the course of running its daily operations. For a moment, imagine that McDonald’s did not collect these data. Attempt to describe how it might make a decision concerning, for instance, how much its annual advertising budget would be.
Think of any well-known, successful business in your community. What do you think has been its secret? Competitive products or services? Talented managers with vision? Dedicated employees with great skills? There’s no question these all play an important part in its success. But there’s more, lots more. It’s “data.” That’s right, data.
The data collected by a business in the course of running its daily operations form the foundation of every decision made. Those data are analyzed using a variety of statistical techniques to provide decision makers with a succinct and clear picture of the company’s activities. The resulting statistical information then plays a key role in decision making, whether those decisions are made by an accountant, marketing manager, or operations specialist. To better understand just what types of business statistics organizations employ, let’s take a look at one of the world’s most well-respected companies: McDonald’s.