Human Resource Management in McDonald's: Recruitment, Selection, and HR Practices

This article discusses the purpose and functions of HRM in McDonald's, different approaches of recruitment and selection, benefits of HR practices towards employee and employer, and different HRM practices followed by McDonald's. It also highlights the importance of employee relations in influencing HRM decision and analyzes the key elements of employment legislation and its impact.

Human Resource
Management
1

Table of Contents
PART 1............................................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
The purpose and functions of HRM in McDonald's....................................................................3
Different approaches of recruitment and selection......................................................................5
Benefits of HR practices towards employee and employer.........................................................7
Different HRM practices followed by McDonald's.....................................................................8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
PART 2............................................................................................................................................9
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................9
Importance of employee relations in influencing HRM decision................................................9
Key elements of legislation .......................................................................................................10
Application of HRM practices ..................................................................................................11
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................12
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13
2

PART 1
INTRODUCTION
Human Resource Management refers to the management of all decisions of an
organisation which are related to the people of the organisation. HRM is the bridge between the
employee's performance and the organizational strategic objectives.
McDonald's is an American fast food company, founded in 1940. It is one of the world's
largest quick service restaurants. It has over 30,000 restaurants, about 9000 are owned and
operated by the company and others by franchise or joint ventures (McDonald's Corporation -
Company Profile, Information, Business Description, History, Background Information on
McDonald's Corporation, 2021.).
This part shows a brief explanation of HRM and workforce planing, the purpose and
function of HRM. It also evaluates the strength and weakness of the different approaches used
for recruitment ans selection. And lastly it evaluated the different HR practices of the
organization.
MAIN BODY
The purpose and functions of HRM in McDonald's
Human Resource Management is defined as the process of selecting, recruiting,
providing orientation, inducting employees, training and development of employees, appraisal of
employees on the basis of performance and maintaining relations with employees and ensuring
safety and welfare of employees in accordance with the laws (Opatha, 2020).
Workforce planing is defined as the process of forecasting, analysing and planning
workplace supply and demand and determining target talent management to ensure that company
has the right people to fulfill the objectives of the company.
Purpose of HRM
The purpose of human resource management is to ensure that there is availability of right
people for the right job so that organizational objectives of an organization can be achieved
effectively. The primary purpose of HRM are:
 To help the organization to fulfill its goal effectively and efficiently, HRM by providing
competent and motivated employees helps in achieving the desirable goals. The HRM of
McDonald's with a proper recruitment ans selection helps the organization hire the right
people for the job so that the objectives of the organization can be achieved.
3

 Also, the purpose of HRM of McDonald's is that they develop and maintain the quality of
work life which makes employment in the company a desirable personal and also it
increases the job satisfaction of the employees to the fullest. Thus, increasing their
performance.
Functions of HRM
The functions of human resource management has a great significance in the overall
development and growth of the company (Suharti, 2020). That is, when all the employees of the
company grow and develop their skills, the company will automatically have growth and
expansion. The primary functions of HRM are:
 Human resource planning- The aim of HRP is to create the best use of its human
resources and built a trained and flexible employees. To achieve the goal, McDonald's
HRM is concerned with hiring the right people for their organization, using them
efficiently and training and developing them. The HRM of McDonald's includes
searching at how employees are organized within the organization.
 Training and development- It is a very important function that is performed by the HRM
as it helps to develop the skills of existing employees to cope up with the labour
shortages. Also, it helps to reduce the wastage by gaining an excellent performance.
McDonald's is dedicated towards providing training and development of all their
employees and providing them with career opportunities.
 Performance reviews- Another function that HRM of McDonald's perform is conducting
performance review monthly or on quarterly basis to find out the improvement areas of
their employees.
Thus, the above functions of HRM is effective in providing proper talent and skills so
that the objectives of McDonalds can be achieved. That is supports McDonalds in attaining
veritable types and number of employees to achieve their operational and strategic goals. It also
helps in development of conducive working environment for the workers that help in
development of their skills. It also assists the employees of McDonald's to maintain their
performance standards by providing them sufficient training and performance based reviews.
4

