Social Innovation and Community Engagement: A Proposal for McDonalds

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Executive summary
The focus on social innovation has been one of the primary factors that most of the
companies that want to build their reputations have been focusing on. One of the primary
benefits of focusing on social innovations is that it enables an organization to not only establish a
positive relationship with its clients but also to enhance its public image. The aim of this paper is
to review and provide a discussion of social innovation and community engagement theory,
propose a social innovation and discuss it in regard to financial, environmental, and ethical
implications. The paper will also discuss how the social innovation contributes to the common
good and some of the significant implementation challenges that are likely to be experienced.
The paper will review these aspects through discussing some of the social innovations that
McDonalds has done and some of the proposals that the management can consider to attain full
benefits.
Social innovation and community engagement theory
According to Didge (2012, p. 89), social innovation refers to the new approaches,
concepts, thoughts, and organizations that focus on attaining the social needs that result from
various things such as working conditions, education, health and development. The reason why
most businesses focus on social innovation is to enhance and strengthen the civil society and also
to make the organization realize a positive public image. Social innovation can also be termed
coming up with strategies to solve some of the challenging issues in the society to promote social
progress.
According to Aliaon & Aliaon (2018, p. 47), the field of social innovation has been
growing over the years, and is mostly influenced on what people and how they reflect on the

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things they accomplish. Various researchers have identified that little attention to the theory, or
to history related to this social innovation. However, other researchers have implied that
although there has been reliable research in the recent years, various aspects such as clear
defined schools of thought, continuing theoretical arguments, and sufficient primary research
programs to test theories against evidence have not been in existence.
Muysinaliyev (2014, p. 78) asserts that social innovation primarily focuses on the process
of innovation and how its existence changes things to better experience. Based on the definition
of this term, various scholars have asserted that it can be characterized by its ability to solve
some of the social issues that other approaches may not address (Claire 2017, p. 38). It is also
characterized by its ability to people, and the capacity to enhance social interactions. Therefore,
social innovation can be said to be one of the factors that play a key role in promoting the quality
of social services and their cost effectiveness, through providing a corresponding, if not superior,
outcomes regardless of the challenges that may arise.
According to Claire (2017, p. 36), social innovation can be termed as an activity that
involve mental creativity and knowledge from different disciplines which are connected within
the society. The social innovation theory of ‘connected difference’ highlights three fundamental
dimensions of social innovation. First, are innovations are made up of new combinations, hybrids
or existing components, rather than absolutely new (Muysinaliyev 2014, p. 78). Second, their
practice of social innovation involves cutting across disciplinary and/or organizational divisions,
and lastly, they lead to fascinating relationships between groups and individuals.
According to Buchanan (2011, p. 67), the introduction of digital technologies has led to
the introduction of a subdomain of social innovation since 2014, which has led to various

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changes in this aspect. The subdomain is known as digital social innovation and refers to a type
of social and collective innovation which innovators, its users, societies inter-relate through
using digital technologies to enhance knowledge and come up with solutions for different social
needs in the society.
Proposed social innovation.
Although there are so many types of social innovations which McDonalds can consider,
innovating an application that aids in identifying healthcare issues that result from consuming its
products can be a great one. According to Muller (2014, p. 65), most of the products that human
beings consume in the recent days are harmful to their health and therefore it is important to
make sound decisions on what to take and what to avoid. Although most of the consumers strive
to ensure they only consume health-friendly products, sometimes being able to understand the
safety of the products is challenging until they test the products to know the risks involved
(Didge 2012, p. 91). This means that if companies that produce food and beverage products such
as McDonalds invent test kits that can be used by its consumers to test the health risks associated
with their products, it can be possible to make decisions on whether to consume them or not.
Although introduction of these kits may have a negative impact on this company
especially on its sells, revenue and reputation, it can be a good way of showing that it is ethical
company which minds not only increasing its sales and revenues but also has a great interest in
promoting health of its consumers (Diane 2016, p. 68). Introducing the kit can also play a
significant role in promoting its reputation and also in making the society to view the company
as the best choice where they can purchase from. The kits, in this case, should show the