Chicago Region Strategic Planning
Steering Committee Meeting
August 1, 2001
- What Attracted You
Think back to when you first decided to join McDonald’s, what attracted you? What were your initial excitements and impressions?
- High Point
During your entire time with McDonald’s, I’m sure you’ve had some ups and downs, some peaks and valleys, some times when your stores and region were performing at their best and some times when they were not. I’d like you to reflect for a moment on a high point experience, a time when your stores/region were operating at peak performance…tell the story. What happened? What was going on?
- What Enabled Your Success
What was it about you, others, and the organization that made your high point experience possible?
- What were your best qualities, skills, approaches, values, etc. that made it a great experience?
- Who were significant others and what did they contribute?
- What were the most important factors in the organization that helped (e.g., strategic focus, leadership qualities, best practices, traditions, structures, procedures, skills, relationships)?
- Core Success Factors
If you could boil it down to the one or two core factors that provide you a sustained competitive advantage in the marketplace, what would they be?
- Three Wishes
If you could develop or transform the Chicago Region of McDonald’s in any way to maximize its sustained success, what three wishes, in order of priority, would you make?
- Strategic Planning That Works
In most organizations, strategic planning processes have a mixed track record. Sometimes they dramatically redirect the course of an organization and provide innovative workable solutions that transform performance. Other times they do nothing. They produce mountains of meaningless facts and figures that have little relevance to the business and end up collecting dust in a forgotten corner of your bookshelf. I’d like you to reflect for a moment on the best, most effective, most successful strategic planning process you’ve ever been a part of. Share the story. Describe the process in detail. What made it successful?
7.The Ideal Strategic Planning Process
Imagine that at this time next year (August 1, 2002), the strategic planning process has been highly successful. It has extended your competitive advantage and has had a profound positive impact on the success of your stores and on the region as a whole. You can truly say, without reservation, that the strategic planning process is a major contributor to restaurant performance. How would you know? What would it look like? What would be its impact? What would be happening that’s new and different?
- Three More Wishes
What are the three most important wishes you have for the September strategic planning meeting to ensure its impact and success?