Different approaches of recruitment and selection
Recruitment refers to the process of identifying, interviewing, attracting, hirinrg,
selecting and on boarding employees (Hamza, and et.al. 2021.). In simple words, it is a process
of hiring talents.
Selection is a process of choosing the right people from those who applied for the job
(Nikolaou, I., 2021.). In other words, it is a process of putting right men to right job.
McDonald's uses two recruitment approaches. It advertises their job vacancies on their
websites and also use their own personnel department to recruit its staff.
Transfer approach:
It is a process in which job vacancies of the organisation are filled from within the
existing workforce (Ma, 2018). McDonald's uses the transfer approach in internal recruitment for
recruitment of its managers and assistant managers. Transfer approach means when employees
are transferred from one department to other or from one store to another. The strength and
weakness of transfer approach are:
STRENGTHS
 It is cheaper and faster for McDonald's to recruit staff internally as it leverages employees
that it already has.
 It promotes loyalty of the employees of McDonald's and also improves the employee
morale as it acts as a reward for the existing employees. And as a result it helps in
reducing the employee turnover.
 It also saves time and money of the company on training as the internal employees will
already have the knowledge about the organization and its culture
WEAKNESSES
 It limits the chances of McDonald's for new innovation and ideas as existing employees
are comfortable and are not looking fir change. Thus, it stops entry of new blood. Also, it
will result in leaving a gap in the workplace. It results in stagnant culture of McDonald. That is employees get too comfortable
whereas external recruitment can shake things up.
5

Applications through online websites
It is a recruitment process where job vacancies are filled by applicants outside the
organization (Ozen, B., 2021). Mcdonald's advertise their job vacancies on their websites to
recruit the employees. The strengths and weaknesses of it are:
STRENGTHS
 It brings fresh candidates to the organization that is it brings innovation and ideas of
doing things. McDonald's has a wide range to recruit the best employees for the suitable
job.
 It increases the chances of recruiting experienced and qualified candidates in the
organization.
WEAKNESSES
 It is a costly and a lengthy process as McDonald's has to first advertise for the vacancy
then interviewing them, selecting them, training them so it costlier method than internal
recruitment.
 It has a greater risk involved as the new employee may not be worthy of the position and
can take advantage of the company.
McDonald's uses various approaches to select the appropriate candidate. The two major
approaches are:
1. Preliminary screening
2. In person Interviews
Preliminary Screening- It takes place before the company has invested in any resources in
the potential employee (Prathibha). The advantage of preliminary screening is that by the time a
candidate has an in person interview, the HRM of Mcd will be assured that they wont be wasting
any time in suspecting falsified claims and also can ensure that the potential employee does not
have any criminal background and also helps in eliminating unqualified candidates. But it also
has a disadvantage as the screening is carried out by the third party with no connection to the
actual hire and no expertise related to hire, there are always chances of loosing talent in the
process.
In-person interview- Operation manager of McDonald interview the potential employees.
The manager asks various question and test the knowledge of the candidate and check whether
he has filled the form truly or not. The advantage of this approach is that it helps in capturing the
6

non-verbal cues of the candidate which a personnel questionnaire couldn't. It also captures the
emotions of the candidate and has the ability to adjust based on the answers and give the
candidate a feedback. But the disadvantage of in person interview is that it has a relatively higher
cost as compared to other approaches like online surveys or so.
Benefits of HR practices towards employee and employer
HRM is the process of selecting and recruiting staff, and it has to be presented with the
HR practices, as it is the key to organization success. HR practices involves the strategic
operations of HR (Khoreva, 2018). McDonald's HRM practices involve recruitment and
selection, employees, job designing, reward and recognition so that the performance of the
employees can be improved and employees morale is boosted. The different HR practices are:
 Recruitment and selection- the most important HR practices is the recruitment and
selection of the right candidate for the right job so that goals of the company can be
achieved effectively.
 Training and development- it is the HR best practice to invest in the training and
development of the employees to improve the workplace by realizing the skills and
talents of the employees that can help in achieving objectives of the organization
effectively.
 Rewards and recognition- another important HR practice is the rewards and recognition
given to employees as it will help in motivating the employee and Wil result in higher
performance of the employee
The number of organization is increasing in terms of being open to adopting new flexible
working practices so that they can cultivate and maintain a healthier working atmosphere in the
organization.
Human Resource practices are beneficial for both employees and the employers. It is true
for the members of McDonald's as well. The main objective of the employer is to elevate the
productivity of the company whereas, employees are keen toward getting incentives, re-
enumeration and a healthy working environment.
Benefits to employees
With the use of training and development HR practices within workplaces like
McDonald's will help it in keeping the employees motivated in giving the best performances and
7

successfully meeting the targets, driving the company towards its desirable. That is employees
get spare time for their personal works due to the flexible working hours at McDonald's. Because
of this the employees feel valued and thus give more efforts in the production process of the
organization. Sometimes, they also use their spare time in development of McDonald's itself.
Benefits to employer
More and more candidates get attracted towards McDonald's due to the prevailing
recruiting ans selecting HR practices in the organisation. As it provides a healthy and sound
working environment. Thus, it allows the management of McDonald's in maximizing the overall
business productivity, by giving their employees freedom to schedule their own working hours it
will inculcate maximum satisfaction to the employees which will further encourage them in
giving desirable outcomes.
Different HRM practices followed by McDonald's
There are many practices that an organisation follows to achieve their desired goals and
objectives. The practices that McDonald's incorporated are:
Recruitment and Selection
With the proper recruitment and selection practices McDonald's can increase its
productivity that is by hiring the right people for the right job position. The employees hired will
be having the required skill and knowledge that they can use to achieve the goals of the
organization. It will result in higher productivity which will lead towards higher sales resulting in
higher profitability.
Training and Development
Implementing training and development programs for the employees helps in the career
advancement and professional development of the employees (Hiregoudar, 2021). Training is the
most valuable asset for the organization. To meet the organizational goals by overcoming
challenges employees need appropriate skills and knowledge. McDonald's arranges training and
development to increase job satisfaction, to develop skills of existing employees, increasing the
motivation of employees which results in increasing the efficiency of the employees and will
gradually increase the productivity resulting in growth of the company.
8

