Randy Lai, Managing Director, McDonald’s Hong Kong, believes the latest honour bestowed on her company once again highlights the success of its efforts to create a happy and engaging workplace.
“McDonald’s Hong Kong is delighted to be named a ‘Best Employer’ in 2017 by Aon Hewitt,” she says. “The selection process remains stringent and shortlisted companies must undergo thorough assessments and submit details of their human resources management policies and strategies.”
Given that this is the sixth time McDonald’s has scooped this award, Lai is in a good position to assess the link between good employment practices and commercial success.
“The first step to providing high-quality service is to let the employees feel that they are fully engaged and recognised, and that their good work is being valued. Our founder, Ray Kroc, once said: ‘We’re not just a hamburger company serving people; we’re a people company serving hamburgers.’”
Lai says that by realising a core company value – “Putting our people first” – employees are empowered to deliver the best McDonald’s experience to customers.
“In order to hire and retain quality frontline employees, we put improving the working environment and providing career opportunities as our top priorities so that we can attract talents and raise the competitiveness of our company.”
Citing a study that showed local employees are most concerned with workplace happiness, she says McDonald’s Hong Kong is committed to upholding the “3F Motto” – “Fun”, “Firm”, “Fair” – in order to achieve a joyful and harmonious workplace environment.
Open and transparent communication with employees is another priority for McDonald’s Hong Kong, Lai says. “We regularly hold briefing sessions, such as Store Briefing for restaurant management teams, McCafé Rally and Guest Experience Team Rally, so that our frontline colleagues can communicate with the leadership team directly.”
These sessions are not only used to keep employees informed of the latest company news and developments, they are also a chance for management to learn what frontline employees care about and what they need.
“With active two-way communications, we create a great sense of belonging and strong team spirit,” she says.
Apart from the regular rallies and briefing sessions, the company also conducts annual employee surveys and holds focus groups with employees of all levels.
Rewarding employees for their outstanding performance is something McDonald’s puts strong emphasis on, Lai mentions.
“To celebrate success, we hold Manager Conventions and invite our Restaurant Management Team to go on trips. In the past two years, we have visited South Korea and Macau. Later this year, we are going to have another trip to show our appreciation for the employees’ hard work.”
McDonald’s Hong Kong is happy to have a diverse workforce, and to recognise and meet its differing needs.
Lai appreciates that young talents in the company are eager for learning and career opportunities. The company offers a range of career paths for its career builders’ personal development.
“In our newly launched Guest Experience Team under the brand new service concept Experience of the Future, team members are required to complete at least 150 hours of professional training and a series of internal assessments in order to become qualified.
“Last year, we also launched the McCafé ‘5-STAR Barista’ training and certification programme for those who would like to become coffee experts.”
To date, over a hundred 5-STAR Baristas and more than 400 Guest Experience Specialists have been qualified, delivering quality dine-in experience across restaurants.
She also points out that, for female employees, in addition to Hong Kong’s statutory
10 weeks of maternity leave, McDonald’s offers eight extra weeks of full-paid maternity leave to restaurant management employees, allowing working moms to rest well and refresh before embracing a new chapter in life.
“For our disabled employees, we offer great flexibility in roles and we assign tasks according to their individually assessed conditions,” she says. The company recruits on the basis of ability and attitude, not physical condition. “We will maintain our collaboration with various social welfare organisations and welcome talents of all kinds to join us.”
Outside the workplace, McDonald’s plays an active role in the broader society. The company’s volunteer team was established in 2012 to encourage employees to serve the community during office hours and foster team morale.
“The team has dedicated more than 4,400 service hours to volunteer work in the past four years, a demonstration of our ‘Good Neighbour’ core value.”
Given the highly competitive recruitment market in Hong Kong’s service sector, Lai says there can be no let-up in McDonald’s drive to maintain its standards when it comes to the way it treats and engages with its employees.
“We shall continue to do our best to ensure that employees of different backgrounds, genders and cultures can work together harmoniously and that every talent can develop their full potential at McDonald’s.”
