- The difference between Ray Kroc and the McDonald’s brothers is that Ray Kroc had a vision for the McDonald’s business to grow through a franchise network and would continue to be persistent until he reached success. Kroc saw the McDonald’s burger stand as innovative and unique. The McDonald’s brothers were the first restaurant Kroc has ever seen to have disposable packaging and served food within 30 seconds of placing your order. In the scene when Ray Kroc first went to California and had a McDonald’s burger for the first time you can see that he was observing the efficiency and friendly service while also observing the many people enjoying the food. Kroc saw how popular the restaurant was and saw the vision of McDonald’s having the potential to be expanded throughout the country. Whereas the McDonald’s brothers already tried once and failed at trying to make McDonald’s a franchise. The other locations weren’t staying up to specific codes. It was difficult for the brothers to enforce their high standards amongst the other locations.
- It’s highly debatable whether or not the McDonald’s brothers made the right decision to sell their company to Ray Kroc. It depends on how you look at it. However, I feel that Maurice McDonald was too naïve and not firm enough when it came to handling business. People like that often get swindled easily. Ray Kroc recognized that and used that against the brothers. Even though Kroc treated the brothers horribly if he didn’t involve himself in McDonald’s it would’ve never evolved and expanded globally. Most likely you have a McDonald’s in your neighborhood. It was a good thing for McDonald’s when Ray Kroc bought the company because it would’ve never prevailed to the level that it did. But I think it was wrong and disrespectful to offer the brothers only 1% when they supplied the idea. The McDonald’s brothers deserved better than what they got in return for their brilliant idea.
- The McDonald’s brothers were perfectionists when it came to the quality of their food and service. They were very particular about the way their burgers were served and how fast they can serve orders to customers. This kept the customers coming back as well as spreading the word about McDonald’s excellent service which helped make the local store make money.
- Ray Kroc meets his new business partner Harry and advised him that he should purchase the land and lease it to the franchisees. By being the franchisee’s landlord, he could obtain bank financing for the land, enjoy a consistent income stream, and maintain control over the franchisee’s quality.
- My mind about McDonald’s hasn’t changed but after watching this film I felt so sad for the McDonald’s brothers but from a business standpoint, Ray Kroc worked very hard and almost lost his home because he believed in McDonald’s. Kroc attempted to ask for an extra 1.5% which in my opinion wasn’t greedy but after the brother declined Kroc’s request is what made him commit to his dirty tactics.
Powered by:
top
I agree that the McDonald brothers bears some responsibility in how they allowed Ray into their business and ultimately how their final contract was written. I am not sure whether they underestimated Ray or they were too naive to understand the gravity of the decisions they were making, however if we look at the magnitude of the McDonald’s Organization, it would be correct to say this is probable one of the most tragic American stories and one of the worse contracts ever signed.
I am sure there will be other’s who will see Ray Kroc as a savvy businessman but there is no denying that he swindled the McDonald brothers out of a business they built from the ground. The story was very moving and the end was very heartbreaking .
You’re right. It is highly debatable whether or not they made the right choice to partner with Ray. But, if you look at it from a growth perspective, it is really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the brothers to allow a driven individual to build their business into a multi-million dollar empire. Without Ray’s help, they could never be a millionaire even if they strived to be. They didn’t have the connections and the networking skills to franchise far beyond what they were currently worth.
I agree with Amanda’s statement. Ray was able to grow a powerful career in a short amount of time once the decision was made to enter the real estate and development market. Even further, he presented the franchise to the world as a global entity through the creation of the McDonald’s Corporation. He truly paved the way for the franchise to exist today.