MeD'S SERVICE STALLS AT DRIVE-THRU

Survey shows decline accuracy, speed; some franchisees blame menu changes
fourth-fastest chain to the sixth, according to a widely watched survey by QSR Magazine, an industry trade journal. McDonald's franchisees polled about the results by New York-based equity research firm . Buckingham Research Group as part of a separate survey released last month blamed the problems on new menu items and pressure from Oak Brook to speed up service at the drivethrough, where McDonald's generates 60% of its sales. McDonald's goal is for customers behind the wheel to wait no longer than 90 seconds-a long drop from the average 167.9second wait time QSR clocked
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BY JULIE JARGON Drive-through traffic is snarling McDonald's serviceimprovement campaign. Oak Brook-based McDonald's Corp. ranked last out of 25 fastfood chains in a recent study of drive-through order accuracy, down from 20th in 2004. When it comes to drive-through speed, McDonald's went from being the

Drive-through delays jamming McD's plans for improvement

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rise at his stores since 2003, when he created a call center to take drive-through orders for his restaurants and for several other franchisees. Declining to provide specifics, he says the improvement has been "dramatic."

2004 1. Wendy's 2. Checker's 3. Taco. Bell 148.2 5. 5. ChlCk-tll-A 6. Rally's.

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INTERNAL EVALUAliONS

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for McDonald's in 2005 and even the 152.5 seconds in 2004. To be sure, the lengthening waits partly reflect McDonald's success in attracting more customers. But they also highlight a challenge facing the chain as it tries to extend a turnaround that began three years ago, when a new management team reignited sales growth with a back-tobasics strategy focused on cleaner restaurants, longer store hours and more healthful menu items. More than a year ago, McDonald's signaled that faster, more accurate order filling would be the next step.

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In fast food, time literally is money. And with sales growth slowing at McDonald's, shaving off seconds at the drive-through is more important than ever. Sales at U.S. McDonald's open at least 13 months rose 4.8% in November, down from a 7.1 increase in November 2004. Laurie Felda sees no sign of improvement in McDonald's drivethrough service. "McDonald's is the worst at getting things right," Ms. Felda, 28, said during a recent trip to the McDonald's drive-through at 4601 W. Diversey Ave. According to Ms. Felda, who alternates
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between Wendy's, Taco Bell and McDonald's three to five times a week, "McDonald's always gets at least one thing wrong." Erroneous orders eat up precious seconds at the pick-up window, a trend franchisees say isn't likely to reverse anytime soon: 52% of the 2 7 franchisees who responded to the Buckingham Research poll said order accuracy probably won't improve in 2006, while 15% said it

definitely won't. Many blamed the salads, chicken sandwiches and other fare McDonald's has added in recent years. "With' continued emphasis on speed, accuracy suffers," one franchisee noted in the anonymous survey. "Also, the new chicken products have too many options." Each time Molly Amberson, 35, orders a Happy Meal with

apples for her 3-year-old daughter, it comes with fries instead. happens everywhere, not just at this McDonald's, but at the airport and in other cities," Ms. Amberson said while her daughter romped at the McDonald's Playplace at 2608 W. Addison St. Steve Bigari, a franchisee who owns 12 McDonald's in Colorado Springs, Colo., says speed and accuracy have been on the

But McDonald's has no plans to expand the use of call centers for order-taking, a company spokeswoman says. Instead, McDonald's is trying to improve drive-through speed by offering cashless payment options, adding lanes and automating beverage service (Crain's, June 27). In a statement, McDonald's Vice-president of U.S. Operations Edie Waddell says: "Through restaurant inspections, customer and employee feedback and more, we are continually evaluating our performance against our high standards. Our overall internal scores are up, and we have consistently improved over the past two years in order accuracy, drive-through speed of service, and in the areas of quality, service and cleanliness." McDonald's wouldn't share data from those internal measures or comment on the QSR study, which recorded wait times during 598 visits to McDonald's drive-throughs.

Contact: jjargon@crain.com