Operations Management GAP Analysis

Perception Gaps With McDonalds McDonald’s, one of America’s favorite fast food brands, has very mixed reviews from its consumer base. As a result, several gaps in consumer perception of service vs management perception of service have developed. This starts with the initial experience at the register when the customer places their order. The average American expects quality service from food service establishments. This means that they expect to be treated with value and with respect. However, a common complaint made by McDonald’s customers is that the employees seem to never have the customer’s interest in mind. This may result from a misperception from the location’s management. The management may think that customers want nothing more than getting their food quickly, rather than expecting quality customer service. This is the first gap. The second gap forms when the McDonald’s understands what the customer expects, yet has not set a foreseeable way to meet those expectations. This happens when management aims to fill 60 orders in an hour, but only hires three line cooks. There is no possible way of fulfilling that many orders that rapidly with that number of line-cooks. As a result, customers are often left waiting around either at the register or in the drive through. This causes many customers to get irate and some of the more impatient customers choose not to return.
The third gap exists when the management at McDonald’s sets specific standards for customer service, however it is unable to implement these standards. This could result because McDonald’s chooses to hire young, inexperienced individuals who don’t highly value the experience of the customer. In turn, these individuals deliver poor service and lease the customers very unsatisfied. In many cases, the management at these McDonald’s locations is vastly outnumbered by the line cooks, order-takers and dish washers, and therefore has a hard time effectively training low-level employees. Sometimes,