Rewards and recognition to employees
It is a system where employees are acknowledged for their performance in intrinsic or
extrinsic way. It acts as an incentive for McDonald's as it is designed in such a way that
employees understand that there will be no payout unless the company hits a certain level of
profitability. So, this helps the company to achieve its desirable goals.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that HRM is the key element in the success of
an organisation. It fills the gap between the performance of employee and the strategic goals of
the company. The purpose of HRM is to ensure that right people are hired for the position so
there is no hindrance in achieving the goals of the organization. From the above report it can be
also summarized that there are various HR practices that McDonald's follow to increase the
performance level of employees while increase its productivity. In the end it can be concluded
that HR practices are both beneficial for the employees and the employer.
PART 2
INTRODUCTION
Human resource plays an important role in building strong employee relations. It
conducts activities that allow employees to work with each other efficiently.
This part shows the importance of employee relation influencing the decision-making of
organization. It also analysis the key elements of employment legislation and its impact.
Importance of employee relations in influencing HRM decision
Human resource department is one of the important department in an organization and it
plays a crucial role. HRM department is managing all the activities of a company and taking
necessary steps which is beneficial for growth and development of organization. In a company it
is important that employee relations are good because it helps in increasing overall productivity
of company. When employees are working together and giving their best to accomplish goals
and objectives then firm will earn profit. Healthy employee relations help in increasing
efficiency and work is done properly (Papa and et.al., 2018). It is the responsibility of managers
to provide good working environment to employees and give them work in team so that they can
9

build good relationship with each other. Employee relation influences HRM decisions as when
environment of company is good then human resource department can make better plans and
focus on accomplishing targets. When employees are fighting or not working properly then HR
department has to solve their issues and they are not able to take good decisions.
In McDonald company, employees are having good relationship and this helps in
achieving goals and objectives. Managers are giving work in team so that employees can know
about each other and work as a team to achieve target. Employees are having right to interact
with each other and focus on achieving goals of company. All members are working efficiently
and there is no issue regarding work. This helps HR department to make better plans and good
decision is taken which is beneficial for growth of company. The reason behind success of any
firm is employee relation. In McDonald company, employees are working in a systematic way
and all are interacting with each other. This helps in increasing efficiency of members and
overall productivity of company (Aktar and Pangil, 2018). HRM is responsible for solving issues
among employees and manage all the activities in an organization. When employee relation is
good then managers can give work easily. In an organization it is essential that employees are
having good relationship and they are not creating issues for small things and competing work on
time. So, employee relation influences HRM decision as when environment of company is good
then managers can take decision which is helpful in growth of company.
Key elements of legislation
It is important to apply lead and rules in an organization so that employees can work
safely and it helps in building good image in market. There are some key elements of
employment legislation such as, equal employment opportunities for everyone, there should be
no discrimination among employees on the basis of religion, color, gender or any other basis.
Working time regulation means working hours should be fixed and flexible. Wages and
remuneration must be given according to specialization of employees. Good working
environment should be provided to workers so that they can work efficiently and goals of
company can be accomplished (Voermans, 2017). In every organization, laws must be applied so
that employees can work efficiently and targets of company are achieved. It is important to apply
laws because it helps in satisfying needs of employees and there will be no issue while working.
In McDonald company, laws are applied like, equality, fair wages act, working time
10

