STEVE EASTERBROOK, CEO OF

MCDONDALDS:
Meaning Maker, Trust Builder And
Direction Setter

By: Omar Smith

Agenda Steve Easterbrook

Career Background
Main Stakeholder Communication
Main Challenges as CEO
Approach to Communication

Making McJobs Meaningful

Building Trust Within the Workplace
Directing McDonalds Back to Profitability

Steve Easterbrooks
Background

First British CEO of

McDonalds

Worked at McDonalds for 25

years

Former President of
McDonalds Europe

Former Senior Executive VP

and Chief Brand Officer of
McDonalds

Currently President and CEO

of McDonalds Corporation

Steves Main Stakeholder

Steve
Easterbrook

Steves Main Challenges As

CEO

Employees are feeling undervalued and

underpaid.

Customers are unhappy with the

cluttered menu

Sales in the US have been trending down

McDonalds is under pressure from

competitors.

Steves Approach to Leadership

Communication

Steve has been:

direct when communicating with

stakeholders

visible and accessible both inside and

outside the company

open-minded and takes time to talk with

front-line employees

considered a community developer and a

direction setter.

Steve Provides Meaning to Employees

He leads his employees by providing meaning to

the work they do. He does this by:

rewarding employees for hard work

providing opportunities for growth within the

organization

providing training opportunities to employees

redefying the term McJob to mean something positive

Steve is raising pay at McDonalds. He is quoted as

saying: I believe the time is right to take a first
step in rewarding our team members who work
so hard every day.

Steve Builds Trust within

McDonalds

Steve builds trust within the company by:

using straight talk when communicating with employees

visiting stores regularly

seeking feedback from frontline employees

working with McDonalds for 25 years

doing what he says he is going to do

defending the McDonalds brand, food and employees.

Steve pointed out in a newspaper article that he ate

at a McDonalds restaurant everyday. He also
went above and beyond to redefine the term
McJob to have a positive connotation by directly
confronting critics.

Steve is a Direction Setter

Steve has been tasked with getting the company

back on track. Hes gone about this by:

Building awareness regarding the challenges facing the

company

Communicating a clear strategy and vision for the future

Motivating employees to act now to improve customer

experience

Steve has clearly laid out his goal of revitalizing

McDonalds as a modern, progressive burger
company, delivering a contemporary customer
experience. Hes been using every possible media
outlet to echo his message.

Summing Up

Steve faces a number of

challenges as CEO

He has the personality and the

experience to tackle the challenges

He is an exceptional communicator
whos aim is to:

Create meaning for his employees

Build trust among all stakeholders

Revitalize the company as a modern,

progressive burger company