Fast Food, Fast Talk?Gesprächssituationen in Fast-food Restaurants

Referentinnen: Ingemarie HenningsenLaura Hofman MiquelAntje Lorenz

Talk at Work

Hauptseminar: Talk at Work, Prof. Dr. Jürgen Beneke, O9.12.2003

Fast food «restaurants»

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Why McDonald’s?

biggest

oldest?

all over the world

most successful

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Overview1. Brief history of McDonald’s 2. McDonald’s Philosophy3. Analysing “fast- food-communication”: different types of speech situations

3.1 Employee – employee 3.2 Employee – customer 3.3 Customer – customer

4. Localization: The same standards world-wide – the same food world-wide – the same talk?

5. Discussion6. Bibliography

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1. Brief history of McDonald’s

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Raymond Albert Kroc 1902 – 1984, distributor of « Multimixer »

• 1952 Dick&Mac McDonald’s Restaurant, San Bernadino, California• 1955 Ray Kroc’s first McDonald’s Restaurant, Des Plaines, Illinois• Ronald McDonald – In every language he means fun!• Restaurant locations in 116 countries

1955 Franchising begins in U.S.A. 1984 Taiwan

1967 Canada 1985 Thailand

1971 Australia 1986 Turkey

1972 France 1988 South Corea

1973 Sweden 1990 China (Shenzens pecial Economic Zone)

1974 England 1990 Russia

1975 Hong Kong 1991 Indonesia

1976 New Zealand 1992 China (Beijing)

1979 Brazil 1992 Poland

1979 Singapore 1993 Israel

1981 Philippines 1994 South Arabia

1982 Malaysia 1995 South Africa

  1996 Croatia

Sources : 1994 Student Information Packet, McDonald’s Corporatio, In: Golden Arches East.

Startup Dates for McDonald’s in Various Countries

2. McDonald’s Philosophy

“McDonald’s sells more than fast food.” Watson, James L. (1997), Golden Arches East.

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What is it more?

2. McDonald’s Philosophy

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• efficiency, order, familiarity, good cheer, good value• high standards, cleanliness• image : fun, family orientated• a pioneer in the standardization

basic idea: to serve a very few items of strictly uniform quality at low prices

• “We're not just a hamburger company serving people;we're a people company serving hamburgers.”

• “For McDonald's to achieve our goal of being the world's best quick service restaurant experience, we must have the best experience for all McDonald's employees. So we formalized our beliefs into our People Vision and our People Promise.”

• “Our People Promise is how we remind our people what they can expect and how high our goal is: To be the best employer in each community around the world.”

People Promise and a People Vision

3. Analysing “fast-food-communication”

different types of speech situations

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3.1 Employee – employee

To the 1.5 million people who work at McDonald's in 119 countries around the world, and to all future employees, we want you to know that:

We Value You, Your Growth and Your Contributions.This is our People Promise

From the annual report 2002 of Germany: - 2,27 billion € annual net turnover - 69 new opened restaurants - 1.211 restaurants all over in Germany- 715 million customers within the year 2002 - about 47.000 crew fluctation within the year 2002

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3.1 Employee – employee

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Who are the people which make McDonald's so successful?

1) Managers75 % of the restaurants are owned by managers and

franchisees, NOT by the McDonald's

• corporation• training• control• career• Hamburger University

Hamburger University

Hamburger University is McDonald's worldwide management training center located in Oak Brook, Illinois. Designed exclusively to instruct personnel employed by McDonald's Corporation or employed by McDonald's Independent Franchisees in the various aspects of the business. All training programs begin with one essential ingredient: The Basics of McDonald's Operations.Founded in 1961, Hamburger University's has come a long way since we opened our first training facility in the basement of a McDonald's restaurant in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.

McDonald's Corporate Careers

- social class- dependence of wages more experienced workers the other crew members - 4 steps to train crew people: - prepare - present - try out - follow up - working at the window - 6 steps: - greet the customer - take the order - assemble the order - present the order - receive payment - thank the customer and ask for repeat business

2) Workers

3.2 Employee– customer

Six Steps of Window Service

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3 kinds of difficulties: - special orders

- complaints aboput food

- dispute about money

“The thing that’ s standard is the smile”

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• Customer education• Children as consumer

3.2 Employee– customer (2)

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3.3 Customer – customer

• Why is it necessary to have a look on family dinner conversation?

• Different cultures, different habits

• Different types of the eating process

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3.3 Customer – customer

Features specific to table talk:

• Replicability

• Intentionality

• Formality

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3.3 Customer – customer

Functions:• Instrumental talk• Sociability• Socialization

Specification• Co-narrative• Co-planning• Commenting• Other

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4. Localization:

The same standards world-wide – – the same food world-wide –

– the same talk?

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How do you say "Quarter Pounder" in German?

4. Localization: (2)

1. Modified Menus and Local Sensitiveness: Mc Donald’s Adapts

2. But standardizition of philosophy conflicts in communication ?e.g.: American smile

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5. Discussion• Do you choose McDonald’s abroad?• How do you talk in fast- food restaurants?• Do you deny going to fast- food restaurants and if so,

why?

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6. Bibliography• Brumark, Asa (2003), What do we do when we talk at dinner? A study of the functions of family

dinner table conversation, Södertörns Högskola, working paper 2003:1, Huddinge 2003, Sweden

• Keppler, Angela (1994), Tischgespräche: über Formen kommunikativer Vergemeinschaftung am Beispiel der Konversation in Familien, 1. Auflage, Suhrkamp-Taschenbuch Wissenschaft, Frankfurt am Main.

• Montgomery, Martin (1995), An introduction to language and society, 2nd edition, Routledge, London.

• Silverman, David (2001), Interpreting Qualitative Data, Methods for Analysing Talk, Text and Interaction, 2nd edition, Sage Publications, London.

• Watson, James L. (1997), Golden Arches East, McDonald’s In East Asia, Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.

• http://www.mcdonalds.com/countries/germany/index.html, 08.12.2003• http://www.yum.com, homepage from the brands group (KFC, Pizza Hut, Long John Silvers, AW

– All American Food, Taco Bell), 08.12.2003• http://www.burgerking.com, 08.12.2003• http://www.currywurst-online.de, 08.12.2003

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