Case Analysis Guidelines $$ McDonalds $($IA$120\%)$

Task

This is an Individual Assignment. You are required to provide a written report. You are required

to familiarize yourself with the selected case scenario and address all of the questions posed.

Scenario

You are a senior executive. You and your team have been assigned to investigate the primary

causes of the Organization$$s Strategic Management Challenges. You are confident that your

overall Strategic Management experience will allow you to understand the challenge$($s$)$ the

organization is experiencing. You decide to deliver a written report to the CEO detailing your

findings and recommendations and to validate your internal investigation and findings by including

some external research. In meeting with McDonalds executives, you have gained significant

understanding on the topics of discussion within the organization. These include, External

Environment, Business$-$Level Strategy, Internal Analysis, Strategy Concept, Intellectual Assets,

Corporate$-$Level Strategy, and International Strategy. McDonalds$$s CEO was more direct in a

one$-$on$-$one meeting. He has provided you guiding questions on what he is contemplating and

has asked you to submit a formal report:

$1.$ What are the current forces in the external environment that might affect McDonald$$s strategy?

$2.$ What source of competitive advantage does McDonald$$s have, and is that position supported

by its value chain and other internal resources?

$3.$ What other strategies could McDonald$$s formulate to achieve a competitive advantage?

Additionally, some resources were provided to support your analysis.

$$ Information from McDonald$$s history, and interviews with its franchisees, details MCD$$s

turnaround strategy in this article:

http:$//$www$.$nytimes.com$/2009/01/11/$business$/11$burger.html$?\_$r$=1.$

$$ In $2015,$ after Easterbrook$$s promotion to CEO, traffic was down in all market segments, and

was trying new menu combinations to appeal to millennials. See video

https:$//$www$.$youtube.com$/$watch$?$v$=$vBnS$4$E$4$KhAw.

$$ In $2017,$ Easterbrook talked about growth based on what customers want: value and speed,

but also was forced to respond to quality and cleaning up the supply chain, i$.$e$.$ cage free

eggs. In this $12-$minute video, he also notes that consumer economic confidence is what

ultimately drives customer visits. See video https:$//$www$.$youtube.com$/$watch$?$v$=$xfn$-$

D$654$m$7$s$.$

$$ New CEO Kempczinski is trying to prepare his company for a world where wages are rising,

consumer behavior is changing, and the expectations about how companies ought to

behave are constantly evolving. See the full story at

MGMT $661-$ S TRATEGIC M ANAGEMENT

https:$//$www$.$nytimes.com$/2021/07/02/$business$/$chris$-$kempczinski$-$mcdonalds$-$corner$-$

office.html$.$

Written Report

Your report should be presented in a concise management format that reflects your

professionalism. Use Business concepts, organize your ideas, prioritize, and avoid repetition.

Use appendices for figures, charts, exhibits, models, and tables. $10-$point font with one$-$inch

margins, single space, page numbers, headings, cover page, executive summary. You can use

parts of the Strategic Management Problem Solving Template $($SMPT$)$ as appropriate.

Report should have: Cover page $($name of person or persons for whom the report is prepared,

who prepared the report, date, subject. For example:

REPORT ON $[$PART $1$ Consultation Report on $....]$

TO: $[$Name of Host Company, Title of Host Company contact person$]$

FROM: $[$YOUR GROUP NAMES$],$ Strategic Management Consultant

DATE:

SUBJECT:

Executive Summary $($outline the report$$s most important issues and recommendations$).$ Intro $(1)/(2)-$

$1$ page $($Overview$,$ purpose, scope$)-$ Body $2-3$ pages $($issues$,$ analysis, alternatives,

recommendations and$/$or other sections as appropriate with headings and subheadings to provide

structure to your report$)-$Conclusion $1/2$ page $($summary of main findings, avoid new information$)$

Remember to craft paragraph with a main idea and $3-5$ sentences. Use appendices as they are

more concise than prose, qualitative and quantitative aspects of the case and remember to make

specific reference to your appendices in the body of your report. Include implications drawn from

your analysis in the body of the report and quantitative and qualitative analysis using models,

charts, illustrations, exhibits in the appendices. Presenting some of your analysis and findings in

figures or appendices is an economical use of space allowing you to present more information in

less space

You are to write the report in the allotted time and submit a soft copy in MS Word format in the

assignments folder in Brightspace on due date. Case Analysis Report marking rubric applies.

Details are in the Excel File.