Improving Management: Burger King

The classical approach has lead a manager to believe that cutting customer wait time will increase organizational efficiency.  In order to help more customers during the busy time of day, managers may want to consider putting more than one intercom outside to take orders.  With two intercoms, twice as many orders can be taken at one time, food can be prepared twice as fast and customer will receive there food twice as fast.  However, before taking this step, the manager needs to first evaluate the efficiency of the employees.  Are all of the employees working to their maximum potential?  Are there changes or incentives that can be given that will affect the efficiency of the employees?  Is the work being divided fairly and according to skill level and ability?  Are our employees happy?  Do the employees have all of the materials needed for maximum efficiency?  After evaluating possible alternatives to having to buy costly equipment, and making sure that it is the best solution to the problem, the manager should then make a small-scale test of the idea to make sure that it will increase customer-waiting time.  An employee can stand outside behind the first intercom and take orders just as he would from the window.  After doing this for a few days, the number of customers helped per period should be re-evaluated using the management science approach.  If the numbers suggest that adding a second intercom will increase customer wait time, the final step, buying the second intercom, should be taken.

The human variable states that employees need to receive a response to requests to maximize positive effects. The behavioral approach leads a manager to realize that they have to consider the feelings of their employees because these feelings have a strong impact on productivity. First, the employees should be reassured that they are all being paid equally the amount that they deserve for the job that they do and the time that they have been doing it.  Treating customers fairly is very important in these types of situations.  After that, an evaluation can be performed to see if it is in the budget to allow these raises and if not, seek alternate solutions.  Turnover is very expensive and should be avoided as much as possible.  Positive reinforcement could be the best way to solve this problem.  Where a raise unexpectedly may seem irrational to corporate, rewarding the employees for increased productivity may seem more reasonable.  You can satisfy the employees as well as upper management at the same time.  Making sure that the goals are reachable for the employees is also key.

When new product ideas are in need, employees could hold the solution that you are looking for. When employees are involved in the managerial decision making process, they tend to feel like they have more of a voice in the company and are happier. Applying the organizational approach would be the best action to take in this situation.  Bringing the employees together to brainstorm new ideas helps the company as a whole and the self-esteem of the employee.  New fresh ideas are brought to the table and extra money did not have to be spent to find them.  Everyone ends up happy and the company profits more.

I think that compared to other corporations, such as a bank or a car company, managing a fast-food restaurant would be relatively easy.  The manager only has to be focused on the food industry.  Managers of major corporations have much more to worry about and take care of. In addition, many of the fast food industries problems have easier solutions.  Designing a new hamburger to market seems a lot easier than having to design a totally new car.  On the other hand, they both have to deal with the similar problems with employees and where they should expand there store and services.