regulations etc. These help in satisfying needs of employees and motivate them to work
efficiently. All the workers in McDonald company are satisfy and they are working effectively
and focusing on accomplishing goals and objectives. Managers of organization identify needs of
workers and accordingly they make plans so that work can be completed on time. There is no
discrimination among employees and all are having equal rights and opportunities. All members
are included in decision making process and views are taken from all employees so that better
plans can be made or changes can be done.
Elements of employment legislation has impact on HRM decision as it includes, anti
discrimination law, protection of employees from unfair practices, proper rights should be given
to workers. It is the responsibility of managers to provide good working environment to
employees and working hours must be flexible (Guerrero and Urbano, 2019). This helps in
increasing efficiency and overall productivity of company. For accomplishing targets, it is
essential to apply laws and rules so that employees are satisfied and work efficiently. HR
manager should take fair decision and there must be no discrimination among employees and
make plans which is beneficial in growth and development of company. When all things are
done according to laws then HR manager can take good decisions and goals of company can be
accomplished.
Application of HRM practices
There are many practices which is performed by HR manager for achieving goals and
objectives of company. In an organization, there are many roles and responsibilities which HR
managers have to perform like, recruiting and selecting best candidate for company, providing
training to new joiners and development program is organized for existing employees to improve
their performance. Human resource manager is responsible for providing favorable working
conditions to employees, they are deciding compensation and wages of workers (Bibi, Ahmad
and Majid, 2018). Performance of every employee is measured by managers and accordingly
they are giving benefits to workers. Managers are making plans for employee retention and try to
satisfy their needs. In an organization, human resource department plays a crucial role in
managing all the activities and solving issues of employees.
In McDonald company, HR manager is responsible for recruiting and selecting best
candidate for organization so that goals and objectives can be accomplished. They are providing
11

training to new employees so that they can learn how to do work and there will be less chance of
mistake. Managers are evaluating performance of employee and arrange development program
for workers whose performance is not good. They are creating favorable working condition for
employees so that they can work efficiently and focus on accomplishing target of company
(Malik, Baig and Manzoor, 2020). For employee retention, managers are giving them all the
facilities, extra benefits are provided, bonus is given etc. These are some ways which is used by
managers of McDonald company to retain employees.
CONCLUSION
From the above part, it can be concluded that human resource development plays a
crucial role in the organisation. It is important that company should have good employee
relations as it increases the productivity of the company. Lastly, it can be concluded that there
are various key elements of employment legislation that are essential for the successful running
of the organization.
12

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Aktar, A. and Pangil, F., 2018. Mediating role of organizational commitment in the relationship
between human resource management practices and employee engagement: does black
box stage exist?. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy.
Bibi, P., Ahmad, A. and Majid, A. H., 2018. HRM practices and employee retention: The
moderating effect of work environment. In Applying partial least squares in tourism
and hospitality research. Emerald Publishing Limited.
Guerrero, M. and Urbano, D., 2019. Effectiveness of technology transfer policies and legislation
in fostering entrepreneurial innovations across continents: an overview. The Journal of
Technology Transfer. 44(5). pp.1347-1366.
Hamza, and et.al. 2021. Recruitment and Selection: The Relationship between Recruitment and
Selection with Organizational Performance. International Journal of Engineering,
Business and Management. 5(3). pp.1-13.
Hiregoudar, S.S. and Patil, R.N., 2021. IMPACT OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
NEEDS ON OVERALL PERFORMANCE OF THE ORGANISATION AT
MANAGERIAL LEVEL. Elementary Education Online. 20(5). pp.7309-7313.
Khoreva, V. and Wechtler, H., 2018. HR practices and employee performance: the mediating
role of well-being. Employee Relations.
Ma, Q.K., Mayfield, M. and Mayfield, J., 2018. Keep them on-board! How organizations can
develop employee embeddedness to increase employee retention. Development and
Learning in Organizations: An International Journal.
Malik, E., Baig, S. A. and Manzoor, U., 2020. Effect of HR Practices on Employee Retention:
The Role of Perceived Supervisor Support. Journal of Public Value and Administrative
Insight. 3(1). pp.1-7.
Nikolaou, I., 2021. What is the Role of Technology in Recruitment and Selection?. The Spanish
Journal of Psychology. 24.
Opatha, H.H.D.P.J. and Uresha, K.I., 2020. HRM and its impact on employee happiness: An
empirical study on Sri Lankan employees. Asian Journal of Social Sciences and
Management Studies. 7(2). pp.114-123.
13

Ozen, B., 2021. Successful Global Recruitment/Talent Attraction: What are the Factors,
Challenges, and Suggestions?.
Papa, A., and et.al., 2018. Improving innovation performance through knowledge acquisition: the
moderating role of employee retention and human resource management
practices. Journal of Knowledge Management.
Prathibha, G. and Sandhya, K., SCREENING AND SELECTION PROCESS IN
RECRUITMENT.
Suharti, L. and Sugiarto, A., 2020. A qualitative study OF Green HRM practices and their
benefits in the organization: An Indonesian company experience. Business: Theory and
Practice. 21(1). pp.200-211.
Voermans, W. J., 2017. Legislation and regulation. Draft for the Handbook of Legislation (eds.
H. Xanthaki & U. Karpen).
Online References
McDonald's Corporation - Company Profile, Information, Business Description, History,
Background Information on McDonald's Corporation, 2021. available
through<https://www.referenceforbusiness.com/history2/56/McDonald-s-
Corporation.html>
14

15